How many 'Professional Pilots' are out there currently working for an Airline without A-levels quals?
Quite a few.
If so did u all go down the 'self sponsored' route
No, but in this day and age you wont get sponsorship (such as CTC) without A levels.
and was it difficult to find work after
It's hard to find work, 'A' levels or not. If you are studying for them then stick with it, it certainly does help but if you left school years ago then its not the end of the world.
were they looking to the ones with more background quals than yourself?
I think the honest answer is yes. However there is a hell of a lot more to flying airliners then exam results when you were a kid and there are many many excellent pilots who were educated in the university of life instead.
P.S. Chill out
dartagnan!!!
