Flair Cadet Program [Archive]

+TSRA

22nd Dec 2023, 16:05

Hi Kyle_07,

Before you do anything else, go to a Transport Canada Civil Aviation Medical Examiner (https://wwwapps.tc.gc.ca/saf-sec-sur/2/came-meac/l.aspx?lang=eng) for the Category 1 medical. Do not spend a single cent anywhere or elsewhere in your aviation journey before you do this. Don't let anyone tell you that Category 3 is fine and then do the Category 1 later. I've seen pilots do that only to find out they couldn't hold a Cat 1 and they wasted thousands of dollars. Spend the $250 or whatever it is now (I don't know because my company pays for it as a condition of our contract). If you are eligible and are awarded a Cat 1, you're good to continue down this road. If you are ineligible to hold it, then you won't waste more money and time and can focus on something else (maybe ATC if you can hold a Cat 2). But whatever you do, do the medical first.

As far as the training at Genesis, it would have to match that of any other college such that you are awarded a diploma at the end of it. The only way to truly know though is to ask current or former students, and you might not find those on PPRuNe. You're more likely to find those over on AvCanada. But, I have a few concerns:

1) They want a minimum of $160,000 to finish the program to a diploma level. I'm about 20-odd years out from paying for flying, so I don't know if that is reasonable, but it sounds too high. For that amount of money, you should at least get a degree. Compare this number against the likes of BCIT, Mount Royal, Seneca, Confederation, MFC, etc. When I was doing interviews and hiring pilots at my last company (a regional airline), a diploma or degree rarely entered into the conversation as the tipping point between two pilots. We looked at what and where you had flown, not where you went to school and that's because everyone graduates with the same credentials. From the standpoint of the license, no one school is better than another. The quality of instruction and breadth of information, on the other hand, differs greatly. Out of all the schools out there, I've been most impressed by grads from Mount Royal. I have zero affiliation with Mount Royal. They just always seemed to graduate pilots with the highest knowledge, best hands and feet skills, and overall best pilots for a given level of experience.

2) They want installments of $10,000 per month. That's a lot, especially given the program is not OSAP-eligible. So you're either getting this money from your parents or a bank, and at current interest rates you could end up being $200,000 or more in the hole once all is said and done. And unlike a student loan, you'll be paying that back immediately on a full-time student schedule. That'll be hard, especially once you factor in lodging, food, entertainment, and travel. It's not impossible, but I certainly didn't pay $10,000 a month for my flying or degree program. I believe you're better to look at a program that allows you access to a student loan.

3) They want $5,000 to hold a seat. At least when I went to university, there were no advanced monies to hold a spot. You paid your tuition as you loaded it into your calendar. This seems fishy to me, but it could also just be the way things are done now.

4) It is tied to only one airline. You'll find a lot of places out there have agreements with numerous companies. My last company had agreements with almost every university and college in the country. Not that this would hold you back from any other airline, but what happens to the program if Flair folds?

On that last note, I have serious misgivings about Flair's future as an airline. I know a lot of great people there and I wish them (the employees) nothing but success, but the management company that owns Flair always seems to be in trouble with any number of international government agencies. There have also been groundings and transfers that leave me wondering how the company's back-end finances are. With that said, Flair has surprised me by making it through the pandemic, so that's a positive and, as I said, I don't wish them ill. If anything it will be their employees that grow the company, not their management. And competition is only a good thing, especially for pilot wages! But, I firmly believe that when Michael Deluce said recently (https://www.ctvnews.ca/business/at-least-one-canadian-airline-will-be-gone-within-two-years-porter-ceo-predicts-1.6685515#:~:text=News-,At%20least%20one%20Canadian%20airline%20will%20be,two%20yea rs%2C%20Porter%20CEO%20predicts&text=Porter%20Airlines%20CEO%20Michael%20Deluce,%2D%2D%20Por ter%20most%20of%20all.) that at least one Canadian airline will be gone within two years, he was referring to the likes of Flair. He is only saying out loud what many pilots have been saying for about 4 years now, and that's not a good sign when the CEOs start agreeing with pilots. What I'm getting at here is: don't get suckered in by a flashy type rating at an airline. Look for a program that is good value for money. This may be it, and I hope so for the Collingwood area - it's a great part of Ontario. But my gut tells me you can do better for cheaper. I hope I'm wrong because that means I learn something and have somewhere else to recommend. But I've learned to trust my gut.