Hey guys, I’m a flight instructor at CAE in Phoenix currently in the process of getting certified to train EASA & UKCAA MPL and ATPL cadets. I hope I can speak a bit on why some of the delays have been occurring for y’all. A lot of the management decisions are way above my paygrade and what I am allowed to know, but I do see the day-to-day operations on campus, so I will speak on that.
1. Upper and local management is reactive rather than proactive. A vast majority of the flight instructors who will train you are only doing so as a means to an end so they can reach the airlines in the USA (this does NOT mean they are apathetic or uninterested in delivering quality flight training, but being a flight instructor is the de-facto method of accruing the required flight time to become an ATP in the USA). Over 75% are affiliated with a cadet program of their own, and will be moving onto the next stage of their careers as soon as they possibly can. Many will be off to greener pastures very soon - as in by the end of 2025. Management has not ignored this, but is having a hard time addressing this issue.
2. There is a SEVERE lack of people who can train and certify FAA flight instructors to become EASA/UKCAA instructors in the USA. They need to be FAA, EASA, and UKCAA certified, but most people who can do this are from Europe and prefer to live in Europe - go figure. There are only a handful of them on property - some work and fly every day, others not so much. However, there are at least 20 instructors who are in the process of being trained but it will likely take months for all the reach the flight line. I can see maybe 8-10 being added by the end of 2025. I can also see 8-10 leaving for an airline in the same timeframe.
3. CAE sent us to Malaga (hilarious decision after reading this thread) to get some of the training done as a way to circumvent the sever shortage of these instructors in the USA, but found quite literally a years worth of sending CFI’s to Spain fraudulent and ineligible for the certificates. Each and every one will need to be retrained in the USA, thus ending up in the same situation but now much worse. I wish I was kidding.
4. Core Phase 2 can only be done by F2 instructors, which require additional training and certification. This only adds to the growing backlog of instructors needing to be trained. Most of the EASA/UKCAA flight instructors are only F1 qualified, meaning they can only teach Core Phase 1. The few hours of MEP time can only be done by F3 instructors. Out of the 5 or 6 we have, all but one are leaving soon. Those who are being trained to take their place, are leaving soon… like I said - management is reactive rather than proactive.
5. The good news! It appears CAE has finally sent the cavalry to Phoenix to address some of the bigger issues. There is a heavy financial incentive to fix this, as the financial penalties to EasyJet are not easy to stomach if cadets are not on time. CAE has appointed a new FTO Director that wants to lower the student-instructor ratio to 4:1 so cadets will fly much more often per week. He also wants to move to a monthly scheduling system, rather than the day-before method currently in place (absolute blessing). Also, qualified instructors and examiners are being sent from around the world to get the 20 or so of us trained and on the line. That includes more F1, F2, and F3 instructors all in the next few months.
I hope this helps speak to why some of the issues at CAE in Phoenix have been happening. If you were in Malaga or Granada the past few months, and you saw a group of beaten down American dudes from CAE, that was me and the boys. Also, if you’re scheduled to begin in Phoenix in the Fall of 2025, you might be flying with me!