HiHi
You have an aero rating......
Let me try to help you.
There is nothing wrong with the cadet program at all. It is an excellent program if used to supplement a recruitment policy that is based predominently on experienced pilots. The problem is when you base "all" your recruitment on the cadet program.....all of your recruitment. What would such a policy do to your experience pool over time?
As a pilot gathers experience on smaller aircraft, working their way up, he/she will scare themselves along the way. It's all part of learning. But it's one thing to scare yourself while riding an ejection seat, or if flying with only a few people in a light, easy to control airplane; it''s another thing to scare yourself with 400 paying passengers in the back of the plane.
Cathay used to pay to get experienced pilots. They were buying their experience. Experience is an extremely important commodity in any airline. Cathay advertised and sold this aspect to their customers.
The arguement was then made that the large experience pool within Cathay allowed the recruitment of a small percentage of cadet pilots. The bean counters said this made "economic" sense.
Well one thing led to another, and here we are today.
So....you make the call Hihi, if you were a paying passenger, who would you rather to fly with? An experienced crew or inexperienced crew?