British Airways’ (BA) latest route to the flight deck has launched, in the form of the Speedbird Self-Sponsored Pathway, rebranded from the previous Newly Qualified Pilot Pathway.
Guy Bowen, a member of BA’s pilot recruitment team and himself a 787 pilot said in a LinkedIn post, “This new pathway will help provide that security and remove the stress of not knowing what comes next. After successfully passing selection you will receive a conditional offer of employment to join British Airways as a First Officer before you even start training.”
Lucy Silvester, Pilot Recruitment Manager at BA added, “You’ll have the opportunity to attend [an] assessment before, during or after your flight training and, if successful be offered a conditional offer of employment on one of our short-haul fleets.”
So, who is this pathway aimed at? The British Airways careers website says that the Self-Sponsored Pathway is for candidates who are training at any approved training organisation (ATO) and have completed up to their instrument rating (IR) with their APS MCC course taking place within 6 months.
The four approved ATOs are:
- FTEJerez
- L3 Harris
- Leading Edge
- Skyborne
This scheme is a rebrand of the Newly Qualified Pilot Pathway, if you have already applied through this pathway our application will be moved, there is no need to reapply. The BA careers website details the entry requirements as follows:
Entry Criteria:
- Height will be between 1.57m (5’2″) and 1.91m (6’3″) (height is accurately determined during the assessment process). Qualified pilots who are taller than 1.91m may submit an application but will be required to undergo a functionality check to confirm their ability to meet the requirements of the seating positions in the British Airways fleet of aircraft
- A good level of physical fitness, and ability to satisfy the British Airways medical requirements
- ICAO ELP Level 6 proficiency
- A valid passport (with minimum of 12 months before expiry date at time of joining) allowing unrestricted worldwide travel
- Tattoos are permissible as long as they are not on the hands, face or head
- UK Class 1 flight crew medical
- Right to live and study in the UK without sponsorship
In addition to the above:
- APS MCC – to be completed within 6 months of being tagged
- aUPRT
- UK Part-FCL licence
- No more than three training providers for the following stages of training: Ground School, CPL/IR, APS MCC
- PPL, hour building and aUPRT is not included in the 3 training provider limit.
- Training completed no earlier than 1st January 2020
- Application must include the ATPL Consolidated exam report and flying examiners report for CPL and IR (if completed at time of application) and a final course report if available.
Training Criteria:
- First Series ATPL Ground School with an average score of 85% and above with no more than three resits
- First series pass in both CPL and ME/IR (Series 1, Attempt 1 or Series 1, Attempt 2)
- APS MCC
- aUPRT
- UK Part-FCL licence
The selection process will include the online application through BA’s careers website, a pre-recorded video interview and an assessment day, likely to include testing, group tasks and face-to-face interviews.
Find out more at BA Careers.
