Some airlines think the MPL guys are more prepared to fly an A320 than the ATPL guys (straight from the flight school I mean). Actually those airlines seem to find huge benefits in the MPL training (it being cheaper is not one of them, as it is actually more expensive). The different airlines and the CAA are, however, still checking the "quality" of the guys that have already finished training with an MPL (not many), and depending on these results the MPL programes are expected to increase massively in the coming years, especially in flight schools such as CTC, Oxford and FTE. One of these schools (I don't know about the others) is expecting the 50% of its training to be MPL next year already.
Why 50% if it's better? Well, the MPL has an important disadvantage for the airlines: they would need to plan 18 months in advance what their cadets requirements would be in the near future. As you know, it's really difficult for an airline to predict what's going to happen in 6 months time, even harder 18. The "traditional" cadet route (and the well-known hold pool) has this advantage: the airlines can take cadets from there and the cadets can be flying the line in as little as 2-3 months, so the risk is less.
Expect many more MPL courses in the future, even conducted by airlines that did not like it at the beginning. It seems to work well.
I hope this is helpful Anotherwannabe
Last edited by vikdream; 29th Apr 2013 at 09:45.