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Aviation History
2003
2003 - 0055.PDF
flight.international@rbi.co.uk Flight International welcomes letters on any aspect of the aerospace industry. Please write to: The Editor, Flight International, Quadrant House, The Quadrant, Sutton, Surrey SM2 5AS, UK. Or e-mail flight.intema- tional@rbi.co.uk The opinions on this page do not necessarily represent those of the editor. Flight International cannot publish letters without name and address. Letters must be no more than 250 words in length. TRAINING Dive into the talent pool I am a pilot nearing the end of my self-funded Joint Aviation Authorities Frozen air trans port pilot's (ATPL F) licence training, having resigned from an established career on 10 September 2001.1 hope to enter an industry in the midst of its most uncertain period and agree with Russell Hockley (Flight International, 31 December-6 January) The reason airlines/candidates undergo such long-winded intensive selection proce dures is that the airline has to be sure that its investment is sound. The company has to ensure a candidate can progress through to ATPL (F) level with the minimum of fuss and "graduate" at a target price negotiated with the trainer. This is a false economy in the form of the costs of the initial selection interviews, exer cises, tests etc, followed by the inflated cost of the training and the wasted revenue when a candidate quits or doesn't make the grade. In relation to the inflated training costs incurred by majors, some would have you believe that "you get what you pay for", which does not go down well with the self-funded pilot with a £50,000 ($80,000) hole in his/her pocket, a mortgage and the same exams to complete as the privileged sponsored pilot. With the current cost-cutting, surely the option of qualified, risk-free, ready-to-go pilots would appeal to most. It would make a change to see airlines taking advantage of a pool of keen, talented people who require only one opportunity to impress. Matt Thornber Dublin, Ireland Money down the drain? In his letter (Flight International, 17- 30 December, "Standard confu sion") Marshall Clarke expresses confusion about the difference between being qualified for work as a professional pilot and being adequately trained. When a trainee pilot completes his/her initial licence training (no matter which route has been used), there is usually a significant gap between the knowledge and experi ence level achieved and that required by an employer. Many airlines require additional training to bring the pilot from the basic licence qualification level up to readiness for type rating train ing. To say that everyone who manages to gain an ATPL(F) is "suitable" for an airline career also makes the assumption that his or her personal qualities will fit an employer's requirements. It remains a cause for concern that our industry still includes some organisations that will charge thousands of pounds for training people without thoroughly analysing their career prospects. That analysis should include not only a full selection and assessment procedure, but clear identification of target employment opportuni ties. I know of no empirical data that quantifies this problem, but apocryphal evidence suggests that up to a third of those who set out to self-fund professional pilot train ing never achieve their dream of airline employment. The CTC McAlpine Sponsored Cadet Scheme is, in part, an attempt to address this problem, and to ensure that those starting out on this path achieve success. I would like to correct Mr Clarke's assertion that pilots under the scheme are expected to "work free for six months" on completion of the training. There is a six-month pro bationary period, during which time a living allowance is paid. Chris Clarke Chairman CTC McAlpine, Southampton, UK Safety and ETOPS Further to your coverage of the Aviation Rulemaking Advisory Committee (ARAC) ETOPS Working Group ("Redundant Rules?" Flight International, 31 December-6 January), the European Joint Aviation Authorities working group has not yet finalised its recommen dations and will not until perhaps April. It is premature to indicate that there are differences between what ARAC recommended and what the JAA may adopt. As to proposed new require ments for three- and four-engined aircraft, ARAC chose performance- based criteria. It is not so much a matter of equivalency among dif ferent aircraft as a matter of ensur ing that all aircraft, regardless of the number of engines, have the same performance standard, ie the occurrence of any failure, or combi nations of failures within a system that would prevent continued safe flight and landing must be extremely improbable. To meet the performance stan dard, twin-engined aircraft will require a level of engine reliability many times more stringent than aircraft with more engines. The ARAC proposal notes that three independent electrical generation sources — not generators - will meet the performance standard, while the currently drafted JAA guidance notes that one way to meet the standard (but not the only way) is to provide four genera tors. So the two bodies' pro nouncements on this subject are not incompatible. The proposed new definition of ETOPS - extended operations - applies to all aircraft, and is based on a preclude-and-protect philoso phy. Through design enhance ments, maintenance practices and operational requirements, the effort is made to preclude diversions in all operations, not just those of twins. Tim Gallagher Chair, ARAC ETOPS Working Group LETTERS CONTINUE ON P54 21-23 January Network Centric Warfare 2003 Arlington, Virginia, USA Tel:+1 973 256 0211 info@iqpc.com 23-25 January Aero 03 Mexico Business Aviation and Aerospace Trade Show Tuluca Airport, Mexico City, Mexico Tel:+52 333 825 7111 expos2002@megared.net.mxl 29-30 January Air Power 2003 London, UK Tel:+44 1628 604 311 mw@shephard.co.uk 30 January ACARE Strategic Research Agenda Symposium London, UK Tel:+44 207 215 1129 sra@dti.gsi.gov.uk 2 February AIAA Space Technology & Applications International Forum Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA Tel: +1 703 264 7500 cathyc@aiaa.org 6-7 February Flight International's UAV: Asia Pacific Melbourne, Australia Tel:+44 20 8652 8718 sallie.edwards@rbi.co.uk 9-11 February HAI Heli-Expo Dallas, Texas, USA Contact: Marilyn McKinnis Tel:+1703 6834646 11-16 February Australian International Airshow Geelong, Victoria, Australia Tel:+61 352 824 400 expo@airshow.net.au 26-28 February Aerospace Testing Expo 2003 Hamburg, Germany Tel:+44 1306 743744 Fax:+44 1306 742525 www.ukintpress.com/ aerospacetesting/ 27-28 February 17th Aircraft Finance & Commercial Aviation Forum Geneva, Switzerland Tel:+44 20 8915 5013 info@icbi-aircraftfinance.com a full list of events see www.fliqhtinternational.com FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 14-20 JANUARY 2003 53
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