Having been fortunate to gain my instructor's rating when I was a mere PPL with 150 hours in command I can see everyone's point of view particularly as I could take my time to acquire my CPL and ATPL on the self improver route. Having been a part time fixed wing instructor who at one time worked as the only fixed wing air taxi pilot for a helicopter firm, I was interested to note that their rotary wing instructors were paid a living wage! This is due entirely to market forces and that there are no "glamorous" jobs at the end of a rotary wing PPL as their might be if the cheaper fixed wing path is followed. Over the last 30 or so years all the arguements have been considered and one point has been the wish to establish the career fixed wing instructor as the poor quality of fixed wing instructor has been noted by those who use it as a means to hour building. Over those years it has been made more "difficult" to get a fixed wing instructor rating to try and circumvent this problem. First it was the BCPL, now as we know, new instructors are expected to hold full CPL's before taking the FIC. It has made little difference as the new CPL with 1000 hours in his logbook is infinitely more attractive to most airline employers than the guy with 250 hours thus using instructing for hour building is in as much demand now as it has ever been.
Once again we appear to be entering a phase where there is a demand for newly qualified pilots and the instructors who have been waiting for their airline opportunity for years, living in penury as an instructor to keep current if nothing else are now taking the opportunities now offered with both hands. It has happened before and will do so again. Let us hope that this time market forces will force up instructor wages to the levels of our helicopter colleagues and enable those who want to make a career out of instructing to do so.
Another market force which has affected matters is the ease in borrowing money these days. I just managed to self fund my own CPL, but the I.R. was beyond me. After much planning I went to my bank manager, flashed my CPL and told him that I wanted to borrow a maximum of £3000. It was the first request of this nature he had ever received and I walked out of his office with an unlimited overdraft to go and get my rating! (Yes it was quite a few years ago - 1980 to be precise).
A few years ago I found myself flying with a newly qualified first officer who confessed that her loan to get her CPL/IR exceeded £80,000. Aparently she could only afford on her wage to pay the interest on her loan, not any of the capital back.
I hate to say it but easy money like this has made it so much easier for people to train for the CPL which has lead in part to the situations we have seen over the last few years. I hate to think of the numbers of people out there who have failed to get a job, run out of money, lost their recency as a result and are now either bankrupt or seriously considering it. They have probably given up all ideas of a career in aviation and will possibly regret the decision they made to train for the rest of their lives.
P.P.