To be fair to
VB (& No I don't work for them!), Virgin Express, Ryanair, Easyjet & Fruudum Urr (NZ) all had a pay for rating policy long before Tricky Dickie came to town.
Older fellas like myself see the real change being a result of the very different entrants into the aviation job market. In the 1970's and 1980's there were few "flying schools". Most pilots came from the RAAF, Aero Clubs and GA charter - we mostly worked our way up and there weren't so many of us around either. (Never saw advertising about becoming a Civil pilot then) Had anyone asked us to pay for a rating they would have had very little chance - we mostly didn't have, nor could we get the $! Not mention it would been taken as quite an afront - akin to asking a Dr to pay to learn how to use the latest hospital machine that goes "ping".
IMHO from the 1990's on there was a new phenomenon (big word for a pilot you say?). That was the profit oriented flying schools started up, aviation got widely advertised as a career choice for confused teenagers with wealthy folks, and the whole atmosphere changed with it. (Let me see shall my little Jonny or Mary be a Dr, Lawyer or Pilot? Hmmm - nice uniforms! DONE) It was quite noticeable to those of us on the scene then - the attitude of the aspirants was totally different. They were youn and had mummy's $ (although they always denied it - claiming a bank lent a 19 year old $50k with no assetts, no job and no history
To be fair to these kids in my view the flying schools were often fibbing to them about the job market and as such worsening the situation by flooding the market with wannabes.
They became a bit worried and before you could say "country road sale now on" it seemed that everywhere you turned you heard - "I'll work for free". Then it became "I'll pay for ME F/O time on commercial ops". And sure enough came "I'll pay for my on the job training" (i.e. type rating). And why not eh? If you are young, have no real debts and the folks are subsidising your living expenses - go for it! You can jump the que and be posing in that nice airline uniform much quicker eh!
Pity that it buggered it for everybody else eh
And you can hardly blame the airlines for lapping it up can ya? They run a business - their objectives are simple; Profit maximisation through cost minimisation, share price and profit bonuses for the CEO, etc. To be honest I'd be tempted if I was the CEO to go that way - only my resultant imsomnia would stop me!
We've done it to ourselves fellas - So don't blame the airlines so much. Its become std practice now. I only hope these rumoured shortages are real, maybe we can put things right a bit.
I recently had the pleasure of declining a Jet* interview, answering the lovely lady's question "why" with that sorry but I: don't pay for interviews and travel on QF to a QF interview for a job I am already doing, on the same type, for more money than you pay back home in OZ.
Many of my fellow antipodeans here feel the same - the only thing a job at home gives you is that - home. In most other respect its become a loser!
