davis_love
2nd Oct 2011, 00:19
I've been reading these boards for 10 years, posting only once before. I've shared my thoughts in case they help others (particularly those unsuccessful with recent BA FPP applications).
I graduated from Uni in July 2001 and had secured a place on BA sponsored pilot scheme for later that year. 9/11 put pay to that, but in the intervening years I gained a PhD and climbed the career ladder first in R&D, and latterly as a fraud investigator. When I heard about BA's new FPP I registered my interest and waited for the applications to open.
However after careful consideration I decided not to apply.
It wasn't the £80k+ loan - although I certainly didn't relish the thought, I understand why it's needed. It also wasn't the lack of a "cast-iron guaranteed" job at the end. This is the risk with any professional training (and is probably the closest you'll get to a guaranteed job).
No, the reasons I will be staying with my current career are:
1) The pay. I understand newly qualified FOs should expect circa £35k. Forget the "official" national average wage; I suspect most people living in the SE, who are over 25, in employment, and meeting the FPP criteria would need to take a significant pay cut. I was earning over £35k in my first job out of uni over 6 years ago! Now that I have a mortgage/wife/child I simply cannot afford a 50%-60% drop in salary.
2) Steady erosion of T&Cs. Speak to any pilot who's been flying commercially for 15-20 years. Ask them how the T&Cs have changed. Look at the trend - where's it likely to be in 10 / 20 / 30 years? In my opinion, the demise of the sponsored schemes has accelerated this problem. Look at Pay-To-Fly; the only thing I see reversing this trend is an unfortunate incident where lack of experience is blamed.
3) Job Security. I accept there are few "secure" careers these days, however airlines do seem to be more cyclical than other industries. What will happen to the oil price in 10 / 20 years? Will this effect the continued increase in volume of passengers that airlines are predicting? How will the continued trend towards automation impact on pilots? I think we'll always need a human in the chain, but will you need 2/3/4 of them on-board? Look at what happened to flight engineers.
4) The "seniority" model. Do I want to be tied to an employer for 10 / 20 / 30 years? A lot can change in 30 years. I suspect the high "cost" in moving employer would give me some unhappy periods over that timeframe.
Ultimately I've come to the conclusion that this isn't the career for me. I would rather be in a career with a reasonable barrier to entry (IMO the FTO's have removed albeit the financial barrier) and in an industry that is growing. So long as people are willing to re-mortgage their house to pay for their own (or their son/daughter's) training I fear there will always be more applicants than jobs. I do not see this trend ending, and it will only further erode pay and conditions.
I may regret my decision one day, but at the moment it feels like the correct decision for me.
I graduated from Uni in July 2001 and had secured a place on BA sponsored pilot scheme for later that year. 9/11 put pay to that, but in the intervening years I gained a PhD and climbed the career ladder first in R&D, and latterly as a fraud investigator. When I heard about BA's new FPP I registered my interest and waited for the applications to open.
However after careful consideration I decided not to apply.
It wasn't the £80k+ loan - although I certainly didn't relish the thought, I understand why it's needed. It also wasn't the lack of a "cast-iron guaranteed" job at the end. This is the risk with any professional training (and is probably the closest you'll get to a guaranteed job).
No, the reasons I will be staying with my current career are:
1) The pay. I understand newly qualified FOs should expect circa £35k. Forget the "official" national average wage; I suspect most people living in the SE, who are over 25, in employment, and meeting the FPP criteria would need to take a significant pay cut. I was earning over £35k in my first job out of uni over 6 years ago! Now that I have a mortgage/wife/child I simply cannot afford a 50%-60% drop in salary.
2) Steady erosion of T&Cs. Speak to any pilot who's been flying commercially for 15-20 years. Ask them how the T&Cs have changed. Look at the trend - where's it likely to be in 10 / 20 / 30 years? In my opinion, the demise of the sponsored schemes has accelerated this problem. Look at Pay-To-Fly; the only thing I see reversing this trend is an unfortunate incident where lack of experience is blamed.
3) Job Security. I accept there are few "secure" careers these days, however airlines do seem to be more cyclical than other industries. What will happen to the oil price in 10 / 20 years? Will this effect the continued increase in volume of passengers that airlines are predicting? How will the continued trend towards automation impact on pilots? I think we'll always need a human in the chain, but will you need 2/3/4 of them on-board? Look at what happened to flight engineers.
4) The "seniority" model. Do I want to be tied to an employer for 10 / 20 / 30 years? A lot can change in 30 years. I suspect the high "cost" in moving employer would give me some unhappy periods over that timeframe.
Ultimately I've come to the conclusion that this isn't the career for me. I would rather be in a career with a reasonable barrier to entry (IMO the FTO's have removed albeit the financial barrier) and in an industry that is growing. So long as people are willing to re-mortgage their house to pay for their own (or their son/daughter's) training I fear there will always be more applicants than jobs. I do not see this trend ending, and it will only further erode pay and conditions.
I may regret my decision one day, but at the moment it feels like the correct decision for me.