411A
I know what you are getting at, and given the world of expat pilots, it is not an unreasonable position. I can say though, as someone in the company, not one pilot has been bought out here just to be an F/O, at least that was the position of the recuruiting department when we all came for interviews.
The recruitment line was always that "we only recruit experienced pilots to be EK F/O's, because we need them to be able to move to the LHS asap"
Now to be fair, I was never under the illusion that they would honor any agreement, should they feel the need to change to suit the bigger picture. However, EK on one side is trying to turn itself into a professional outfit, with "industry leading" CRM programs, hi-tech aircraft and training centres and all the other bells and whistles that most airlines aspire to. Whilst on the other hand it is p*ssing off its staff deluxe.
I have a feeling that these two management aspects are incompatible over the longer term. But as we all know, the market will be the decider.
It is interesting to note though, that none of this is new. It all happened exactly 3 years ago. Then,as now, it was all aired on Pprune.
It would appear that few of the F/O's who have joined since then actually heeded the warnings that were provided in much detail. So it can be said that they either walked knowingly into the position they now find themselves, or they did not carry out due dilligence on the position they applied for.
I can say without hesitation that I have tried to provide a fair and balanced view of EK over the last couple of years. Only to be accused of being a whinger etc, etc. Well, I am not whinging now, but I bet a few of my acusers are.
Cop U Later
The Rev