Going off on a slight tangent (but not too much), i'd be very interested to know how many people here have some form of self-funding for an ATPL. Obviously, by self-funding I mean a tangible asset such as a house or the required money saved in the bank. If so, how old are you?
Obviously, if the job market does go for a burton then the people who are largely self-funded will in a far more favourable position than those, like me (and I know there are plenty of us), who are currently looking largely towards the HSBC for solice.
If there are more people getting the money first and then doing the training then maybe the rest of us should re-consider our plans.