Guys and Girls,
From someone sitting on the inside of the flight deck looking out, if I was already holding my frozen ATPL then there is nothing to lose with applying to all the companies I could think of but for those seeking sponsorship now please note:
1. There are and will continue to be qualified pilots of all ages and experiences for the next year or so as the industry mops up from the fall out of Sep 11. This, of course, assumes there will be no more major incidents to further dent the industry.
2. If you are young (less than 30ish) try something else for a year or so to let the dust settle. As an employer I would be far more impressed looking at a CV of someone who recognised the situation as it is now and did something else for a while to broaden their horizon and then applied to me when there was a good chance of employment. The courses are difficult enough without the added pressure of whether the sponsorship programme will last the duration of your course.
3. In the worst case what can you do if you are taken on a sponsorship scheme and are dumped part way through? Regardless of the reason think of how a future employer will view a disjointed training profile when you do eventually obtain your licence.
4. If you are contemplating leaving a good job to follow flying as a second career sit tight and save your money.
This will only be a relatively short lived problem, all the factors that gave the industry a positive outlook 2 months ago are still there except confidence which will return. Just look at your timing and see whether you can delay committing yourself to such a massive undertaking and ask yourself do I have to do this now.
I apologise if this sounds patronising, it is written with years of experience and a sound knowledge.
Good luck with what ever you decide.