Overall a very positive experience. Everyone at the company went out of their way to make you feel comfortable and relax as much as possible. On the interview day they sit you in a room to knock out the tech written straight away. All of the gouges I've read are spot on, know how to calculate hydroplaning speeds, review runway illusions i.e. how does a runway appear when landing in the rain, no big weight shift calculations. Very straightforward, and if you've read the couple of gouges on here you will be more than prepared. After that they get you started on the 567 question MMPI. True/False psychological evaluation that is used in your overall medical results. You have thru the course of the evening to complete it. You and the other candidate are then brought into a room and introduced to the panel of interviewers, for me it was 3 captains and 2 HR. Be sure to walk up front and shake all of their hands initially. They start off by asking you your impression of Japan thus far and go into a comprehensive review of what to expect in the Sim as well as an opportunity to ask any question at all, don't be shy here if you have any lingering questions that aren't clear in the Sim packet you received months earlier.
After a quick break they call one of you back to begin the oral interview portion. First off they ask for a brief introduction of yourself, primarily regarding your aviation background thus far, followed by why Air Japan, do you know anyone that works here, to what degree does your family support this choice, how will you deal with the lengthy training, what did you do to prepare for this interview . Some questions they will tailor to your background, for instance I have a lot of instructor time so instead of asking me what would I do if I was struggling in training they asked me how I would deal with a student that was having difficulties, and what I felt was the most important aspect of instructing. For the more technical questions review jepp plate notations, when can you not begin an approach, what aspects are takeoff limiting(both aircraft configuration as well as runway/performance limiters), review approach lighting and runway lighting specifically distances and colors, beyond basic V speed knowledge you should review what margin above stall the speeds give you, and finally lost comm procedures and light guns. They are very open about being aware of their heavy accents, so don't be afraid to ask them to repeat or clarify a question and as a courtesy to them be sure to slow down and speak clearly. In the end the impression I got was they were more concerned with how you conduct yourself and how well you can communicate with others and articulate your ideas than 100% technical precision. So relax! I felt like the HR portion went smoothly and I felt 50/50 on the technical, and I got the thumbs up!
The Sim was completely 110% by the book. Absolutely no surprises there. Start coupled on the ils, vmc conditions, set up for autoland. All you have to do is watch it do its thing, note pitch and power, when to flare, then engage reverse thrust until 60kts, disengage autobrakes and set parking brake on the runway. Next they snap you back for a practice takeoff and visual pattern. After that the testing begins. Normal takeoff to visual approach CAVOK, normal t/o to full VOR OVC 006, V1 cut to single engine ils OVC 300. All by the book. They want you to act as pic meaning if you don't call for it, it won't happen. Know the Sim profiles in your sleep, pay attention to the pitch and power chart supplied to you in the Sim packet (they are big on known pitch and power settings), and fly stable approaches. As a note, don't complain that the Sim is "sensitive" and if the flight director appears to be lagging, or giving you opposite guidance during single engine ops check your ball, odds are your feet are being lazy and you aren't keeping coordinated. I know it's just the intructor in me but remember the flight director is not a primary instrument!
Everything is over around midnight and you take a taxi to your hotel. At some point in the night you will receive an email from the staffing agency liason with your results. If you have passed you will have one day off, then meet the following day for the medical screening. After that you just sit and wait patiently for about a month for the medical results and your class date, which is what I am currently doing.
Sorry about the formatting here guys, about halfway in I realized I probably should be typing this on my laptop and not my phone.