MERGED: Jetstar Pilot Cadet Program

[Flyboat North]

I think you will find that there were no QF cadets post 2008 , in terms of commencing on the program from 2009 onwards.

Or if there were any QF classes commencing post 2008 , really just "token" numbers to keep the program alive.

2007 was the year of the big ramp up for the QF cadetship, so reasonable numbers commencing in 2008 but it all went south after that.

There was a group of 50 selected to commence in 2009 , subsequently reduced to 5 , then subsequently reduced to zero

So I am not sure what you mean with your dates ? , are talking about years of commencement or completion ?

What I was saying was that out of the say 2010/11 cohort at the aviation degree Unis , you would find around 30% still actively pursuing pilot careers at most. And that 12 months post-course at least 50% would have dropped out, most grads never to us the CPL to earn a single solitary cent.

You are thinking of the QF cadetship prior to when work exp was done with Qlink. The farming out of cadets to Mac, Air North , Skippers etc ceased from around 05/06 from that point on all QF cadets went to Qlink. Much easier to manage.

So there was a job for them at the end of training, sometimes there was a wait, but such is life. A limo and red carpet to pick you up to on the day of completion of your training was never part of the deal

As you know over last mainline class was January 2009. So cadets from that point on just stayed with Qlink, many now captains, or moved on to other airlines.

Jetstar commence cadetship mid 2010, and positions in this program offered to all current QF cadets doing training at Swinburne. About half take it, and get RPL based on how much they have done. The rest elect to remain in the QF systems obviously hoping for a turnaround at QF mainline, and proceed to Qlink.

Interestingly the two Unis involved with the QF cadetship , Swinburne and Griffith keep plugging it ,and how they have been selected to run the "Qantas Cadetship" for years after it closed.

With regard to Jetstar program both flying schools told there will be no mid-year intake this year. Current Jetstar cadets not told anything as is appropriate , any decisions about their commencement will be made when they have completed. Jetstar want them to do A320 endo's just prior to commencing line training, so that is one reason for a delay.

QF did initiate a hiring freeze for all non-QF pilots at Jetstar franchises back in March, as they see this as a potential LWOP etc destination for QF pilots , they stay "in" the system , avoid redundancy payouts etc. But even in four weeks this has already been relaxed and some of the franchises have put on "outsiders" (meaning not a cadet or QF transfer).

Sure QF will have to reduce numbers but they have five (soon to be six) different Jetstar franchises to soak up those who wish to go there, same deal with Emirates who clearly could take large numbers.

So you might even find that the decision to not to run a mid-year Jetstar course is reversed, as was the "hiring freeze" at other Jetstar franchises.