BAA Wizz Air Cadet Scheme 2016

[tlipiec]

Just a quick one on Compass tests - On the MPL website (distributors of Compass software), one eye-hand-FOOT coordination test is listed (Control). I'm using SkyTest for practice (Middle-east version as apparently it contains most/all Compass tests) and I was wondering whether anyone of you guys bothered with buying rudder pedals for practice?

[Jurow]

Honestly the hand-eye-foot test is quite easy.
I have prepared this test with keyboard and before the test starts you have a couple minutes to get used to the HOTAS + rudder and you have instructions for each exercise.

[tlipiec]

Thanks Jurow. One more thing: could anyone tell me how does Compass compare to PILAPT in terms of difficulty?

[RawData17]

Hi tlipiec,

I have posted about assessment and Wizz Air interview previously in this topic. You will find a lot of details there.

Also, I have used SkyTest (Middle East) for the preparation and it was of good use.

[Finpilott]

Older candidate

Honestly asking,are there any older students on the wizzair cadet program? Am 35 years old and seriously considering this program,m

[mask14]

you're never too old to get flying - persevere

[Nurse2Pilot]

Some people have shared the terms of SmartLynx letter of engagement, does anyone have knowledge of the WizzAir terms?

[pilot freak]

Anyone currently in training with BAA Wizz Air program? Could you tell me your experience with the program?

Thank you in advance!

[LEXI.LEX]

WIZZ AIR BAA EXPERIENCE

Hi guys, I've red many comments on this portal so I decided to share with you my full experience. If I can help you with anything or if you have any questions, please feel free to p.m me. Also whatever I share here is my personal experience and my observations.
STAGE 1
After enquiring on BAA web page, one of the sales representatives will put in touch with you explaining you in details what you have to do and they will suggest you the dates for the Compass Test. Before that you will need to pay a fee ( around 200 euros). You have to specify for which cadet pilot program you are applying and according to that they will book a day for your COMPASS and assessment. In order to prepare for COMPASS test I used latestpilotjobs web page and it was extremely useful. Some other people used other platforms and everything works well. Please be prepared and fully ready because the test is not easy at all. Yes , all high school basics are there but you really need to be fully familiar with those.

STAGE 2
On the first day of your BAA assessment you will start with XT test and continue with english yes. XT test is done on your own language and yes at the end of it it does contain mathematics and some numbers ( this is separate that mathematics on your Compass test. However if you are ready for compass test, this math part on XT test will be a peace of cake for you. English test is basic, but you need to be sure and certain about the grammar and articles. It is multiply choice so that should not be an issue.
The next day is a Compass Test and your Face to Face interview. Compass test is exactly the same like on all preparation platforms so I will not explain a lot about that.

STAGE 3.
BAA Face to Face interview. The lady from the academy will have your file with her and she will ask you some questions such as: '' Tell me something about yourself. Why do you want to be a pilot, Why do you want WIZZAIR, Have you considered other programs we have, such as SMARTLYNx or SMALL PLANET, What are your qualities, What are you positive sides, etc etc. After that you are free to go and they will send you the result within one day. I've passed this part and they informed me that they would invite me for WIZZAIR final interview. I must share with you my observations. I am not sure if WIZZAIR has anything to do with the decision who would be invited for their final assessment. To me it appeared that BAA makes that decision but I might be wrong. At no point WIZZAIR was in touch with me, it was only BAA staff.

STAGE 4 WIZZ AIR INTERIVIEW.
- On the day of the interview we were around 23 candidates, all different age and levels of experience. 3 wizz air representatives and the lady from BAA that did our final interview in the previous stage of the selection with BAA. First part is the presentation of the company and all details abut the salary and financing. Next stage is a group discussion. The topic was ''SURVIVAL ACTIVITY''. We had a list of 15 items, we crashed in the Amazon forest and the fuel is leaking from the wreckage. Only you and the pilot survived and the rescue services are on the way. What items would you take. The time is 10 minutes, after that they will ask you some questions etc, etc.
- Final interview with WIZZ, exactly the same questions like the first day so honestly I did not see the point of it. The recruiters are very polite and nice however I am really not sure who is making the decision about the selected candidates. Unfortunately I was not successful and yea it does hurt but the life has to continue. You can't get any feedback or info about your performance or wha you can improve. Personally, I don't know what to think. There must be some kind of connection in between the academy and the entire selection process. I was under impression that they already knew which candidates will be taken and selected . One more time I might be wrong but this is just my opinion. Something was very fishy in the way the final interview was done. I am not sure if they have to make sure they got equal balance in between all their clients such as SMARTLYNX and SMALL PLANET. Wiz Air program is definitely the best and the most convenient fro everyone so I do not understand why someone would apply for other programs and schemes. There must be something there and I still can't figure out what's the catch. Good luck everyone, and congratulations to everyone that passed the final with the wizz.

[Jurow]

Thanks for your feddback ! It is very pleasant to read this kind of experience
However I dasagree with your suspicions even if I have not been successfull to be selected for the interview with WizzAir. Because I failed the interview with the assessment manager.

Some guys I know have been successful because they have performed a good interview. To be honest, I have been placed in the holding pool for the interview with Smartlynx and Avion Express. Both seem to be good charter airlines. Yes these programs are more expensive but you are not bound with them.

Don't give up and you will succeed

[westend]

BAA Cadet program process feedback

LEXI.LEX.....I agree with your suspicion, I truly do not agree with the process which is being held by BAA, as I had to go through it also. I truly feel there should be clear transparency in the process, which BAA and its partners do not display going through the process. Example is, why not disclose the scores of the tests to each of the candidates, provide feedback to the Candidates from the interview process. Provide the base line passing grade to qualify from the testing which is taken, and if it changes from one year to the next, that is ok, you would expect that.....but show some true transparency in the process....I sometimes felt it was a money grab....come on in, and try and pay for the test, and we will let you know. I felt at the end that it was a black hole with BAA.

