Questions for BA gurus:
[list=1][*] If an existing 73 type-rated pilot is recruited into BA on their 73 fleet, is he/she "type-frozen" on that fleet for 5 years, or is it the case that the "frozen" pilots are those who joined BA on a different fleet to that they were currently type-rated on because BA obviously picks up this cost?
[*] If the aforementioned pilot is
not "type frozen", is he/she eligible from day one (or at such time as the annual bid process commences) to bid onto another fleet? Is my understanding correct that this bid would be considered in line with the pilots seniority, and honoured or declined as a result, notwithstanding the fact that if the company needed you anywhere within the first 5 years, it is able to re-locate you accordingly? This re-location occurs in order of juniority?
[*] Is it possible that re-location these days would indeed include possible destinations such as MAN or BHX or is the choice purely between LGW or LHR?
[*]
Big Kahuna Burger has posted the retirement figures for the next few years and made a prediction of your possible TTC based on these. Depending on how you view things, this might represent a
best or
worst case scenario.
The argument is based on the premise that the only mechanism one advances up the seniority list is by virtue of the guys/gals at the top retiring. No figure is included for those who leave of their own volition/dis-enfranchisement with the company/personal reasons/loss of medicals etc etc. This may run at a small percentage but it is highly relevant bearing in mind the numbers are small anyway. Even if this figure is 1%/year of the workforce, this is 30 pilots which is ~40% of the retirements in 2013.
In addition, no figures are included for fleet expansion. Whilst the fleet has not expanded for ~5 years, if normalized fleet expansion is considered over the last 20 years, by how much has the pilot workforce grown? Again, is 1%/year a realistic figure?
If this is the case, the cumulative effect of both the above is
effectively to add 60 pilots per year to the retirement figures in
Big Kahuna Burger's table. This makes ~6 years difference to TTC.
What would be helpful is if the figures for the last 20 years are also made available and the reality compared with what was predicted 20 years ago. This affords the would-be applicant a more balanced view although
past performance is no guarantee of future performance.
[*] What are the latest best guesses as to fleet composition/number in the next 5 years? Is a particular fleet expanding/shrinking?[/list=1]
