I reckon that what we are seeing here is the application of "other airline' thinking to
VB's situation.
It is the old " At airline X we had to do 5 years in the right seat, and we needed every minute of it.." thinking.
In europe, a far more demanding operational environment, pilots with very low experience - when compared to the average
VB intake pilot - are taking command of 737, 757 and bigger...
I don't believe that you need 3-4000 hours on type to make an effective commander. In a lot of cases the high time in the right hand seat stifles thinking and makes it hard for the candidate to progress to the other side of the aeroplane - I think everyone will agree that a different mindset is required when making the change..
in my experience there is a mix of experience levels joining
VB, some low time guys, mixed with very experienced regional Captains.
many have progressed to Command with 500 hrs on type and are doing very well.