Category: LTF News

Over the previous years, I have seen airline cadet pilots candidates apply for interview with varied amounts of flying experience. Some applicants have zero flight hours, and some have as many as 50 flight hours. This brings to light an important question. “Before I apply for for airline cadet pilot interviews, how many flying hours do I need?”

This answer will certainly vary from person to person, and even airline to airline.

Typical responses from airlines can again vary from “we will train you”, to “the more experience the better”. There are even in extreme examples such as “why would you waste your time doing any flying beforehand?”

All of these are very subjective responses.

So is there a right or wrong answer to this question?

From my own personal experiences with cadet pilot interview requirements, I feel that previous flying hours are an important part of preparation. This is important not just at the interview stage, but is also advantageous once successful applicants start their cadet training.

Typically, zero time cadets may not have had any exposure to flight at all. Considering flying introduction programs are certainly worthwhile. Firstly, to see if aviation and the flying environment actually interests you. Secondly, to see if you are suited to a flying role and the challenges that this presents.

Over the previous 2 years most of the successful airline cadet pilot interview applicants have completed a basic flying program as a minimum.

Beyond initial flight training, further training is of course up to the individual. You can pursue programs that help you towards achieving your first solo flight. Beyond that you could even look at obtaining a Recreational Pilot Licence or Private Pilot Licence. This certainly does help towards not just the interview process and understanding aviation, but the future role that one is about to pursue as an airline cadet pilot after the successful interview.

Recent airline cadet pilot interview applicants have given feedback that practical aviation exposure and flying hours is a must. This experience greatly assists with actual practical knowledge of flying beyond a purely theoretical approach.

Further to considering airline cadet pilot interviews and the flying hours required beforehand, it’s also a great idea to think about completing a flying program before starting your actual cadet training. This is especially beneficial if you complete a course in a similar aircraft type to the one you will fly during your training.

Captain Darren McPherson from ACS – Aviation Consulting Services is our specialist airline interview consultant. He runs our highly successful airline interview courses, which includes the Future Cadet Pilot Program (FCPP) and the Airline Interview Coaching Session.

Learn To Fly’s Airline Pilot Interview Programs have been created specifically to give airline pilot applicants the best possible preparation. The Future Cadet Pilot Program (FCPP) also offers practical flying training, which makes a valuable addition to your technical knowledge.

For further information or to register your interest in these modules, email [email protected] or visit https://drift.me/learntofly/meeting to book a meeting and school tour.

What are some of the most underestimated pilot interview questions?

As a result of airline interview preparation courses with ACS – Aviation Consulting Services and Learn to Fly, we have had many successful candidates who are now flying large turboprop and jet airliners with airlines around the world. We have assisted candidates through the interview process, and successfully improved both preparation techniques and interview performance.

Let’s take a look at some overall preparation tips, as well as some specific pilot interview questions that we have found are underestimated at times.

Overall Preparation: The Earlier The Better

As always, the key to any interview is preparation, and the earlier you start this the better.

It’s important to take into account your interview lead up time. If the interview date is within 1 month, then a lot of preparation is essential. It is essential to step back from initial individual or group preparation sessions and think about your responses. You are then able to develop or evolve more complex answers, and display more knowledge depth during interview.

Most applicants know that they need to get their practical and theoretical flying knowledge right. On top of this though, for many airlines the HR questions play an important role. It is these HR pilot interview questions that we have found often get mistakenly seen as a low priority.

Over the previous 2 years with more than 75 airline job offers from 8 major airlines, the typical successful candidate started their HR preparation at least 6 weeks before the interview. Ideally this time frame is at least 8 weeks. Starting that far in advance allows enough time to develop a strong, well thought out and prepared candidate.

Top 6 Underestimated Questions During Pilot Interviews

Through experience, a number of broader areas and specific pilot interview questions have become apparent. It is these concepts that candidates need to develop further more consistently.

At times the focus can be strong on standard yet obvious questions, such as:

“Why should we employ you?” or

“What are you going to get from working for our organisation?”

