I dont fully agree in my opinion in 2 years time the industry will back to normal.

"I'd like to use this opportunity to unveil to you, a new concept that CTC is about to launch. Over the next couple of days you might well see adverts and hear speculation about a new flexible crewing initiative known as FlexiCrew.

We are responding to the request from industry to provide a flexible crewing concept that enables airlines to "flex" their crewing requirements more seasonally. When I say crew, I mean Pilots and Cabin Crew alike.

With an acute focus on cost control, there are a number of airlines that are looking to adopt flexible crewing options.

We will be inviting type rated pilots from all over the world to apply to FlexiCrew so that we can build a global database of pilots that can satisfy an airlines need wherever they might be and on any type. Chris Clarke and I have just completed a whistle stop tour of the Middle East and China and it is apparent there will be a genuine global challenge in the coming years to marry pilots with jobs.

Last year CTC trained almost 1400 pilots for 52 airlines, but the market for the supply of pilots and the demand for those pilots goes way beyond our current client list. Therefore, we are aiming to diversify into other emerging markets and expand our services for the supply of worldwide airline crewing.

Clearly as CTC Wings Pilots you have a natural avenue to the 11 Partner Airlines; however FlexiCrew will go way beyond that and offer the possibility of operating with other airlines. We would therefore, like to invite you to register on the database. As previously mentioned, it will be more usual to attract type rated pilots, but in the case of CTC Wings pilots, we would like you to register regardless of your stage of training, and update your status as you progress through.

In previous updates, I have mentioned the changing climate and the nature of the industry is such that innovation and cost effective solutions to the airlines from training organizations will be necessary. We want to be at the forefront of pilot supply solutions, but more specifically, we want to maximize your likelihood of placement.

FlexiCrew will not appeal to all airlines and it might not appeal to you; however you have nothing to lose by registering. The system will "go live" in the next few days and when it does, please feel free to register your details. As stated, this does not compete, undermine or change your position with regards to the Wings Partner airlines, but it does allow us to potentially offer you additional options should you wish to be involved.

The changing nature of the industry and the need for a solution is illustrated in Tim Cheales comments below on FlexiCrew:-

"CTC has always been a reliable source of quality pilots. Our marketplace is changing - the ability to have a seasonal supply of pilots is something only previously considered by the smaller operators. However, we all have to revisit our approach to resourcing and this could provide a very workable solution for more airlines as our industry evolves."
Captain Tim Cheal, Training Manager, Thomas Cook Airlines

To give you some idea of the activity levels at the moment, we are in discussions with airlines in the Middle East, Vietnam, China, most of Europe, Africa, Australia, New Zealand and Fiji on subjects ranging from supplying Training Captains, to Cadets and Cabin Crew. This means that updates like this might start coming at you thick and fast. I hope that you see this as exciting and innovative, and more importantly, I hope that it assures you that despite the economic down turn, we are on the case and providing the industry with solutions."

As I was saying this week to the boss of Cabair before he checked in for his flight to Beijing.. i've been around the flying training industry a long time.

the boss of Cabair before he checked in for his flight to Beijing