"The Pilot Shortage which everyone keeps referring to, in reality, is an "EXPERIENCED CAPTAIN'S SHORTAGE"..."
The highest paying jobs in the world for ex Pats are now the narrow body fleets in China and not the widebodies. Many of them pay over $17K per month. The training going on is absolutely staggering. The Chinese don't really want the Ex Pats but they need the experienced Captains. Very few Chinese airlines hire Foreign FOs. The time for a young Chinese recruit from 0 hours to 737 NG Captain is right at 4 years at my airline here in China. If the economy burps in China the Ex Pats will be the first to go. There will be a need for at least another 5 years for ex Pat Captains in China but many outside factors could influence this.