Cadet programme interview tips - help needed urgently

[red gaint]

Hello eveyone,

I'm a pilot wannabe who had cleared an airline's cadet assessment exams and been called for the interview. I desperatly in need of help to crack:ugh:the interview.

can you people provide me valuable points for the following questions.

1) Advantages of airline pilot's job over airforce?

2) Disadvantaes of being an airline pilot?

3) Qualities of a good airline pilot?

4) points to be looked after to compare betwwen airlines?

[Gar]

I'm pretty sure that in the interview you will be asked what you think on each of these points. What do you imagine to be the qualities of a good airline pilot?

[Bambe]

1 - Honnestly???? It's obvious, so many differences. It only depends on who you are and wht you expect from your job.

2 - Disadvantage : You're not home every night (hard for family life), no 9 to 5 and no week end, early shift, very demanding position....

3 - Qualities : Positive leadership, team player, communicator, diplomacy, rigorous, enthousiastic... Don't give them only words, find examples from your own life to illustrate.

4 - If I understood correctly your question, I would say : fleet, charter or sheduled, jet aircraft or Turbo prop, long or short haul... Learn a bit of every UK airline and EVERYTHING about the airline you applied for..

But Gar is not wrong, you should think of it and find your reasons to be a pilot, your feeling toward all these questions...


Good luck

[red gaint]

Thank you Gar & Bambe, for sparing your time.

I find the following points as advantages to be an airline pilot:

- It's most prestigious, responsible, rarified, remunerative profession

- Lot of free time

- Zero challange after few years due to seniority gets easily promoted

- Travel benefits


Anymore points from your view would be greatly welcomed

[Kerosine]

I don't want to be critical, so just a few observations;

I find the following points as advantages to be an airline pilot:

- It's most prestigious, responsible, rarified, remunerative professionAre you doing it to impress mates/women? Are you doing it for the money?

- Lot of free timeI am not a pilot so wouldn't like to say for certain, but free time is not what you expect considering rosters that cover weekends and nights.

- Zero challange after few years due to seniority gets easily promotedNot sure what this means. Maybe that it's easy? :ooh:

- Travel benefitsAgain, a pro-pilots input would be more valid, but seeing the inside of airports flying short haul around the world is not 'traveling' in the typical sense. Long-haul I believe are put on minimum rest periods, not leaving much time to sightsee.

Just a minor thing, do you actually like flying?


I would spend time thinking about how your answers would be interpreted by and interviewer, remember they only want the people who want to fly as a civil airline pilot, not the people chasing a dream.

[Ollie268]

"I find the following points as advantages to be an airline pilot:
- It's most prestigious, responsible, rarified, remunerative profession
- Lot of free time
- Zero challange after few years due to seniority gets easily promoted
- Travel benefits"

Red Giant, imho if these are the reasons you want to become an airline pilot, i feel perhaps you underestimate the work and what the airlines look for in interviews.
Try to put them in to "professional" contexts for example - travel benefits...well why not turn that into "what particularly appeals to me is the ability to travel as it is one of my passions." or something along those lines.
A low hours pilot gets litte free time!
Not sure what you mean by the seniority comment, but if your refering to time taken to captaincy, that depends on the airline/fleet you are on and obviously your ability.
I would refrain from telling your FTO that you want to be an airline pilot for presitgious reasons or for money. Try to get the point accross to them that you actually like flying, you're hard working, you enjoy and are good at working in a team, you can motivate and be motivated, conscientious, fun....etc. You will probably be expected to give examples of this too so as Bambe said, dont just reel off a list! Remember they want to hear you tell them why you are best suited to the job.
Hope this helps :ok:

[red gaint]

kerosine :eek: you easily deduced my intentions, yep! am a dream chaser, who have no idea about aviation, but never missing to take a glimpse of passing aircrafts, having only to wonder at the thing.

Ollie268, thanks for your advice and am feeling hopeful now.

I'm also expecting advice on the part thats beyond my understanding and more tips on the airline interview,

thank you in advance

[EK4457]

This must be [another] wind up.

[preduk]

Red Giant you must be taking the p**s!! If you want to get a job which impresses people, go become a footballer. You will get more money and women than a pilot easily.

Promotion isn't easy to come by, BA is around 13years for most people. There is no other job these days that requires the employees to fund over £40,000 worth of training. You need to be dedicated, commited and ready to work your socks off to achieve an airline job it's not as simple as just walking in and getting the job.

[roll_over]

I want to be at your interview, with reasons like that it is going to be a laugh!

[wheelie my boeing]

To be fair... "It's most prestigious, responsible, rarified, remunerative profession".
I didn't become an airline pilot because I thought it was irresponsible, or non-prestigious. I did it for many reasons, and, I still think the image is good.
We demand a lot of respect (although most of us earn it properly) and we can be faced with lots of difficult decisions to make with very little time to think about solutions.
To say that becoming an airline pilot solely for the image is wrong then yes you are quite right. But from "red gaint's" post I don't believe that is what he said. It DOES impress people, and that IS a valid reason to become an airline pilot although it shouldn't be your only reason. The fact is, people won't just respect you for becoming an airline pilot. They will respect you and be impressed with you with the way in which you conduct yourself. If you are smart, well spoken, polite, hard working, and you don't p*** around then people will be impressed.
(By the way, it's a great job, and I don't mind having young blondes stare at me when I walk through terminals... and they only stare because of my uniform.)

[red gaint]

You are absolutely right sir (wheelie my boeing) I'm liking to become an airline pilot not solely to impress my mates or to gain star status, there are other reasons too.

And where responsible persons login here I earnestly looking for helping hands and not the one which points and mock :E me

[wheelie my boeing]

No problem. As for your questions you previously asked;
Airline interviewers are not looking for a "correct" answer. They want to hear YOUR opinion, not someone else's. When going for an interview do not try and learn answers to questions. Instead, have a think about different areas and think about what you could say if certain questions came up. Know your own opinion and then use it. They will be able to tell if you aren't telling them what you really think. Come up with your own ideas and examples, and provided they aren't too extreme you shouldn't be faced with too many problems in the interview stage.
Best of luck

[Adios]

Red Giant,

If I were an airline recruiter or a cadet recruiter, I would never choose a person who wanted a job I had on offer for the reasons you have stated. Everything you have written falls into the category of "What's in it for me?"

Recruiters are interested in what's in it for their airline. They are looking for people who know it will be hard work and are convincing in their claims of willingness to work hard, both during the training and for the entire career. I don't see any of this in your posts and I think you have done so little research that you don't have a clue what it is really like. You are in for a very rude awakening when you meet your competition.

There is nothing wrong with wanting a good work/life balance and remuneration in line with your efforts and contribution. The problem is that you don't seem willing to put in much effort. This is good news of course . . . to those you will be competing with.

[red gaint]

Having got the highest score in the pilot assessment test I underestimeted that I be easily given consideration but things seems to be more intriguing, from your opinions.

Feels like I've to do reconsider everything and do lot of homework prior to the interview :{

Thank you for your time and comments.

[Bambe]

Mate, all your reasons are good... We all want a prestigious career, we all like when walking through the terminal girls are looking at us... But keep it for yourself and think of what an employer wants to hear..

You must show them you'll be fully profitable, fully dedicated because whatever happen, even for a poor salary you'll keep on flying with them.

Never forget that it's all about ticking boxes. If you say the right words, show the appropriate behaviour, you'll do it. Then you'll get every thing you went here for (money, travel, respect...)

Good luck
Bambe