The future for ab initio pilots in the N Sea is very bleak at the moment. As has been said before Scotia are looking at redistributing 25 pilot posts and Bristows are in no better shape. Oil operators are trying to reduce the numbers offshore, bp having recently announced 800 contractor jobs to go. Reduce the numbers offshore and you reduce the number of helicopter flights and hence the number of crews needed. There will always be a downward trend of jobs offshore as new technology reduces the manpower requirements. If I had more than 15 yrs to do in the N Sea I would be worried as I can see the career of an offshore pilot slowly declining and the prospect of a career change in my 40s would not be a pleasant thought. The only bright spot on the horizon is the bp Jigsaw project for offshore based SAR helicopters. This could open up 60 odd pilot posts but is still only in the pre trial stage and is at least 2-3 yrs away. I doubt if either company will sponsor pilots in the near future but things do change very quickly if the oil companies suddenly decide to up there exploration budgets.
Regards
HF