Are some large ATOs artificially causing training delays??
Well it’s no secret that there are huge backlogs at some ATOs. Businesses obviously need cash flow to survive, I think this is why so many businesses love subscription type services as it guarantees income for a fixed period of time......
I’m wondering if some ATOs are purposely signing up way more cadets than they can handle and delaying the cadets for as long as they can get away with it. If they have a big backlog of cadets(cash cows) then in theory they can almost guarantee x amount of income for x number of months/years in advance; it’s win win for the accountants, managers and investors. I think some ATOs are just treating flight training as an instrument to generate money and could care less about the training itself.
Does my theory have an basis?? Am I just stating the obvious? Is there anything we can do to demand more standards and accountability from ATOs? Why is there not an independent body that audits flight schools and licensing like in a lot of other industries? Commercial flying is such a safety critical and highly specialised profession, why do we pilots have to navigate through such an unprofessional, outdated, jiggery pokery, corrupt system full of con men and sharks to get our licences??