ACMS you sound very similar to an AOA commitee member i talked to the other week about this issue. I questioned him wether the AOA was addressing the training problem and the high failure rate on command courses. His reply was "off course not its the companies trainset they can do it how ever they like" i questioned him further saying it was AOA members having there lives ruined by this. (There are over 120 people on the seniority list either Cat B'd or D'd ie senior to the most junior 330 or 777 captian) He again pushed the point saying if thats how the company wants to run the training system then thats ok.
Unbenowen to that committee member i had my AOA application form and cheque in my bag, I was on my way to post it when i stopped for the coffee. The only place that application went was the bin.
Lets put it in a way you may appreciate. Do you have kids.. are the really stupid (off course not) How would you feel if you sent them to a school that had a very strict entry process including exams and a history check on there previous school records. Then 30-50% of the kids in the same class FAILED, not passed with an average mark but failed outright. Who would you be pointing your finger at. I bet when you saw that your kid was amongh 30-50% of other kids that had failed you would start asking questions about the training system.
What does surprise me in the CX case is that the DFO has not started to hold the training managment more accounable. 30-50% is unacceptable even from the finnacial cost.
My 50 cent answer to a lot of the problems.
1. Hold the review board before the candidate goes up for the check, so the instructors can train the problems out of the candidate. The company will then save valuable resources in freeing up BTCs/STCs for other checks and give the TCs somnething to train, It also saves the candidate failing, losing confidence and entering the CX spotlight.
Before you reply and say that the problem is in the candidates check. well hands up anyone that does not know a friend/peer that has passed the check only to be knocked back at the review board.
2. Make the TCs and Checkers more accountable by having the trainee sign off on his ERAS. OK leave the final say to the checker but have a feedback system. We all know of the checkers that will say nice flight welldone then write up an aweful ERAS.
an example a new cpt told me the other day. on his 3Bar with a certain infamous A330 STC going into Saigon or somewhere similar. the VOR was U/S. so the STC asked him what he was using for the 25nm sector MSA, he replied he was using the ILS DME as it was appoixmitely in the same location and displayed on his PFD. The checker queried why not put SGN VOR onto the PROG page on the MCDU. The trainee used the magical letters O..I..C. This discussion was hardly even included in the debrief. however the ERAS later read "poor terain awareness" This 3 letter comment meant he failed the review board and had to do another 3 bar check which subsequently was with another checker and passed with flying colours.
Does the CX training system have a problem... of couse it does and if you disagree you must be either in managment or wanting to be in managment.