Cebu Pacific Cadet Pilot Program
SHEDDING LIGHT INTO CEBU PACIFIC'S CADET PILOT PROGRAM.
Hi everyone! As an aspiring aviator, I would just like to know your thoughts on Cebu Pacific's Ab-inito program.
Last October 2017, it was announced that Cebu Pacific partnered up with Flight Training Adelaide for a cadet pilot program for aspiring Filipino pilots. 16 cadet pilots will be sent to Adelaide each batch, and there will be 3 batches per year.
After the year-long training, the cadets will be coming back to the Philippines for license conversion, Type rating (which is another contract all together), and Line Training for 6 months (with only P20,000 pay, basically the same with newly hired pilots).
I've read previous threads about Cebu Pacific's environment, culture, type rating bonds, horror schedules.... and I just feel like this is one of those....
When you think about it, is it really worth spending 10 years for the airline AND paying ALL EXPENSES incurred during your training (including one's visa, medical, food & accommodation, and etc)? It is basically a LOAN program. Not a scholarship, as some have claimed.
Although you have the option to pay for all these expenses earlier which is around $100,000, instead of reducing it to your salary in a monthly basis for 10 years (...why join the program, just get your training from a regular flying school around P2-3M), you are still obliged to serve 10 years for CP.
There are other cadet pilot programs out there which are SPONSORED by airlines and those pilots are only bonded with 5-7 years. I find it outrageous when cebu pac does not only bond you for 10 years but really, you'll be paying every peso spent on your training and will be in-debt with them for a longgggg time.
While I applaud CP for their money making/saving mindset *cough* training cadet pilots with European-Australian Standards and tying them up to them *cough*, joining the cadet pilot program....isn't really that...great. Although a lot of people are saying it is and I quote "Those accepted basically won the lottery".
Based on all these, I've come to a conclus aspiring cadets out there if you have the money....don't join the program at all.
This is my opinion, any additional thoughts out there? Is it really great at people and even airline pilots (from Pal, Air Asia and CP itself) say it is?