I was on the same course as HollingworthP (who by the way, is the worst blogger on the planet....but I digress!).
I was by no means the most talented pilot on our course, but I somehow managed to walk away with a first time pass, where I'd actually thought I'd get a punch in the face, I thought I'd flown so badly.
The point I'd make is that it IS a lottery. Personally I think the IR is more about how well you can hold your nerve than how good a pilot you are, but you still have to pass.
Your career is definitely not screwed by a lack of first series IR pass....if you get to the tenth series and you still haven't passed, I might take a different view, but give employers some credit...everyone here has recounted how the IR is bloody tough...employers know that and they WILL give you some flex for having a bad day at the office.
and by the way, even the very best fail or partial the IR you know....the guy on our course who told me that "I shouldn't compare myself to the stella pilots like me" managed to partial, despite according to him flying perfectly apart from messing his SE go around up....So it must be true. A stella pilot told me so
