I visited an open day at Cranfiled a couple of months ago.
My impression was that those at the top had a sincere intention to get things right, but there was an unhealthy air of desperation. Lots of enthusiasm but something just didn't feel right.
They were a bit too quick to be a little damning of their rivals and I felt they had confused things by introducing Flight Level 500.
All in all it was as if they were playing catch up, and it now seems that they might have run out of time.
Ground school seemed as good as anywhere else, basic flight training seemed in the same league as else where (overseas), but there appeared to be a large gap when it came to the business end of sim training and employment opportunities.
I took my other half along and she thought they were heading in the right direction but still had some way to go to match the high standards set by the other FTOs during their open days. She's a proper grown-up business woman, where as I come from a media background, so I trust her view.
The offer of an on the spot £10k discount did not reassure - to be honest, and I know it's a shame, the writing was on the wall. I was warned by another hopeful at the open day that they had already lost a lot of their fleet due to financial difficulties. It's never a good sign once gossip starts.
I hope I haven't offended anyone but this was my experience and my gut feeling seems to have been vindicated.
I wish anyone caught up in this all the best.