Some of the last few posts are demonstrating how some have no idea about how the industry and training system works post type rating. I think its best these people not posting anything.
Only if you choose to believe that is the case. Please do not take anything in this post as personal or as individual criticism as its not meant to read that way. I want to help in what ever way i can to rid the industry of this practice and my reasons are based on safety.
P2F affects safety. The airlines that are involved in P2F are exposing themselves to more risk and our profession is all about reducing risk, to as close to zero as we can.
Now, OBVIOUSLY BA and other airlines will use whatever crew compliment they need to, including 3rd/safety pilots for those moving from the sim to the line for line training etc.
HOWEVER, these are guys whose training has been monitored from their selection. They are PAID employees and they can be chopped at anytime.
They do not have to sell their souls to a training organisation or an airline that will give them a couple of hundred hours and then put them back on the dole. They are not people that will need to go and get a second job to make ends meet. They are not people that will have to live in as cheap accommodation as they can find in order to keep their expenses down. They are not people who have to worry about increasing levels of debt.
Having P2F people sitting in a flight deck diminishes safety more than having a cadet / new hire full time employees training in the same flight deck.
Castigate me if you want for that comment but the time when it will be proven will be when theres an accident and in my opinion, thats not the right time to find out and act.
Terms and conditions aside, this is a safety issue. It needs to be addressed as such and it needs to be dealt with as such and if the people on here who train these guys, do it against their will for fear of recrimination and reprisals, then that reduces safety even further and i would therefore urge the trainers to back the reduced safety angle as that is the only way this will ever be eradicated because it will be picked up by the press and that will force the airlines that engage in this process to cease.
There are some very good and qualified drivers on the dole. THESE ARE THE PEOPLE THE AIRLINES SHOULD BE CREWING THEIR FLIGHT DECKS WITH not P2F candidates.
There are P2F wannabees on the dole also, because they have ben put there by the next P2F candidate. Will they ever learn..........probably not.
So i have voted with both feet, i wont be flying EasyJet again as long as they continue this practice. Its no disrespect at all to the trainers in EasyJet, its just how can i expect the travelling public to get p****d off at this if im prepared to travel myself with the airlines that engage in this practice. If a professional body exposes its own practices as being unsafe, trust me, people will listen and companies will have to act.
And hopefully the insurance industry will pick up on this too and significantly raise the premiums of the airlines in question. In an economic climate when everyone wants to increase margins, im sure insurance companies are just looking for a reason to raise premiums, so letters and protest emails should also be sent to insurance brokers and underwriters.
GW