Airlines prefering the Integrated cadets/courses? Not any more. it was a flash-in-the-pan many years ago, because the airlines tended to have a hand/measure of influence in the course content and structure. These days, that premise is dead
What utter rubbish!
Airlines look for pilots in two major categories.
The first are experienced pilots with significant airline or military experience behind them.
The second are "cadets" who are low hour trainees brought onto what will inevitably be a very steep learning curve. Most cadet programmes are tied to an established Flight Training Organisation through a full time integrated course of approved training.
Far from being a "flash in the pan," there has been huge growth in these programmes tempered only by the general economic downturn of much of the last 5 years. Where (despite the recession) there has been growth, it has been satisfied largely through these two routes.
15 years ago the requirement for a (non approved) CPL in the UK was reduced from 700 hours to 250 hours. This reflected the aerial work nature of the basic licence and brought the UK into line with most other ICAO member states in this particular regard.
As a consequence of these changes, not only did it bring more licence seekers into a very crowded arena, it opened the floodgates. Thousands and thousands of CPL holders believed that airlines would be tripping over themselves to buy the services they thought their licence offered. Whereas for most airlines the requirements changed very little, save for an expansion in those approved cadet schemes.
Present evolution in the
ab-initio airline pilot market points markedly to a rapid growth in MPL based training programmes. Indeed that expansion has already started.
People will believe whatever suits their circumstances, but that doesn't make it true.