Other questions tend to remain underestimated and therefore require more consideration. The top 6 questions during pilot interviews that consistently require more consideration are as follows:

1. Discuss your understanding of the role you are applying for

2. Where do you see yourself in the long term ie 5, 10 and 20 years from now?

3. What has been the most satisfying part of your career so far?

4. Discuss a time when you have been under pressure, and how did you overcome this?

5. What is your PLAN B if you are unsuccessful today?

6. How can your role as a pilot be used to improve the customer experience, and our product?

Whilst the HR components for different airlines have differing focuses in their pilot interview questions, reviewing these areas will give you a great overall base to answer most questions. Developing responses to these will allow you to present as a more well thought out candidate, and ultimately, will make you seem a better person for the job than other less considered applicant responses.

Our Airline Interview Preparation Courses

Captain Darren McPherson from ACS – Aviation Consulting Services is our specialist airline interview consultant. He runs our highly successful airline interview courses, which includes the Future Cadet Pilot Program (FCPP) and Airline Interview Coaching Session.

Learn To Fly’s Airline Pilot Interview Programs have been created specifically to give airline pilot applicants the best possible preparation. The Future Cadet Pilot Program (FCPP) also offers practical flying training, which makes a valuable addition to your technical knowledge.

For further information or to register your interest, email [email protected] or visit https://drift.me/learntofly/meeting to book a meeting and school tour.

Discover the secret weapon to airline pilot interview success!

Learn to Fly is working with Senior Captain Darren McPherson from ACS (Aviation Consulting Services) to provide Airline Interview Training, and together we have helped numerous candidates successfully pass their airline interviews over the past 2 years.

These candidates have progressed onto various airlines such as Air New Zealand, Cathay Pacific Airways, Jetstar, Singapore Airlines, Scoot, and Qantas.

They are now flying a range of aircraft types from the smaller Dash 8 and ATR 72 all the way through to larger Airbus and Boeing types including the A330, A350, B747, B777 and B787.

Future Cadet Pilot Program (FCPP)

Now is a great time to get into the aviation industry. If you are hoping to potentially become an airline pilot by progressing through an Airline Cadetship Program, Learn to Fly can help you. Our Future Cadet Pilot Program (FCPP) aims to successfully equip graduates with the skills, qualifications and experience for any Airline Cadet Pilot Interview. The program will include the following training sessions:

Flight Training

The objective of the training is to give you a good and fair sampling of what flying feels like, as well as an insight into the flight training process.

Airline Interview Training

Darren McPherson from ACS (Aviation Consulting Services) will teach the interview training. As a Senior Captain at a major international airline with 30 years of experience, Captain Darren will teach you how to best present yourself for your interview. In the session he will thoroughly review your CV. He will also enhance your group discussion skills, human relations (HR) and technical knowledge.

Cadet Pilot Theory

The theory sessions will contain everything you need to know to have the best chance of passing the airline interview. They not only cover basic aerodynamics, but also technical knowledge related to airline operations.

Simulation Training

The training is separated into 2 parts. The first part will be conducted by Flight Experience Melbourne on their 737 flight simulator. You will then complete the second component on Learn to Fly’s state-of-the-art flight simulator

ICAO Aviation English

This component of the course prepares you to pass the ICAO Aviation English test. This is required by most airlines during the interview process

The FCPP has a proven record for airline pilot interview success.

Captain Darren McPherson from ACS – Aviation Consulting Services is our specialist airline interview consultant. He runs our highly successful airline interview courses, which includes the Future Cadet Pilot Program (FCPP) and Airline Interview Coaching Session.

If you are thinking about an airline career, then email [email protected]. You can also visit https://drift.me/learntofly/meeting to book a meeting and school tour.

Are you serious about an airline pilot career? In this blog we discuss some of the airline pilot career pathways available to you.

Airline Cadet Pilot Pathway VS General Aviation / Direct Entry Pathway

There are two main airline pilot career pathways to consider. Both can lead to an equally fulfilling career as an airline pilot. These are via an airline cadetship or via General Aviation training leading to a direct entry application.

Cadets will need to pass several rounds of exams, including a group interview and aptitude test. Direct entry pilots will require some prior flying experience, often accumulated through work as a flight instructor or charter pilot. Both methods of entry are standard, and each has its advantages and challenges.

