Kelc:
I have to agree with 404..... the reason why the company can continue to lower wages/ conditions is because there are people out there with same attitude as you. im sure you mean it all in good faith, but saying to be "paid to fly is a bonus" is absolute rubbish! Its all well and good to be optimistic and say you will sign up now and HOPEFULLY the conditions will get better..... they dont and they wont, if people keep signing on to poorer conditions.
from previous posts it seems you have no flying experience.... maybe a TIF from the previous weekend at most....? How do you really know that you are going to enjoy flying at all? how do you know if you have the ability to fly? its a lot different PAXing from Hong Kong to New York than it is working.... you cant watch 16 hours of IFE, youre not being served food and drink the whole way.... for your time as an SO, you will probably be jumping in the seat at 1am HKG time, sitting there for the next 6 hours, arriving at the port to find you cant sleep because its the middle of the day in HK and then having to do it all the way back... There are alot of fantastic times had in aviation, but the conditions are no longer what they used to be and LEP's (cadets) have it worse....
Before you go for your interview.... get your PPL, it shows you are keen aswell as teaching you about the real world of aviation. Hire a 172 and bash around the bush for a week... you will learn so much in week on your own, flying into remote towns, finding a pub to sleep in, dealing with weather, planning your fuel/ legs... when you get into an airline you will also have experiences to talk about in the 6 hours you are manning the radio!
Flying is alot of fun... however, it is a life long journey and not something you should take for granted or choose to leave once all the excitement of starting work in the middle of the night, when all your mates are out on the piss, wears off!
Good Luck with the Journey!
