Tower Dog,
Yeah, I do - for Cathay.
I am not saying that the tests in the other major airlines are exactly the same as SAS but in principle they are. Ever heard of the group excercise in BA?
Regarding SAS' safety record, I saw a list the other day of incidents (or maybe it was fatalities) per million sectors and SAS was number two in the world! Number one was Southwest, I think.
Your comment about having a lot of hours and then interviews and tests shouldn't be necessary doesn't hold. 5 years ago CX made their cargo department a separate unit and started recruiting cheap captains and F/Os. The salaries were so low that they took anyone they could get hold of without the same screening as the mainline guys. Guess what, the first year they kicked out half because they weren't up to standards. They all had 1000s of hours. A friend of mine (local guy with 250 hours) was in the sim with one guy who used to fly MD80s in the US. Despite his lack of experience, my buddy had to run the show every time.
I know that experience counts for a lot but not everything. Being switched on helps a lot too.
BTW Towerdog, er du lige begyndt hos AA på 727? Kender du min gamle kammerat, Atif? Han er fransk og sort som natten. Han er også på 727 i Miami.
PS: Why are we speaking English? I thought this was a scandinavian forum!