Further, when the market returns which it WILL (listening to some of you, you think the economy and world is over, it is not). Therefore If i started trainng with say CTC by this time next year or so I would be nearly trained and thus emerge in a new stronger economy.
Yes, you probably could. If you're happy you've done your research properly and this is your take on how things will pan out with the economy, then fine - go ahead and train.
However...
It's becoming clearer by the day that the CTC programme is no longer the route to the job it once was. I've always been a staunch defender of the training on here and continue to be so - the standards are very good, it's a great experience, etc. but the days of finishing the course, going to an airline, doing your six months' 'experience' and then disappearing over the hill into the sunset waving your nice permanent full-time contract are over.
My personal view is, when the economy picks up, they won't be coming back. The airlines (EZY in particular) have made no secret of their desire to force down T&Cs, particularly for new joiners. As I understand it, from what CTC have said, these FlexiCrew terms being offered to the guys now will remain the best available for a long time. For once, I believe what CTC say. The rot has set in.
Part of the attraction of the course used to be the direct route into an airline upon completion. The course was (is) expensive compared to doing it the modular way, but you accepted you were paying a premium partly for the continuity and the high standard of training, but mostly because of the chance of landing a good job at the end of it.
The course now costs £69,000 for the Wings phase plus NZ$17400 (£7500ish at current rates) for the mandatory Foundation phase. So you're looking at a basic
£76,500 up to the end of the CPL/IR/MCC phase. This is getting on for £12k more than it was just three years ago (£60k + ~£4k) - an increase of nearly
20% in three years! (Hope that partly answers your question, sharpclassic.) Then of course you have to factor in insurance costs (which have rocketed) and about £5k of living costs, and then finally - as things stand, unless you're unbelievably lucky and BA reopen the doors just as you're coming through - another £10k for a type rating to actually get you the job.
Now, bingobingo, you tell me why you think it would be a good idea to start on this course, paying that completely ridiculous sum of money to train for a career where the overwhelming likelihood is that the only option on completion will be a job on a FlexiCrew contract barely earning enough to cover your loan repayments, never mind afford a home, a car or any sort of lifestyle. Because, the way things are now and with what is happening to the current crop coming through, I can't see for the life of me why anyone would think this would be a remotely good idea. On the other hand if you train modularly and cheaply, you'll be able to afford the full TR cost with easyJet or Ryanair, join as a contractor on similar wages and you'll still be thousands of pounds better off.
And on top of all that, pretty much the only way of finding the finance is through securing it on property! Are you really prepared to stake a house - yours or someone else's - on all this?