Originally Posted by
Clare Prop
So there is a cost, the cost of two pilots on a single pilot operation. Airlines are a two crew operation and they would practice emergency procedures on the sim, so not sure how they can be compared.
After sim training a new airline pilot would usually fly the first handful of sectors with a third pilot onboard, if the training Captain became incapacitated at least there’s one fully operational type rated pilot onboard. And then beyond that stage they’d fly with a training captain for a month or so, who is payed a higher wage than an ordinary line Captain. Along with the cost of sim training and induction paid for by the company, so a new trainee is quite a cost to the company, but they (at least not with majors now in Australia) demand the trainee pay up front to cover that, especially with no guaranteed job. That’s just the cost of doing business.
I never remembered these $5k courses in past times. Operators interviewed new pilots, selected those suitable and gave them the C210 training and local experience they needed til they were ready to do the job alone. So why is it a necessity now? It’s just exploitation of young pilots. What next? Pay for 50/100hrs of C200 series “line experience” to be “employable”? Pay $5k for a “C208 ready course”?