Originally Posted by
Officer Kite
Cadet programmes have been on for yonks and as far as I'm aware there is no correlation between them and aircraft crashing ...
Air France 447 etc. Both of the pilots at the controls were Air France cadets. I could go on, but I won't bore anyone with the obvious.
we don't want FAA 1500hr madness in Europe either so things are fine as they are.
I can see why your self interest would lead you to that conclusion. However; the highest paying airline jobs in the world* are in the U.S. The average F.O. yearly income at a large low cost carrier (737) is higher than a LH Captain at British Airways (£160K per annum). That doesn't include the retirement paid by the company. The minimum hiring requirement for a F.O. is 1000 hours of turbine command. As another poster mentioned, the regional airlines are starting F.O. on £45K. The company pays for a pilots training and type rating.
Given the news that well qualified DEP at BA have just received, and the lack of rest/fatigue management rules, I'm surprised to hear a pilot say that "things are fine as they are" in Europe.
* I haven't included CA positions in China, since it's not relevant.