I will be glad to say, this was the second process I have been through, I had gone through the FTE Flybe one also, and I will be glad to say, FTE was much more transparent with the process and they provided feedback at the very end to all there candidates....which was truly appreciated and much more transparent.

[LEXI.LEX]

hello Jurow and thanks for your reply. It is always nice to hear different points of view and by sharing our experiences we can broad our perspectives and clarify the things. How do you know you failed interview with training manager? Do you refer to the one after xt test? Good luck with everything in the future. I only shared my observations and I might be totally wrong about it. Some of the people did not initially apply for Wizz but for Smartlynx, however they were still invited for the wizz assessment. I fully agree with your observations regarding the bond and other opportunities. I am really not sure about the AVION EXPRESS. I have red some disturbing reviews about them. Would you know anything more? I know that people are very happy in Small Planet and Smartlynx.

[Tangozulu28]

Hi everyone, I'm about to take an assessment in January 2018 at BAA for a cadet pilot program with Wizz.

Quick question, does anyone heard to speak about of pilot-academy.wizzair.com?

It's a flying school in Hungary, they suggest a cadet program with Wizzair...

Seemingly, it seems to be the same cadet program of BAA. Just to double check because I didn't find a feedback on the forum about this school...

[thisishomebrand]

Looks to be a different flight school to BAA. Would be interested to know if anyone has anymore info.

Is the financing (i.e. the loan from Wizz Air) the same as BAA or is that unique to this program?

[Tangozulu28]

It seems to be different. Because I didn't read if you take an interview whit the airline before the training, and it's not written if you obtain a letter of engagement.

So I am not quite sure if the program is viable. I mean, it's just my personal feeling.

[RawData17]

The main difference I noticed between the BAA program and the WIZZ AIR pilot academy is that after you pass the interview for the WIZZ AIR pilot academy and start your training (which is at this point self sponsored) you will have another assessment 5 months into training. If you are successful on this assessment you are then entering so called "pre financed" phase of the training, if you fail, I assume WIZZ AIR will not take you, which means you wasted money (in a way).

Regarding some experiences with the BAA Training....
Overall it is a good school. Of course like everywhere there are some hiccups along the way, but in all honesty I think it is a good school.

-The instructors are very good! I really mean it! All the instructors my group had were experienced (worked for Emirates FT, Lufthansa FT, Antonov, Korean Air FT...) seemed to enjoy what they were doing and therefore didn't mind 1000 of questions. They even went out of their way to bring the matter closer to us and explain certain topics which were not properly covered by the training materials. Yes there have been some cases (not with my class) where some of the instructors had a language difficulties, however those instructors have been changed the day after.

Generally, BAA staff is very nice.

-Unfortunately last flying season wasn't so good for the students because some of them weren't able to fly the predicted amount of FH due to the weather and fleet conditions. The BAA is in the process of opening additional training location in the southern Europe where students will be able to fly during winter.

The schedules are somewhat difficult where some groups start as early as 7AM and some groups finish at 10PM. This may impose a difficulty regarding studying at home, however it is not so bad.

I have heard from some students (non EU citizens) that the process of obtaining visa and living permit is difficult and lack's good support, however I cannot vouch about this information as I do not require one.

The school just purchased 3 new FFS, two to be located at BAA HQ in Vilnius and one in Asia.

I think that all those guys saying that BAA doesn't offer a proper education really have no information whatsoever, or were probably rejected by the BAA.

Regarding the transparency within the cadet programs....
I don't understand why you are bothered by this. It's like when it comes to the direct entry pilot assessment. You are evaluated and then if you don't pass no one will tell you why. It is the same case here. If you don't pass, you either weren't good enough for the school or the company, or maybe you don't fit the company profile. In this case you can apply for a cadet program with another company. You have to understand that even if your scores are amazing, the company has a right to reject you for the most stupid reason, or for simply not liking you. Therefore it doesn't matter if you scored good or bad on your COMPASS test. The company will do whatever it wants. The sooner you accept this, easier it will be for you!

Don't give up, if you passed the compass test and the school has accepted you, it means that you have qualities to become a good pilot. Just because one company doesn't think that you don't fit their profile isn't a reason for you to give up. In fact, why would you even want to work for someone who thinks you are not right for them. Instead don't give up and check other cadet programs in BAA or in any other flight school.

BAA has recently increased it's price (about 8-10 K EUR). Still, I think that for this price you will come out as a winner if you consider you are in a cadet program.

[tlipiec]

Pilot academy

Hey Tangozulu 28,

Regarding the Pilot Academy, it's an ab-initio course partially sponsored by Wizz Air. The cost is somewhat similar to BAA, but you have to pay upfront around 20'000EUR and further 45'000EUR is sponsored by Wizz (2yr repayment holiday, paid over 5 yrs @ 2.4% APR). The ATPL and MCC parts of the course are held in Trener kft in North-East Hungary. As far as I know, this scheme is open only to Polish citizens at the moment.

[scarofly]

What about those who booked for the assessments 3 month ago to pass them in December with still "85 000€" in mind? Will they have to pay 97 000 anyway or this new price only applies to new applicants? From my side I had no information from BAA about this price upgrade whereas I booked the assessments in September for assessment sessions in December.

[RawData17]

You will have to pay the price which is valid at the time of signing the contract. Doesn't matter when you had your assessment or when you booked it.

[lukasz]

Hello guys,

Could you tell me more details about English test? (this is a test ABCD, listening, put some words in a gaps, describe a phote)

And COMPASS how many time you have to do that test? And how many question is there?

Please answer me ASAP!