Originally Posted by
AerocatS2A
RubberDog,
"External" does not mean overseas, it means external to the Air NZ group. The requirements for the jet positions are the same for anyone outside the Air NZ group.
Also, external turboprop drivers are not being told yes and then having to wait for a start date, they are being told "You interviewed well but for political reasons we are unable to hire you, how about joining one of the link airlines?"
Finally, I'm pretty sure there was a Cathay cadet on a June interview who was given a yes.
It ("external") never used to be Aerocat, but then nobody currently flying
in NZ ever needed jet time either! How exactly would they get that,
in New Zealand? Given AirNZ are the major jet operator in the country, you could hardly be reasonably expected to rock up with jet time could you? Never had to, countless Eagle, Air Nelson, Mt Cook, Origin, Air National, Rex, etc pilots will attest to that. I am trying to clear up the distinction between "external", non-group but still NZ resident pilots vs "external", to New Zealand, pilots.
As for the requirements being the same, are the interviewees from propstar, New Zealanders, or are they deemed to be Australian? (And therefore require jet time?)
I guess the "political reasons" would be something to do with 70:30, no? Hiring 3 Propstar pilots actually means hiring 10. Is that something the company wants or needs? And I'd suggest given the limbo that the pathways project is in, with no clear view on whether a new-joiner is about to "jump the queue" of long-suffering Link pilots and upset them some more, or whether the successful candidate is about to end up 600 people lower down the list than they thought, perhaps they playing it safe?
I guess that Cadet generated 1.5-ish other positions in that case? Is he a Kiwi, with GA experience, or a HKG national, genuinely at 250hrs and a Cathay P2X "type-rating"?