@P40
I generally support your case. And I respect you for stating out things in your honest way. Though, I have a feeling about you just being too proud about yourself. Also it feels like you are having problems admitting that there actually are quite A LOT of success stories regarding people who chose the p2f way.
In general I believe that everybody eventually will find a flying job. If it is as an FI on Cessnas or on a triple seven in an airline. The point is, how long is one willing to wait for that. I myself am 27, turning 28 this year. If I **** up the Ryanair assessment on thursday, I am actually considering P2F. Why? Because I've seen the success stories first hand. These are not friends friends. These are my friends. People I went to flight school with or people I met on the way through my flight training. One of them, flying a 777 for Qatar Airways, after spending 40k€ for 500 hours on a 73CL in Morocco. Another guy spent 30k€ for 500 hours on an ATR is now flying for LGW on a Dash. Full-time of course, with a very attractive salaries.
So why shouldn't I?
Are really the pilots to blame? All those persons who spend money for p2f?
In my opinion no. It's pax, who are only out for the cheapest tickets. Not caring about what this in the end will do to the business. All those average Joes, flying for 25€ from Stockholm to Milan.
This leaves us, the pilots, with no other choice. Either gambling on getting a wildcard for some hiring airline or actually to continue investing in ourselves and making us more attractive, then the rest who are sitting on their 200-250tt after finishing flight school.
You will never change this trend if you blame the wrong folks. There will always be somebody who pays for this stuff. Not because they do it for fun, but because there is no other choice!