Pilot Pete,
Generally your comments are quite accurate & well thought out. However, the one below needs expanding upon -
1. LTCs are picked for their well above average ability and knowledge. In my airline they are all within the top 10% (from the Training Manager) they show a CONSISTENTLY higher score than the average line captain in checks.
If this really is the case in your airline, I would stay there no matter what!
In my time I have come across many trainning captains/TRI's who leave more than a little to be desired when it came to knowledge, ability & even basic flying skills. Their abiltiy to teach was also in question in many cases.
The fact is that management can only chose from the
pilots who apply, & a lot of the pilots in the top 10% of an airline chose
not to apply for various reasons.
Management in some airlines may take what we would consider to be the best from those who apply, but it has also been my experience that it is not so simple as it would seem & the management personnel tasked with the selection often have a different idea of who is the
best than perhaps you or I would.