Guys, there is another thread dealing with the nuts and bolts of the CTC-McAlpine selection procedure; please don't divert this one, which has wider and more far-reaching implications.
As Pete and tailscrape have suggested, there are downsides to this scheme, one of the worst of which is that you could be overtaken in earnings by those who come after you if a more competetive pilot market develops in your bonded years. However, you have to play the hand you're dealt. If you get in on this scheme, and you work hard enough to succeed, you will find yourself employed in an airliner at a time when most wannabes will not. Many, if not most, of those considering this course will not have the luxury of time to wait and see what transpires in the overall market, so they must decide either to give it a go or to pay the whole lot themselves in the hope that things will improve quickly. I don't have that kind of money, or faith, after 27 years in this business; I know which option I'd take! Mind you, I'd make sure I was in a position, once employed, to let the airline know exactly what I thought of any scheme that disadvantaged me and my peers as the airline had to work harder to get pilots - and Balpa and/or the IPA would be right behind me!
You can't fight for the conditions you would like if you're not in the business. This scheme offers the best - and fairest - chance of getting into the airlines currently on offer, though that will undoubtedly change as time goes on.
Incidentally, I find the talk of £20k on appointment under this scheme at JMC somewhat alarming; is it true? I believe that at easyJet it's considerably higher. I have no problem with an apprentice/journeyman at this or any trade being paid less - even considerably less - than an experienced artisan, but £20k seems unnecessarily parsimonious!
Scroggs