What Do People Think About The REX Cadetship?

[Wangaratta]

Hey,

 

I've heard about the REX Cadetship and heard good and bad about it. I would like to hear from people who are doing/have done the Cadetship?, and an other peoples thoughts about the Cadetship..

 

-Jack

 

 

[Simonflyer]

Hi Jack..

 

I did a lot of research into it and decided against going anywhere near Rex

 

I made the decision not to apply for many reasons.There are some very extensive threads on some other obvious sites (starting with PP) that cover commercial aviation a bit more in depth.If you are very young, and dont mind giving up quite a few years to the one company, paying a lot more for your training than I personally think is fair or reasonable, and having a slower than usual progression to the left hand seat, then it may be for you.Im sure that the standards of training they give would be fine, but it is a big commitment.

 

I would suggest if you haven't done so already, downloading and reading all the fine print from Rex's website about the cadetship, and making up your own mind. I think there are positives to the program i.e not paying upfront, but when I looked at it for my own situation i found too many ticks in the negative box, and I have also heard a lot of negative talk around Rex and their employee employer relations, and i tend to think if you hear a lot of that kind of talk there is usually some truth behind it and wariness needs to be in the picture.

 

good luck.

 

 

[Wangaratta]

Hey Thanks For The Reply,

 

Yeah, I've heard a bit of negative and positive talk. I just wanted to hear from the Forum community, Its just that like Rex I believe you are guaranteed a job, unlike other cadetships i.e Qantas. But yeah I'm not sure, just wondering.

 

Thanks Again,

 

Jack.

 

 

[Ultralights]

Sharp Airlines have a similar cadetship, and i have not heard a bad word about them yet.

 

 

[Wangaratta]

Thanks for the tip Ultralights !

 

might check it out now..

 

 

[Barefootpilot]

It's horses for courses really. It is a guaranteed job but in saying that you are going to be there for 7 years (I think I haven't read it for a year or so now) You will also pretty much be stuck as a First Officer as you will not have the requirements to be made captain. I understand they are looking at ways around this at the moment but if you wanted to leave before you 7 years are up or before you became captain you would be starting from the bottom of the pile with all the fresh CPL's because in honesty you wouldn't have the industry experience required for a comparative job that you would have for REX. To explain that further most First Officers with REX have a minimum of 2000 hours with 500 multi engine. You as a cadet will be in there with around 250 hours. After you are in as a Cadet the time you will get is logged as CO-Pilot time not command so you only get to log half of it and you are not getting command training therefore it is looked as with less importance. You also have to put up with a lot of the current non cadet First officers and Captains looking down on you as you have jumped the line that they all had to wait in (I don't say I agree with them but trust me its there!)

 

 

Not sure how helpful my post will be but I thought I might give you something else to think about. I must admit when I did my CPL I looked at cadetships and decided to do it the old fashioned way.

 

 

Adam.

 

 

[Wangaratta]

Thanks For The Advice.

 

 

[Thalass]

Probably the reason they do that is most pilots see regional airlines as a stepping stone to the big time with qantas, which means they have a high turnover and have to spend alot of time training new pilots to replace the ones who leave at the slightest whiff of RB211 exhaust. This is why Rex started their pilot training centre in the first place, and probably why they gear the scheme it like that. To get their money's worth out of the new pilots who don't know any better.

 

That doesn't mean it's right, mind you. They bought in a similar thing with engineers after a bunch of guys join Kendalls only to leave a month or two after they picked up the SAAB 340 license. Thousands of dollars wasted! And because of people like that I've had to sign a 3 year bond to my current employer in exchange for a type course. Oh well.

 

 

[Guest Brett Campany]

From what I've been told by the guys at work is that any kind of cadetship will take you from the regional airlines all the way to the big jets. Most guys miss out on the fun / hard work and experience of flying in the bush. I've been told that the guys who go bush really do learn a lot from the type of flying and of course that only makes you a better pilot in the long run.

 

How ever, if you get offered a cadetship, then take it!! There is going to be a mass pilot shortage over the next 3 to 5 years and now is the time to get into aviation if that is where you want your career path to be.

 

 

[Deskpilot]

Brett, what makes you think there's going to be a mass pilot shortage in the next 3 to 5 years?

 

 

[Barefootpilot]

Brett how do you know there will be a shortage? We had a "huge" shortage about 1.5years ago... it lasted three months and then back to the normal excess of pilots. Its an interesting industry!

 

Adam.

 

 

[Guest Brett Campany]

The shortage has been predicted by the lack of numbers of new pilots in both GA and CPL. It's a common discussion at work and various companies that work in very close to us have also noticed a massive drop in applications and visits from new and up and coming pilots.

 

Us alone, we used to have three to five door knockers a week asking about jobs, now we're lucky to get one or two a month. It's been the same with the other GA companies that we work around.

 

The numbers of new students has dropped dramatically according to the schools at Jandakot and I'm pretty sure that it's the same over in the East. We're hearing about smaller schools shutting down because of the lack of students. I think there's a Pprune thread on that as well.

 

With the economy the way it is and people holding onto their cash, there's less likelihood of new students which will only mean that in the next 3 to 5 years it is expected that there will be much less Australian pilots getting into those jobs ranging from the GA world to the larger airlines.

 

 

[Wangaratta]

That is sort of good and bad.

 

Bad for the people whose flying schools are shutting down, but good for the current student pilots that want to become a commercial pilot at a major company in the few few years or so with the shortage and stuff.

