Well here's my first question, are you really 72 years old?

Re cadet schemes nowadays. Assuming the cadets will go straight into the RH seat or supernumary seat of a jet transport. That these pilots lack real flying experience in the world outside their flying school probably doesn't matter anymore. They will go straight into a simulator for their type rating and will come out of that with a command endorsement or perhaps a copilot endorsement. Their SOP knowledge will be superb by the end of their simulator training.

Their line training on the real aircraft will be 99.9 percent on automatic pilot just like their simulator course. If on long haul they may be lucky to get one take off and landing every few months and that will be after switching off the automatic pilot shortly before touch down. The manufacturers realise that inexperienced pilots will inevitably be flying their aircraft and that is why automation is accented from the start of the very first simulator session.

The opportunities for these cadets to gain experience by hand flying in jet transports will be few and far between so that is why it doesn't matter if an experienced former GA outback charter pilot is the first officer or an inexperienced flight academy cadet is first officer. As long as they are both red-hot on the automatics is all that counts in todays airline industry. It might not be the ideal situation but it is the norm nowadays because the automation is so reliable.

:D So true! Last time I was in Wide Bay area I was on board a Caribou conducting LAPES drops in fire breaks with our wingtips below the tree-tops on either side. I genuinely feel sorry for the kiddies who feel that airline flying is the ultimate in aviation; they haven't lived. Better than an office job... yeah, with equivilent pay.

Agree the best flying I did was in GA. Currently flying for a Major and spent 7 years in regionals as well.

GA was the best apprenticeship I ever did.

So have any of the Cadets been given a command yet?

Also what is the current time from for a Direct Entry FO with ATPL, etc to be in the ball park for an upgrade.

And finally, what are the chances of an initial posting to Melbourne.

The short answers to your questions:

1. No.

2. Not sure.

3. Fairly slim.

1. No. Rex only had their ICUS program approved about 6 months ago. I would say another year till any cadet is eligible for upgrade.

2. In Sydney, 8 to 10 months depending. Everywhere else probably more like 12 to 15.

3. Anythings possible. Where people get posted initially changes quickly, as people move around and/or leave.

I have just got a few questions

Lets say if you join the cadetship, how long will it take a cadet to get the minimum required experience to get a command since this ICUS program has been approved?

I saw on another thread that a rex FO can earn up to $65k with a bit of overtime,is this similar to what a cadet pilot could earn if he/she did some overtime? (Could someone send me a link for the Rex pilot EBA?)

Are airlines like Virgin Australia, Jetstar, Cobham, Network Aviation, Skywest taking on rex fo's (who joined as cadets) or is it really only the rex captains that are getting poached?

I have noticed there are a lot of pilot bases, what are the chances of getting a Sydney base once completing the cadetship?

4 years. (Excluding time in Cadetship)

Nearly. We have had 5 cadets at least move to the left seat or they are finishing their training/checks. Albeit a Pel-Air left seat recently. Nevertheless it is command time. Will be good experience there too.

Fairly good atm.

Yes and no. AFAP members have access via their website.

My post was 6 months ago. Like you said there have been some upgrades since then, although I'm not sure if any zero hour cadets are eligible yet? Only the ones with a bit of experience coming in.

Hence why I said nearly.

You are correct though, there were no "zero time" cadets, that I know of at least. I think a few we're very close though.

Has anyone heard back after applying for the June intake?

Yeah. I did my wombat test 2 weeks ago and now have an interview in Wagga in mid Feb

benjipc good on ya well done! good luck with the interview, when did you apply and whats your flying experience? I just recieved the send us a scanned copy of your highschool results email about a week ago so fingers crossed.

rex cadetship
 

Have done all stages of the interview etc in the past - feel free to chat in pvt. if like.

I don't know how accurate this is, but this is a rumour network after all. So here goes: rumour has it that REX012 is now on week 61 of their 32 week course. :eek: This does seem like really good progress, and must take some really skillful planning from the CFI! :ugh::ugh:

G'day guys.

I had been reading a lot of the REX "cadebtship" :} threads on here for a while and came across plenty of posts presenting the valid issues of cadets achieving command. As I understand it from all the reading there were 2 major requirements for upgrade on the SAAB 340:

1. class 1 ATPL
2. 500 hours MEC or ICUS (correct me if I am wrong with the ICUS time)

The issue with requirement 1 was that AAPA only fulfill 70 hours command time (single engine?) off the 100 hours that are required and cadets would have to fork out for the rest of the 30 hours?
Regarding requirement 2, people mentioned that cadets would be FOs for around 6 years because accumulating the 500 hours ICUS at REX would take around this much time.

Now with the ICUS program in place, am I right in saying that this program only addresses requirement number 2 for the command upgrade? I am not entirely sure how the program works but I guess the cadets accumulate the 500 ICUS in less than the 6 years previously mentioned? (4 years from Stiff Undercarriage's post) Also, do the cadet FOs follow a structured ICUS flying routine in this program or is the 4 years to command a ballpark figure? Just wondering if it is being called a "program" there might be some certainty that every cadet will now pretty much get a command in the said time :confused:
But then again wouldn't there be a backlog of cadet FOs who joined up before this program came into existence waiting to undergo their ICUS program? Would this push the aforementioned 4 years to command time further for new cadet FOs?:ugh:

And coming back to requirement 1, are cadet FOs still responsible for bridging the 30 hour command time gap? The Jetstar cadetship tries to address this command time issue in their training phase by basically calling these extra hours as "additional expenses". They also pin food and board under the same category :ugh: Just wondering if AAPA do something similar but don't tell you about it untill you're at the interview?

Finally, I read from the cadetship faq document that the repayment of the 100k loan over 7 years will be on a "sliding scale geared to salary so that the fortnightly repayment represents an affordable proportion of the estimated pilot’s salary" So if its not the 14k (plus interest) annual repayment from the beginning as some posts make it out to be, are people still of the opinion that the take home wage for a new cadet FO will be low enough to pay rent etc.? I have the salary figures for FOs but without the repayment adjustments its useless info for someone thinking about this cadetship.

I apologise for the barrage of questions, but I felt that after reading long threads that some of the gritty detailed stuff was untouched :uhoh:

Cheers.

How are the cadets progressing at Rex?

Is there any that exhibit the required skills and hour requirements at present to enable a jump across to the L/H seat?

Rumour has it not too many upgradable F/Os left.

Anyone with any info on how the European recruitment drive transpired?

6 (the ones i can think of) are already Online in the LHS. Maybe a few more.

Not true, no surplus but there are quite a few.

Went well from what I hear.

Slight clarification required SUC.

One, just One former cadet has moved to the LHS of a REX SAAB, and that pilot had significant former flying experience!

The others have earned their command with Pelair on charter ops. lower total aeronautical experience.

The kicker is, that no less than 5 of those Pelair Captains (whom I can think of at the moment) have moved on to bigger and better things!!!

And before you get too excited about the overseas recruitment, including the Europeans (who haven't even landed yet), REX have lost an eqivilent number of Captains in the last 6 months, and the major airlines (probably TT, and even VA/ATR) haven't even started yet.

Total number of upgradeable F/O's left, 2-3!

The strategy is failing, question is, who'll have the guts to tell the Chairman?