Some 15 years ago, I started flying with CTC cadets. At the time I was as sceptical as anybody else about recruiting co-pilots with so little flying experience. Although there had existed limited "fast track" routes into commercial aviation such as Hamble / BEA BOAC later BA, and CSE Oxford into Britannia, and a few others. In reality the "cadet" sector of the airline market was a very small one. Most people either did their time in the air force or cut their teeth on the "stepping stone" jobs until they amassed around 2500 hours with the air taxis, regional airlines, etc. When many then sought out a move to a jet operator.
At around the same time these CTC cadets started to make an appearance, it also coincided with the growth of the new "CRM" industry, which was also regarded with some scepticism. The thing that struck me most with these new "cadets" (and it wasn't the runway,) was their ingrained CRM awareness and their ability to absorb guidance, direction and knowledge, like a dry sponge. At this time I had already been a captain for a decade, and it was in many respects just as much a learning curve for me as it was for the cadets, albeit with regard to different aspects.
Undoubtably I haven't been as unlucky as a few of the contributors here, in that of the hundreds of such individuals I have flown with over that 15 years, I cannot recollect a single one who stood out as being anything other than "well above average" and quick to learn. Recruitment in my particular corner of the world has involved a mix of cadets, military leavers and experienced commercial pilots. However in recent years the cadet recruitment ratios have become greater, even though general levels of recruitment have been relatively low.
The future looks as if this trend will continue, and will evolve into much greater use of the new MPL training regimes. Perhaps I should be sceptical again, but I am optimistic that it will be a good adaption if it is administered well.
Over the last three decades, I have seen a lot of people come into this sector of the industry from all the traditional and new sources. In reality few are problematic. I have seen the odd ex-military joiner with CRM difficulties. Without doubt (and it is still relatively few,) when problems did arise, it was often from low experience "self improvers," and by this I am referring to the days when that meant a couple of thousand hours, not the 200 hours it means today.
In our experience, cadets have been a quality source of input. If that were not the case then I would say so without any hesitation, but it is. Certainly they need mentoring and guidance because of their early lack of experience, but in reality probably no more than many of the "1500-2000 hour" pilots who preceded them 15+ years ago.
As I said at the start of this post, low hour cadets have been around since the sixties. There is nothing new in the concept, only in the proportion of the recruitment market they now represent. When the "pile em high, sell it cheap" concept arrived this side of the pond via Dublin, (also as it happens around 15 years ago!) The MD of that company outraged the entire industry by suggesting that the right hand seat could be eliminated altogether! Whether he was serious or not, that was a non-starter, but it was a clear indication of just how the future was going to evolve. If he couldn't get rid of it (and he couldn't) he was certainly going to reduce the cost to the bone and even turn it into a profit centre. Other Lo-Co's were not quite so outspoken, but it was a cost model they were all going to have to parallel.
As demand fuelled growth in this sector, so the charters and the legacy carriers had to adapt to survive. The recession of the last 4 years has only served to drive that point home. If you don't think so, then look around you. Anyone who is actually recruiting, or threatening to recruit in any serious numbers, is either already largely following this cadet model, or are likely to.
MPL schemes at easyjet and Monarch. FPP cadet programmes at British airways through CTC, Oxford and FTE.
Like it or not this is a growth area, and increasingly likely to be the route to a cadetship with a prime operator. Flight training is eye wateringly expensive. Whether you or I think it is wise or advisable, matters little to people who have decided to make that commitment. They come here looking for the routes available to the jobs that are now being offered and are likely to be offered in the future. The subject of this thread is easyjet, but it doesn't matter whether it is BA, Thomas Cook, Thomson, Flybe, Monarch, DHL, Qatar airways etc. It is pointless advising people to look at options or methodology that these jet operators simply do not recruit from anymore.
For what it may be worth, if they make me world leader tommorow, I would happily make it mandatory for anybody flying an airliner (in either seat) to hold a full (1500 hour) ATPL. The clue is in the name of the licence! However whether that would really prove anything at all is debatable. The reality is what you see when you open your eyes and look around you. The investment and economic markers all point to where growth opportunities are likely to be in the future. Love them or hate them, ab-initio career opportunities are through CTC and to a lesser extent (in the current market) Oxford (a heavy supplier of the other major Lo-Co) and FTE. The same three schools that BA have selected exclusively for their much sought after new programme.
If you refuse to see the reality for what it is, then it is a bit rich to accuse me of being myopic!
So yes, this is the route I would advise my own children to take if this was their choice of career. Hence it would be hypocritical to suggest others take a route I didn't believe afforded the best chance of success. Nevertheless, that advice would as always, come with the strongest of health warnings.