 

-Jack

 

 

[Guest Brett Campany]

I really think the 'pilot shortage' is a myth.

Maybe so but is there any evidence to say it won't happen? I don't see a mass influx of new, enthusiastic young Australian pilots these days. But far out there's a lot of Malaysians and Singaporean's on the radio's around our way!

 

 

[Ultralights]

i havnt seen any of the Indian, malaysian, chinese or other international students taking to their cars for the pilgrimage up nrth hunting for a job.

 

they all head back overseas to work, leaving the aussie GA scene very understaffed and more so in the future.

 

In the past year our students numbers have been down, ut whats helping us at the moment is the collapse of 2 of the major schools at our airport, so were quite busy, even though almost all our students now are heading on to CPL and back home overseas.

 

if the economy improves again as predicted, then the shortage this time around will be huge. but i still believe the economy has a big fall coming (still plenty of bad debt out there, and countries going broke and massive personal debt) so the lack of pilots now will be balanced by the shrinking of the indusrty. until the next upward cycle.

 

it wont be long now till a pilot of english speaking background is rarely heard on an international flight.

 

 

[FlyingVizsla]

When I started out there were about 30 CPLs for every full time position, choppers being the hardest industry to get a toehold in due to the number of Korean and Vietnam vets (with lots of hours flying in demanding situations). RAAF pilots were deserting the service and taking the plumb airline and ATC jobs despite a $70,000 incentive to stay.

 

Then a couple of years ago there was this looming crisis. The vets were retiring and young people, who were looking at shelling out a fortune (perhaps on top of a HECS debt) to get a low paid flying job, were taking the easier option and going off for more highly paid jobs. The future airline salary was no longer the big incentive.

 

I had a friend, CPL instructor, who was living on $6,000 pa scrounging whatever flying he could get, running from Sydney to Mt.Isa on the off chance of a few hours flying, hoping to get into an airline for the $250,000 (plus bids) international captain's life. At his 30th birthday he was a lather of tears because he was "now too old for the airlines". Eventually after begging, borrowing and living off friends he gave up flying and pursued other careers, teaching English overseas, serving coffee, child care assistant & cleaner. Now the crisis has struck he is flying for a respected airline in his mid 40's. How the world turns!

 

By the way - there is a young bloke - Daniel Lake - in the Just Landed forum who is looking at getting into the airlines - cadetship? Might be an idea for you guys to welcome him aboard and share your experience.

 

Sue

 

 

[Guest Howard Hughes]

Maybe so but is there any evidence to say it won't happen?

Yes, a pilot shortage has been talked about since the fifties, yet still hasn't really happened to any great extent. If the World really was short of pilots, wages would be going up, instead we see a relative wages decline amongst pilots compared to the rest of the workforce. Not to mention paying for type ratings etc...

PS: If you are interested in a career as a pilot then a cadetship is probably the quickest way to go. But if I were you I would be trying my hardest to get intothe Qantas cadetship, it is by far the best as it offers career progression. :thumb_up:

 

 

[Simonflyer]

If you can find a way to beg borrow or steal the money, that will be the quickest way.Put aside 12 months,stay with family and just go for it and you will get it done and then wont owe a company your soul(maybe a bank, but we all know their evil anyway)

 

Have a crack at the Qantas cadetship if thats what your after, but if you do get in, try and show some humility and respect for your fellow pilots because as of yet I have not heard a positive word spoken about the Q cadets.They are renowned for having a belief that the world rotates around them...

 

Good luck..

 

 

[Wangaratta]

Yeah, Qantas Would Be Great. Only Difference Is That Your Not Guaranteed A Job, I Think?

 

 

[dazza 38]

For anyone out there who are still at school and studing hard, try and get into the military as aircrew, before paying schools heaps of cash for training.I was reading australian aviation yesterday, their are alot more people completing their CPL's per year than jobs availiable. Especially in chopper flying.Cheers

 

 

[Wangaratta]

Yeah, I'm thinking of joining the RAAF, as a pilot (as first preference) or some other position. Via ADFA.

 

 

[Tomo]

Don't you have to have a degree in something before you can start flight training if joining the RAAF... Or is that just for high up pilots (jets)?

 

My Cousin just graduated from ADFA, now is flight training in Tamworth.

 

 

[ossie]

Yeah, Qantas Would Be Great. Only Difference Is That Your Not Guaranteed A Job, I Think?

Yes that's correct, but that was always the case. Having said that though, most cadets that successfully completed the course were placed in flying jobs within industry, by QF, till QF mainline required them.

 

However, further changes to the scheme took place around a year ago, no longer are cadets placed in flying jobs. New cadets now are required to find their own work to build on experience, only then will QF offer a position if one becomes available. So, the QF cadetship is not so attractive anymore. It may revert "IF" the so called aircrew shortage returns.

 

If anyone is looking at airline cadetships, take a peek at the one offered by Cathay Pacific, probably one of the better ones at the moment.

 

Cheers

 

Os

 

 

[dazza 38]

ADFA is a good way to go, a friend of mine when i was in the RAAF as a techo at amberley became as they call, a Degree Pilot. He went to ADFA, and did a degree in science before, doing his pilot course(DUXED his course). He has done extremely he is now the CO of one squadron. His name is Glen Braz (Blitz).I havent seen him since i left the RAAF in 1998. But he was/is the best(apart from Matt Hall).

 

 

[Wangaratta]

I think your right, what I gather is you go to ADFA, do your degree, then advance to flight training. very competitive.