we could argue we worked harder to ensure we passed all the training we required, to avoid any further costs!
Absolutely. It certainly spurred me on.
Moreover, although I obtained a personal loan to pay for my TR, my hugely reduced tax liability for the first year at Ryanair easily offset the loan repayments. When deciding whether to pay for a TR at Ryanair you must do your maths. Look at your net financial position after 5 years. Despite paying for a TR you will have taken home, before tax, around
€300,000. You will also be a Captain and have about 3750 hours (incl. 800 PIC) on a modern B737-800.
Compare that reality with working your way up the aviation ladder. Torque Tonight has already rightly pointed out that this is almost impossible in the current industry. But assuming you buy yourself an instructor's rating and find a low-paid instructing job, then manage to find a Turbo-prop job after a couple of years, over the same time frame you'd be lucky to earn
€75,000 and build 2500 hours on light aircraft.
Ryanair's image may be relatively poor, but operational and training standards, not to mention safety standards, are very high. Evidence is easy to find: see ATC Level Bust and SID/STAR compliance, punctuality, bag loss, and accident statistics. Whatever the Company's failings, you can't reasonable complain that Ryanair
diminish this "profession" with substandard practises
As for the young pilots with
visions of grandeur [who] then complain when no one will hire them!
I do hear you. I also tend to agree. But then, I came to flying in my thirties, having worked damn hard to get a university education, postgraduate diplomas, and worked 5 years as a professional in another field. Personally, I don't think some of the lads in their early twenties are mature enough to be flying large jets. But Air Forces around the world having been employing similarly aged pilots for generations, so what do I know.
By the way, where can I find these
4 oiled-up Rio carnival girls
I'm more than happy to dust off my CV...
