Originally Posted by
nigelsomers
Hi All,
I recently finished all of my training (frozen ATPL) and have a lot of debt (discussed elsewhere!), and looked at different ways of kickstarting my flying career. Does anyone know much about how difficult it is to get a shot at the "Qantaslink Trainee First Officer" role? The minimum requirements seem quite low (but a bonus for me!). Any tips or experience would be great!
Nigel
Source -
https://www.qantas.com/au/en/about-u...perations.html
Hi Nigel,
If you've done an Aviation degree through a uni that has partnership with Qantas, you can apply for the Qantas Future Pilot Program, which may eventually lead to a FO position in QLink.
If not, then I think your best bet is to build experience through instructing or by flying in GA for a while before the industry recovers. For the latter, be prepared to relocated to remote regions of Australia & work a few temporary jobs (bars, cafes, servos, farms etc) whilst waiting for flying work. Basically the idea is to show them you're persistently keen to fly and willing to do whatever it takes to get a flying job.
The selection process involves a group exercise, a behavioural-based interview based on how you dealt with different situations in life, a few technical questions based on briefing an approach plate (usually the RNAV 24 into Ballina). This all takes place in day 1. I would recommend looking into the 'STAR' method of answering the behavioural-based interview questions - Situation, Task, Action, Result.
On day 2, if you pass the interviews, you'll be given a sim assessment, which is typically on the 767 sim, but this might change based on sim availability/maintenance. It involves some basic instrument flying and air work, as well as a VOR & ILS approach. Get used to reading VOR radials using an RMI only, and flying sector entries using an RMI only (push the head, pull the tail!). It would also be a good idea to brush up on your raw data flying. Configure early for the approach & slow down sufficiently before descending on the glideslope, as the sim you'll be flying will depict a larger aircraft than what you would've been flying, and will have a lot more inertia. Similarly, when intercepting radials/localisers, start turns a bit earlier due to the extra inertia, or else you might end up overshooting your target radial/localiser. Prepare thoroughly by studying the simulator study pack they'll send you prior to attending the interview & know all your attitudes and thrust settings by heart!
I would also buy the QLink interview information/preparation package off Pinstripe solutions & read through all the .pdf files.
It might take a while for you to secure the role, given the big hold file & COVID right now. But with the right mindset & a bit of persistence, you'll succeed.
All the best!