Kefuddle_UK
That was my first thought also, and with this topic being hot in our house at the moment I have been researching this for some months. Out of interest I asked my girly to call the operator to try and find out if there was any order in which they consider applicants, the response being
1) High hour 737-300 rated.
2) Any person with Jet time.
3) Any 737 rated regardless of experience.
The response is not isolated to one operator either, this very morning she has had another letter drop through the letterbox from a 737 operator saying she is under consideration.
Now my employer paid for my type rating and that put me on the bottom rung of the ladder. I am ready to take a step up and I find that I can be leap frogged by a candidate with 200 hours and a 733 rating. I’m not resentful of this whatsoever, I think it shows a considerable amount of commitment to take a rating like this on, which can only be looked upon as favourable by an employer.
Surely the logical thinkers who recruit us will think if a person has spent £14 K and eight weeks hard work on a 737-300 type rating, with no guarantees whatsoever shows the same dedication on joining their company, will they be a training risk?
Please do not confuse me with someone who is trying to persuade all low houred pilots to start going out buying 737 ratings because I am not, nothing could be further from the truth. Nor am I trying to justify the expenditure my girlfriend is about to undertake because she has wealthy parents who couldn’t care less. Just going back to the first thread though, a PC12 or C208 type rating is going to cost you 8K ish. If you take into account the cost of the rating and then two years flying that type to get the monies spent back, putting yourself out of the running for potentially a higher paid job, are you actually going to gain? Then once you have the hours you will be overlooked by someone who has low hours but a relevant rating.
Just on a final note please do NOT reply asking how she is doing a 737-300 type rating course for £14K (well it’s actually £14,200), but it CAN be done for this, it just takes a little bit of initiative, is not complicated NOR illegal.