Originally Posted by
ba77w
I don’t work for EK never have, never will. I’m genuinely curious: why would you be offended if an Australian pilot briefed you on cold weather ops, even if you happen to be more experienced in that area? Personally, I’d see it as an opportunity. If he says something incorrect, you can step in and correct it. If he shares something you didn’t know, you walk away having learned something new. Either way, it’s a win-win.
At my company, we don’t have any British, Australian, or South African pilots, so I can’t speak broadly. But the one British captain we do have is highly professional, and none of the stereotypes I see thrown around here apply to him.
If I flew with an expat pilot from Northern Europe who briefed me on hot weather ops; something I might know better than him I’d still listen. Because I don’t know his background. He might surprise me with something useful, or he might say something that’s off, which gives me the chance to clarify. No ego involved just professionalism. I’d rather be prepared than caught off guard.
From what I’ve seen, the real issue isn’t just about knowledge gaps, it’s the behavior that comes with it. There’s this constant urge, especially from some of these individuals, to act like they’re the absolute authority on everything, even in situations they’ve never dealt with or have no real experience in. It’s not about helping or sharing knowledge, it’s about putting others down. They often start by implying you don’t know anything, that what you say is rubbish, and that they obviously know better. You haven’t even opened your mouth and already you’re being dismissed. Then they go on quoting things they’ve half-read online often from places like the CASA website completely out of context, just to make their point seem valid.
Let me be direct about what I’ve experienced in the Middle East with some British and Australian colleagues. They fly with you one day, maybe you makes a mistake, nothing major, just the kind of thing that happens to all of us. Then the next day, they’re flying with me and immediately start badmouthing that person, saying how unsafe or clueless they are. It doesn’t stop there either sometimes they even start making sweeping comments about people from entire nationalities, especially Arabs. It’s completely out of line.
This kind of attitude talking behind people’s backs, acting superior, and spreading negativity that creates a toxic environment. And what’s frustrating is that it’s not about safety or improving standards, it’s about ego. That’s the part that’s most damaging. They ruined EK, they will ruin QR soon and then RIA will be next if they are allowed to join en masse.