General Aviation / Direct Entry Pathway

For this pathway, students need to graduate from a flying school and obtain their Commercial Pilot Licence (CPL). This is the minimum qualification to work as a pilot. This can also be obtained in conjunction with a Diploma of Aviation or Bachelor of Aviation qualification.

After graduating, the next step is to gain flying hours whilst working. This can be done a number of ways. Some of the more common roles are instructing, scenic flights, parachute drops or single-engine charter. You can then advance to multi-engine aircraft and build more hours, again through similar opportunities such as instructing.

Different airlines have different hourly requirements, and these are far lower than what they were even 5 years ago.

Cadet Pilot Pathway

An airline cadetship usually involves an intense full-time course during which the cadet must also gain the minimum flying hours. Following this, successful cadets are offered a role with their respective airline.

Entry Points

Cadet Pilot Program

Many airlines now offer cadet pilot programs. There are many benefits, one of which is that airlines can teach pilots according to their protocols. This means they can iron out unaligned habits formed at flying schools. You can technically apply for a cadetship with no flying experience at all. Having said that, we strongly recommend having some flying experience prior to applying.

As there is such high demand for pilots, some airlines will even provide free training for their cadets. The cadetship path can be especially beneficial to students with limited finances.

Out of the two main airline pilot career pathways, the cadetship is the most accessible. But that doesn’t mean it’s easy! Competition for cadetships is fierce, with only a limited number of spaces available.

For example, an airline may receive a thousand applications each year but only select fifty cadets. This means applicants must demonstrate fervent attention to detail, impeccable attitude and dedication that sees them stand out from the rest. The interview process is rigorous and requires a great deal of preparation.

General Aviation / Direct Entry Pathway

Direct entry is the “traditional” pathway to becoming an airline pilot. You obtain your CPL, build hours, and then apply for relevant airline roles. The two most common direct entry options are for First Officer or Second Officer roles.

The airline will determine the minimum requirements for application, and this usually centres around the number of flying hours you have. Obviously, Second Officer direct entry requires less hours than First Officer direct entry.

The benefit of this pathway is that you are applying based on your flying skills and experience, so there are less variables. You won’t find the same level of fierce competition that you see with cadetships. You either have the hours and experience, or you don’t. Having said that, preparing your application well is still very important. It’s still a job interview after all, and the airline will still want to know that you will be a good fit.

The downside to this pathway is time and money. Learning to fly is expensive. Obtaining your CPL will likely take a minimum of 12 months and cost you $70K AUD at the very least. Only then will you be able to start earning money as a pilot. From there, building the hours you need for direct entry takes time.

Airline Pilot Career Pathway Job Prospects

Cadet Pilot Program

Past statistics suggest that between 85 – 90% of cadets go on to graduate. According to data, there is a 95% chance of a cadet pilot flying for the airline that trained them. Markets can fluctuate, however, and there are often outside factors that can affect employment.

Your level of success will always will always be determined by your level of dedication, aptitude, safety and attitude. Some airlines have been known arrange extra training so a cadet can meet requirements, but that is not a given. It’s not a free ride, and some would say that cadet training requires you to exceed expectations far more than a standard flight training process.

General Aviation / Direct Entry Pathway

The aviation industry is currently booming, with a high demand for pilots around the world. It’s now common for pilots in Australia to be poached by overseas airlines with salary packages they can’t refuse.

Major airlines such as CommutAir, SkyWest Airlines, Qantas, Air New Zealand, Cathay Pacific, Singapore Airlines and Scoot are hiring via direct entry. More recently, we have seen a huge reduction in the minimum hours required for both First and Second Officer direct entry applications.

In addition to this, many flying schools are hiring junior instructors as full-time pilots. That means that gaining a job post graduation is very much achievable, as is being able to build hours while you work.

Regardless of which of the airline pilot career pathways you choose, it is ultimately about skill, endeavour, performance and above all, attitude. After all, being a pilot isn’t just about flying machines; it is also about carrying people.

Captain Darren McPherson from ACS – Aviation Consulting Services is our specialist airline interview consultant. He runs our highly successful airline interview courses, which includes the Future Cadet Pilot Program (FCPP) and Airline Interview Coaching Session.

If you are thinking about an airline career, then email [email protected]. You can also visit https://drift.me/learntofly/meeting to book a meeting and school tour.