*I* would do the following if I had £60k and no licenses:
Distance learn ATPL exams then Modular CPL IR from one of those smaller word of mouth FTOs that litter the countryside.
Then with £15k left over I would spend £5k on an FI rating and get a job - any job and there was one begging last week in the FI Forum for anyone willing to move to Scotland - and build a few hours.
I'd then almost immediately target a smaller operator - perhaps on the same airfield. Someone like BAC Express, Loganair, Emerald, Eastern or maybe some air charter/taxi outfit or someone like the Fisheries protection people.
I'd turn up at each and offer very simply and quickly that you want to join and have the £10k in cash today to cover the type rating IF they hire you. I am pretty sure that after a while one of these smaller operators would take you on. In the meantime you are building hours as a lowly PPL FI and if you've any sense having a ball in the process.
Once you have secured your seat in a Shed, HS748, Cessna Caravan, ATR or whatever you will rapidly acquire 1,000 hour multiengine multicrew.
Ta Da! Congratulations, who are no longer an inexperienced Wannabe - airlines will start returning your calls and filing your CVs.
Yes yes, it would have been nice to cut out the hard work and go straight to an airline jet with 200hrs. But - as many have told you - thats just a lottery.
There is certainly no shortage of flying instructors but then neither are there any that I know of that do not have a job at the moment. I know of two people flying low profile turboprops in the UK who this month have left to fly for NetJets. Their vacant jobs will NOT appear in Flight. You *could* very possibly secure those vacant seats IF your CV was in the Chief Pilots hand with your offer of covering the rating costs still ringing in his ears.
(please don't Private Message me asking for the company)
The pays not much but its over £20k. The flying is challenging and interesting. The previous job holders did it for less than two years and are now blatting around the world in shiny executive jets.
I wouldn't sign on the line for an 18 month training programme involving a B737 type rating.
However, the scheme with Astraeus does have more merit than any other B737 type rating scheme I've seen so if you really want one then that's probably the place to go.
Cheers
WWW