Chop,
Every airline in the world, even the “two bit ones” receive heaps of applications from aspiring jet pilots… ANG wouldn't be any different. But it’s about QUALITY not quantity.
You may be getting a lot of applications from expats current on twin otters and Y12’s, Islanders, singles, instructing etc for FO slots (so tell me, what did happen to the drive to only have 5% expat pilots by 2020?), I wonder what your application rate and take up rate is for Quality Direct Entry Captains.
Presently ANG offers a direct entry Captains PGK 450, 308 pa on Level A (never to progress to a higher level), and when you churn the numbers with the higher PNG Tax, .40 c exchange rate, no superannuation paid, that is equivalent to an Aussie salary of about $137, 000.
And combing that salary with just 4 weeks leave a year, 10 days off a month (minimum of 4 needed to be used for travel to and from Domicile for any time at home), working in a third world country, overtime that doesn’t kick in until 70 hours (and by then you will have probably done 80 jet sectors and so fatigued you don’t really care about O/T), continual disrupted and absolute crap rosters plus plus.
Easy to see that salary is not commensurate with what is expected, especially when you look around and see that you need to do a lot less for $137,000 than a narrow body ANG captain earns who is away from home for most of the year. (Yes, Tours does sweeten the pot a little, but you have to be given Tours, (Tours are not a given, it is not even in the Contract, just given at the managers discretion ) and if certain elements of management have their way it wont remain on 100% of the narrow body salary - just need to look at Link PNG for that as the ANG Subsidiary pay around 80% full salary for those on Tour.
But if ANG Management is serious about rebuilding the Airline, making it competitive and reliable airline, an important part of the process will be treating pilots with respect and also realizing the value of experience, a bit like what ANG did prior to 2015 did.
So, Chop ‘ol mate, again I say it is about the quality, not the quantity of applications, and not only in the pilot ranks, but middle and upper management as well. The PX73 B 737 crash at CHUUK goes a long way to give support for that proposition.
Last edited by NCD; 5th May 2019 at 11:50.