JetBlue Ab Initio Program ?

[bafanguy]

JBALPA's stance on the program is that it is not good and has asked members not to participate.

Can you offer any specifics as to why ALPA says it's "not good" ? Just curious about how these things work...not taking a side here.

These ab initio/cadet programs are pretty common around the world but would admittedly be a very new concept here in the USA.

JB seems to be very "creative" in finding pipelines to pilot supply. They recently announced something called Advance Gateway in cahoots with ExpressJet.

If there actually is...or will shortly be...a pilot shortage at the larger airline level (I remain a skeptic), isn't it wise to start creating ways to avail themselves of the supply ?

NOT TAKING A STAND HERE !! JUST ASKING !!

 

[BeachBummer]

I'll dig up the email later but honestly when specifics are you looking for?

JBalpa pilots officially do not support the abinitio program.

 

[bafanguy]

BB,

That's OK...no sweat.

 

[$$$4nothin]

JBALPA stance

Recently, management announced the new Gateway 7 program. The JetBlue MEC views this ab initio program as an untimely and unwarranted lowering of hiring standards that will negatively affect our company and our profession. Therefore, we oppose the implementation of this program at JetBlue. Soon management will be seeking volunteers to participate in taking an aptitude test which will be given to candidates. We encourage you not to participate in this assessment.

 

[BeachBummer]

And there it is...

Thanks for posting

 

[flyboyike]

Recently, management announced the new Gateway 7 program. The JetBlue MEC views this ab initio program as an untimely and unwarranted lowering of hiring standards that will negatively affect our company and our profession. Therefore, we oppose the implementation of this program at JetBlue. Soon management will be seeking volunteers to participate in taking an aptitude test which will be given to candidates. We encourage you not to participate in this assessment.

Interesting perspective.

 

[BeachBummer]

Fellow Pilots:

As you know, many paths are available to those wishing to become an airline pilot in the United States. Each of you spent years in the military, regional airlines, cargo, or corporate flying in order to build the flight experiences necessary to be a safe and professional aviator. It takes years of flying in all types of weather and in all situations to make one competitive enough to become a JetBlue pilot.

More than 14,000 ALPA pilots at regional airlines with several thousand hours of 121 experience are qualified and ready to join the ranks of JetBlue. The issue of hiring and retaining qualified JetBlue pilots comes at the price of a quality collective bargaining agreement—not at the prospect of hiring non-aviators and hoping that their simulator time and flight training in a blue-sky world prepares them for shooting an ILS to minimums during a winter storm.

Please don’t let our profession down or lower our standards for the promise of a raffle ticket by participating in JetBlue surveys which seek to gather data to model the typical JetBlue pilot. JetBlue’s attempt to create an ab initio program is not an effective way to secure qualified aviators, and we are concerned that the program is an attempt to deal with an increasingly competitive market for pilots without dealing with the need to improve rates of pay, rules, and working conditions.

The best way to attract and retain the best pilots is with a great CBA. One of the greatest assets our negotiators have at the table is the professionalism and experience of our pilot group. With that kind of wealth of skill and capability, we can negotiate a contract that will enhance JetBlue as a destination airline. In this fashion, we can recruit and maintain the finest aviators who come with seasoned proficiency and safety.
For these reasons, we ask you not to participate in Gateway 7 program surveys.

The pilots of jb do not support this program.

Any other questions?

 

[Mungusaurus]

Yet ab-initio programs have been used in the rest of the world with great success for decades. British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Lufthansa, Quantas, and others have used cadetships to their advantage. The testing is rigorous to qualify and then you can tailor the individual from day 1 to be exactly the pilot you want, following your SOP from the get go.
With flight training becoming prohibitively expensive (especially if you go to college too) this seems like the perfect way to ensure a stream of highly qualified, highly motivated and dedicated employees.
Now, does it suck for the people who have applied and failed? Yes, sure it does but if you failed to get hired is that the company's fault or yours?
Does this mean the company will stop its traditional hiring? No, because it takes years to get an ab-initio student to the right seat of a 320 or 190.
Will this encourage some people to start flying who otherwise wouldn't because it was cost prohibitive? Yes.
Does every branch of the US military use ab-initio to pretty great success? Hell yes and I defy any of you to say that the US military's pilots are somehow sub standard because of it.
I just don't see the issue with this at all.

 

[Blue Dude]

This isn't Europe or China. There is no shortage of already-qualified pilots in this country. There is a shortage of pilots willing to work for less than the waiter at Chili's. The JetBlue ab initio program is nothing more or less than an attempt to train up captive pilots willing to work for less because they'll have nowhere else to go. We need experienced pilots, not well-drilled switch monkeys.

 

[Mungusaurus]

This isn't Europe or China. There is no shortage of already-qualified pilots in this country. There is a shortage of pilots willing to work for less than the waiter at Chili's. The JetBlue ab initio program is nothing more or less than an attempt to train up captive pilots willing to work for less because they'll have nowhere else to go. We need experienced pilots, not well-drilled switch monkeys.

I'd hardly call a Cape Air pilot who's flown in the northeast during the winter a well trained switch monkey! It's a tried and proven program and it gives people who may not otherwise be able to fly the opportunity to.
The money? That's on you, your Union, and what it will negotiate for them.