NG FNG

Hello all, unfortunately i have just had to quit a position as FO on 737! No i am not crazy, i had not been paid for 3 months and the job was in Germany, i simply could not afford to stay as i had exhausted all my savings etc.

To make matters worse, in the year i spent with the company i only managed 51hours in RHS, nowhere near enough to be considered for anything i can find in the current climate.

So, my question is this, is it worthwhile applying for cabin crew positions in the hope that when the market sorts itself out, i will have my foot in the door?

I have considered also dispatching, baggage handling etc, but these jobs tend to be outsourced(Servisair etc) and may not have the desired effect.

Any thoughts?

OutsideCAS

Actually, have been wondering whether it's feasible or not myself to move the other side of the cockpit door permanently......lets be honest, no 6 monthly sim, medical, more daily interaction with the pax./crew, better pay - anyone else considering the same ??

Linerider

If you choose an appropriate airline, then yes. Where I work there are quite a few pilots who use to be cabin crew here.

Think of the advantages:
You get to make connections within the airline, including recruitment and training pilots.
You demonstrate a commitment to flying and the aviation industry.
You'll probably have a lot of fun.
It will be a good opportunity to see things from the cabin crews perspective (CRM).
If you demonstrate your ability as cabin crew, you will be seen as less of an employment risk when it comes to pilot recruitment (you have already proven yourself).

NG FNG

This is all true, but you don't get the thrill of flying......well taking off and landing the a/c do you.

I don't wish to be rude, but please don't hijack my thread, if you are serious start a thread with the title reversed.

NG FNG

Thank you line rider, i take it by "appropriate", you mean somewhere that has been known to accept ab initio's before and not trying for the big boys like Virgin, Emirates etc?

Also, if i were to apply, would you think it wise, to make it clear in any application that i saw this as a stepping stone to the flight deck?

Thank you for your reply.

JASPA

Were you P2F?

NG FNG

No, not P2F, was on a 5 year contract, pay was not good, but enough to live on which was fine. New owners took over, signed new contract in April and have not been paid since.

Initially OM stated English speaking company, but when we got new owners and DFO we were told German speaking, but still operating on same OM. Of the 3 Brit flight crews at the company, none of us have been paid, but all the Germans have.

Looking into legal action, but it won't get me back in RHS, hopefully will get enough for LPC in December and get some breathing space.

In the meantime i want to stay in the industry and will do any job, i am not the only one though.

CraigyD

Hi NG FNG,

I'm currently training for my licences and working as cabin crew.

Whether it will get your foot in the door with a particular airline I could not say, but what is useful is the amount of contacts I now have. Most of the guys and girls up front are more than willing to help and give advice!

Not sure where you are looking for work, but I think Flybe are looking for cabin crew in Gatwick and a few other places at the moment offering temporary contracts with the possibility of being made permanent. Check out cabincrew.com if you've not already been on it, they list most airlines currently recruiting.

Good luck!

Craigyd

G SXTY

There are quite a few pilots working as cabin crew for Flybe. Some have already moved on to flying the Dash (albeit they were originally sponsored cadets).

Having a CPL would not harm your application at all - the candidate's attitude is more important than their long-term career plans.

Linerider

Yes, that is what I meant.

The airline that I work for in the Middle East has recently employed some of our former cabin crew as Second Officers.

CraigyD

I forgot to say, I told them about my plans in the interview. All they said was goodluck!

Craigyd

wangus

Hello There,
I can only respond from the Despatch (Servisair UK) perspective. Don't do it. Seriously. I made countless contacts over my 7 years despatching. When I finished my Frozen ATPL (modular) in Feb. 2008, and went to use the "contacts" in the industry, they all clammed up tighter than a frog's arsehole. Nice people, but utterly useless. They like to think they have some influence over a distant HR department, but in my case they didn't. I'm stilll in contact with them, and they offer hollow encouragement. Keep trying, It will improve.
Most flight crew view non- FAA despatchers as total rocking horses. I had one knob from Easyjet (appears in LHS on a Cathay Pacific DVD) say to me, "Now go and drink coffee or whatever it is you lot do", after I had brought him his third flight plan, in POURING rain, remote stand, had delayed other pushbacks trying to retain our pushback tug for "his" flight, and offloaded bags from disgruntled passengers.
If I ever get an interview, my NIGHTMARE scenario is being recognised by a training captain, or the likes who says "Didn't you used to work for Servisair.....? That, combined with constant redundancies, regrading of jobs, pay freezes, SPLIT SHIFTS, and reduction in working hours, along with the fact that most (Non-FAA) despatchers know NOTHING about performance, principles of flight, and weight and balance confirm don't turn to that as an option. I cringed at the people we employed and sent out to flight s to "despatch." Hope this sheds some light from that perspective. A GROUNDBASED ROLE WILL NOT HELP I'm afraid........ Good luck with whatever route you attempt.

SR-22

Hi NG FNG

That's a horrible situation, I am surprised with the Germans doing something like that.

But I have to disagree with wangus, I worked on the ground for about 4 years in many divisions and it got me a lot of contacts which ended up bringing me a job flying a jet. It wasn't in the UK no, maybe it's different there, at least according to wangus it sounds bad. But then also being a really good experience of how things work on the ground.

As for the cabin crew part, I know quite many people who have started as cabin crew and then moved into the flightdeck within the same company.

Good luck

Homesick-Angel

Shocking position your in, and I wish you the best..

Like everything else, its a personal choice..The thing is that if you aren't doing any flying, then you are in a bit of a holding pattern, and you arent moving forward..Is going into the cabin going to keep you in the game, or take you out of it?..I would keep looking for flying work, even if it meant stepping back to non airline work again (May not be much going in EU??)

Ive got a couple of mates doing non flying work for Airlines, and time will tell if that will get them LHS job in the future, but so far , no good..

Good luck.

jidder

Sounds like Bremenfly....treated me and another 5 non German speaking guys like dirt by offering us a job then after the OCC changed there mind and said it was for German speakers only Then re-advertised the jobs.

This was after we had been offered a job and paid to get there and start the OCC

Total Shower of We too are looking at taking legal advice as we were offered a job and left out of pocket!

J

NG FNG

Hello all and thank you for your replies they have been very informative and indeed helpful. I have still not made a final decision, but i am getting much closer and feel a lot better about the options i have.

I think if i have another job in RHS within 12 months i will be very lucky and maybe cabin crew would be best. It should pay enough to keep me ticking over in cessna's etc in spare time and hopefully i might be able to sit in and watch some sim sessions with the pilots i meet (Is this a realistic assumption anyone?).

Who knows, maybe one of my applications will bring me an interview soon.

Thanks again guys.

CraigyD

Yes, at least where I work. You get to know which training captains are cool with this. I've not myself yet but know plenty of crew who have. You can usually use them when the pilots have their recurrent training and they pass everything first time.

G SXTY

Yes, absolutely it is.

Tana-Airlines

You guys are lucky because as a Ryanair Cabin Crew Member, the only thing you can pay is your accomodation... You can't even think about flying a C-152... Hehe!

cavortingcheetah

If you want to stay within the airport work atmosphere, which personally I really like, especially if it is a fixed base, then it seems like a sensible enough move. I have known several people who have started as dispatchers, handling agents and also cabin crew subsequently make it into the cockpit. Attitude and self achievement do count in interviews and of course you are always in the position where you can ask for a hands on reference from flight crew. But it might be slim pickings out there in aviation for quite a while.