It has been stated on this forum more than once that people are passing CPLs today who would not have passed PPL in the early-mid 80s...and that's probably not too much of an exageration.
I have personal experience of a 1600hr Grade 3 Instructor/IFR/ATPL etc who should not have a licence to fly a kite...in fact two who were a tad ordinary...neither could pass a real IFR renewal not done by a mate.
Back in those days people did actually fail and get told 'sorry fella...pick a different hobby/career'...although even then it was getting rarer...these days schools will keeping taking someones money for as long as the individual keeps offering it...fair enough some will say but it really is a less than morally defensible position....particularly when, as has been pointed out...almost any idiot can pass given enough attempts...bet they couldn't do it twice on consecutive months with zero practice between attempts.
Too many schools, too many instructors competing for too few students...how to cull back the numbers....I really don't have an answer.
But standards?
A little easier to address however unpalatable for some. Either get rid of the ATO system or at least cull it back. Have a rotating roster of ATOs assigned to schools so they have no ability to pick 'easy' ones to test candidates...force a FOIs to do at least 30% of all flight tests. If an ATO/FOI has a 100% pass rate pull him in for a severe talking too and revue of his records.
Rewrite the training & testing syllabii and make them a lot harder...I have no gripe with making some exams oral...IFR/Air Leg for starters...Bi-annuals become Annuals and consist of a long searching oral covering rules/airspace/atc/limitations of the aircraft type being used for the test...and then a searching flight test covering EFATO, stalling, steep turns, enroute engine failure and glide approaches to touch down on a handy ALA. If any sequence is deemed lacking i.e. you'd have died/crashed, stalled out of the steep turn or lost/gained 100s of feet, glide approach didn't land within 200' of nominated touchdown point, speed etc outside tolerances...then a fail is issued and the student cannot retake the test for 1 month. No multiple attempts within one flight test allowed.
A few 'rough areas' on the oral need not be a fail but areas discussed & noted on file and tested again next year...or next month if the flight test failed...if flight test failed then the whole process deemed a fail and oral to be retaken as well as flight test.
Pilots employed by approved operators/airlines who have an approved in house checking and training organisation exempted the Annual...we already do the above every 6 mths.
Instructors tested every 6 mths, by the authority at no cost other than aircraft costs (born by the employer)...such test to make the ordinary annual look like a 'Love in'.
Any pilot unable/unwilling to make the effort is free to **** off and fly ultralights from a remote paddock.
Hmmmm...feel better now
