Warning: SAS Flight academy/SAA Scam

[Bananaflyer]

It has come to my attention that SASFA is currently ”recruiting” for Ryanair. However I strongly recommend invited candidates to not attend.

After several years in this industry I’ve become acquainted with several struggling pilots and I find it disgraceful how some persons/organizations will pray on these individuals.

I still remember being in their shoes with a huge debt and no pilot job, and it really infuriates me that these fine people find themselves in the receiving end of a scam in progress.

One might say that the LCC community is dictating the “buy your own rating” requirement, and that might be acceptable if there is a RH seat waiting for you on the other end. However to interview and sim-test people just for money, when they will not be offered a place on the course is nothing less than criminal behaviour. Back to the point: SASFA/SAA is charging in the region of 1000 euros for an assessment, add travel expenses an accommodation to that and the cost is soaring. From what I’ve learned first hand, SASFA/SAA has more that enough candidates to fill several 73 courses for Ryanair, they even have a long waiting list. SASFA/SAA will keep on “testing” subjects indefinitely for money, giving out false hopes that there is a good chance of being employed at FR if you pay 25000 Euros +VAT. Probably 3 times more than the rating really costs, but I guess it beats hanging out at the unemployment office. Ryanair will have to offer a training contract for the requested number of candidates thus limiting the number of candidates SASFA can put on the rating course. But 1000 Euros for an hour in SASFA’s museum class F28 simulator is a complete rip-off.

Don’t let this happen to yourself or someone you know. Apply to CAE or GECAT instead if you want in at FR.

[RowleyUK]

Tell us something we dont know:{

The whole industry is around to rip us off........Apparently an upturn is going to happen sooner than expected so the likes of MO'L and his croanies can all go :mad: 'emselves!!!:ooh:

[bluefalcon]

Ive just been invited to attend to dublin for an interview assesment. If I pass it, Ill go on to the next stage (sim at sasfa) where they told me that if I succeed ill be on the way,,
Are you telling me then that even the interview in dublin is just a fake to get you to pay at stockholm for the sim assesment?
or are there possibilities that its not like that...
Thanks

[trainer too 2]

The cost at CAE are as follows:

Costs
Admission fee and screening: € 350.-- (incl. VAT) per ab-initio student
Admission fee and simulator assessment: € 525.-- (incl. VAT) per experienced crew member

very pleased with their response in general.

[ali1]

if you don't mind me asking, how many hours have you got and how did you get an interview. Was it luck(taking nothing away from yourself) or did you have a contact like dooney??!!

thanks Ali1

P.S i ask youbecause i have been trying to get in for ages.

[crashandburn]

I agree that it is a complete money making rip off. I have been put forward by Ryanair for a sim check in the near future but I will be declining their offer if the name SAS is mentioned. Without discussing the exact details I have heard first hand knowledge of what looks like a complete money making venture on their part. Some excellent candidates are being turned down for silly minor things and if you ask me SAS seem to be looking after their own (if you know what I mean!) Beware folks!

[pa28biggles]

RowleyUK,
The whole industry is around to rip us off........Apparently an upturn is going to happen sooner than expected so the likes of MO'L and his croanies can all go :mad: 'emselves!!!

Well said!:ok:

[Bananaflyer]

bluefalcon: From what I know, the person interviewing in DUB will do a quick check if you will fit in at FR. Some people are turned down there if the attitude and/or personality is wrong. SAS FA are required under contract to supply FR with i.e 8 or 10 type rated pilots ready to do the circuits. What I am saying that FR could not care less what SASFA is up to as long as they supply the number of type rated pilots according to contract. There might be some kickbacks going FR's way in all this but thats not really interesting. The sad part is how SAS will make money by creating false hopes by saying they will need i.e 6 pilots (of the 10 present) When the thruth is that the course is full and they will take none unless one of the already selected candidates fail to finance their training. The excess pilots will get some lame feedback that they where 50 ft off their altitude at some time and did not meet the required standard. Repeat the process every week or perhaps several times a week and the money is rolling in at SASFA.

[Great Circle]

Hey bluefalcon,

Did you apply to Ryan thru SAA???

