Bealzebub, How about you get your facts straight before you post with this self appointed authority that you seem to think you have? I am sorry to come across strongly but I'm starting to find your posting either deluded, uninformed or perhaps biased for some reason
Let us take your following post apart, piece by piece.
he figures I have seen are around £69,000 for the training course (bond) and around £10,000 for a "foundation course." There are other incidentals such as medicals, insurances and course equipment (around £3,000.) What happens at the end of the course then determines any additional "hard" costs. By that I mean it depends on the partner airline and if a placement immediately follows on from the course. Where it does, the additional cost can be as little as nothing (airline pays for type rating and also provides per diem allowances for training.) To close on an additional £10,000 for type rating training with airlines such as yours! These costs are determined by the partner airline rather than the FTO.
That gives a broad costing of £82,000 to £92,000. Then there are the candidates living costs. Accommodation is provided, but transport, food and personal incidentals are not. Allowing for £2000 in capital costs (car share etc.) and £500 a month for living costs over 15 months (if you can't manage on that, try harder!) that comes to a sensible budget of circa £91,500 to £101,500 at the top end!) This is all ab-initio.
I am having trouble seeing where loans of £180,000 come from, unless there was (even in the worst case,) remedial training of over £78,500! It is difficult to imagine such a scenario. Similarly the same sum could involve living costs of over £5,700 a month, which means they would be living to a standard of luxury that a gulf royal prince would be proud of.
Those cadets that I have discussed such things with, didn't have to pay any type rating costs on joining their airline (obviously not your company,) and those with loans seem to have them in the 70-85K range.
I am not suggesting that these sums of money are anything less than eye watering, and should definetely be regarded as "mortgage levels of debt" without an asset to mitigate the borrowing. The risks associated with the assumption of this level is debt should be considered very carefully and always with a backup plan. However, simply throwing unrealistic numbers into the fray undermines your argument.
Using the following link (which is all you'd needed to have done to avoid posting rubbish):
http://www.ctcwings.com/uploads/CTC_...flet_Oct12.pdf
Wings Cadets pay:
£69000 for course fees plus another 33000NZD for the foundation course - that's £18300 at current exchange rates. That's already £87300.
On top we have:
Items Excluded from the Course
• Selection fees;
• Initial Class 1 medical and renewal fees;
• Loss of medical and life insurances;
• Travel insurance as required by the New Zealand
Immigration Service;
• English language tests where applicable;
• Food and subsistence costs;
• Re-tests of flight skills tests;
• Re-tests of ATPL examinations.
i'd estimate these at about £1000 for 'fees', £200 for an insurance and how much for food and subsistence would you say? Let's be reasonable to you and set it low - during my time I needed about £100 a week at good exchange rates . This is for food, petrol, going out with everyone, calling home, internet etc. So over a 14 month minimum course (ours took a considerable amount longer) that's £6000.
So we're at £95000 already......before interest is added on. Let's say you were offered 3 % APR over 7 years - the total amount repayable will be £116838.
This is using the following calculator:
Compound Interest Calculator
Then CTC ask people to pay for a type rating on top with most airlines apart from your very fine, fair and reasonable establishment - another £12000 is it now?
So in fact your debt is £107000 or with that interest rate is £131500. Now throw in some delayed payments because you're only on £1200 a month for the first 8 months. And then throw in another 6 months delayed payments because there wasn't a type rating available. You're easily well over £140000 for the CTC scheme. On the Oxford/ Parc scheme with a £35000 TR, housing and a more expensive course you're well over £180000.
And that interest calculator considers that you'll repay immediately from taking the loan - not 14,18 or 24 months down the line. You're easily looking at £1800 a month repayments over a 7 year time period. That's £28000 a year you need to earn to service the loan.