Great Circle

[bluefalcon]

I see, thanks bananaflyer,

My hopes are certainly going down then. This is my first interview ever, and if it looks like that....
Im still gonna go for it though, even though they dont hire me , but as an experience to what expect in interviews and sim assesment. About what u said before, don´t you think its a bit too much to fail someone for going 50 ft up or down from required fl in a sim u´ve never flown before like the F28, U have to be a F28 type rated pilot to not commit any errors, and even so if flying on manual they might commit some like those, I´ve found that a bit exaggerating, but I see your point in which they´ll be up watching for whatever wrong movement u make, to fail you.
Have you then been at the interview assesment in Dublin? could you describe me what kinds of questions they´ll ask?
Thanks bananaflyer.
To someone asking before, no I dont know mr Dooney, I ve also been trying for ages, but I got phonecalled from a guy in sweeden and then e-mailed for the interview, I dont know why me, cause Im hardly over 200 hours tt, and 0 tr ofcourse.
But anyhow
thanks to all, and happylandings>

[FougaMagister]

Dunno where Bananaflyer gets his figures; the litterature I have from SAS FA mentions 480 Euros for the F28 sim check. That's expensive, and more so than at CAE (can't quite compare with GECAS as they have been known to use 737 and 767 sims), but hardly the 1,000 he quotes.

At the end of the day, the onus is on you (us), just like when choosing your first FTO, to ask the right questions, put the TRTOs in competition with each other, and extract the best value for money. Don't forget that they stand to get £20,000 or so of your money, so make sure you drive a hard bargain! :E

[oskar]

just to back up bannaflyer, i got literature from sas and it was 980 euro to be exact for the sim check on the f-28, maybe yours is outdated or youve got a special rate.

[Kinetic]

Bluefalcon...... Good luck, prepare well on the company and do your best.

I am not going to say that Bananaflyers comments are not true, I do not know, but there is much rumour, inaccuracy and people with axes to grind on pprune that are often selling rumours as fact especially ones that start a strong thread with the first post from that username, so try not to focus on it to much Bluefalcon.

One thing is for sure, if there is a deliberate strategy by SAS they would never announce it and someone trying to read between the lines from personal experience/rejection or third party information can often mis-quote.

If you are seeing Declan in Dublin, he is very straight, brutally honest about the ups and downs of the scheme and the realities of working for Ryan, he doesn't try and pretend it's all rosy.

Where I can confirm Bananaflyers information to be outdated at least is the 4 Ryan type rating providers no longer screen and sim check people before Ryan interview them, as they used to, so they cannot sim check as many as they like (if they ever did?). The sim assessment is only offered once someone has been through the Ryan interview and deemed by Declan or a Ryan representative as suitable to the company.

On the interview day I attended at GEcat quite a few of the 15 odd interviewed did not get through and offered a sim assessment,

GEcat sim assessment cost £411 pounds inc VAT for the record.

[FougaMagister]

Oskar - the info I have is only about 6 weeks old, and no, I don't have a special rate (even though that would be nice!)

[crashandburn]

The cost is 980 euro's. No question about it. In fact you could probably say it is 1050 euro's as from I have learn't from speaking to people who have travelled up there that they charge an extra 70 euro's to stay in their accomodation block the night before your check.

[Great Circle]

Rumor has it that some VERY pointed questions are being asked over at SAA. Who knows what the fallout will be but I will continue playing to see what happens next. :ooh: Glad it's not my :mad: s in the vice!!!!

[bluefalcon]

thankyou kinetic, and thanks to all for the advice,,,

Id only like to ask one more question to those of you who have experienced a sim assessment at bfsaa, and apart from being done in f70 or f28 don´t really know yet,, what are the demanded procedures to complete,? im aware that they´re more focused on the MCC ability to communicate and work with your partner, but my concern is what is the profile of the assesment.
last question; if you pass the sim test,, you start the TR and then you do some line training with ryan for 4-6 months, and they say on the webpage that even then you are not guaranteed a job on ryan, is that true? or is just a way of keeping themselves clean from students that turn out in the end to be a failure? cause if you turn out good i would suppose you get a contract with them, if not what a complete waste of time, money, and feelings both for the airline and the wannabee.

thanks and happylandings to all<;)

[trainer too 2]

99% of all people who went through the training at all centres was hired for the low houred guys. They had more problems with the captains they trained. They had a much higher failure rate during line training....:rolleyes: