WOW! Gillegan, that was the most accurate and concise description of the current climate under which we work. Now which one of you brave boys is going to cut and paste it into a letter to the only people that can really make a difference? It might just work.
As for GN/KG/Whoever's comments about the vocal minority, can I remind anyone reading this of the cost, in financial terms, that a few have sufferred as a result of voicing their opinions in an open forum? Can I remind all reading this of the witch hunts that have taken place in order to find out who is who and who is saying what here? So who is going to dare to speak up? I only ever go to a wireless hot spot and post (all Starbuck's have them) just because I am afraid that the comapny can somehow trace my IP address. Paranoid? That's the current culture that we work under? And I used to be so proud.
Can I remind all of you that the current climate is cost over quality and in some cases, cost over safety. You want an example GN? Then ask the engineering stores of the current stock holding of vital spares, ask the pilots (all of them!) how fatigued they are, ask the cabin crew where their morale is, then address the morale vs. safety issue and you will see that safety, yes safety has been affected.
If I may ask one question, GN, how long have you been here? You may be very correct in your opinions regarding the legality issues, but I did not join this company with the legal aspects of whether my Ts & Cs would change in my mind. I trusted the recruiters and they as a group have also been cut loose with nothing more than a "Thanks very much, now go back on the line we don't need you anymore." Maybe you don't think that the filtering process that a solid pilot recruitment body can be of great benefit to the company? But when I joined, there was a tangible pride in working for the company. Sure, old Graham Jenkins was a bit of a pedantic old sod when it came to things, but he introduced things that were of direct benefit to the pilot group, the seniority list for one. We then had the Al Mulla fiasco, getting caught in an Abu Dhabi hotel sh@gging someone elses missus was the only legacy that he left behind. Then along comes TCK, what a mess that was. Then we had the 'Rudderless' years, Adel comes along, now we have TCAS. That is a synopsis of the personnel tasked with being Head of Flight Operations in less than seven years.
What about Chief Pilots? Robin, John, Paul, Granger, Hassan, Carl, have I missed anyone out? I can't remember. We now have two Deputy CPs, the fleet management of the Boeing has had Brian, Kevin and now Patricia, all in less than seven years. Gibbons has done whatever job he could lay his hands on and as for the rest of the jobs, I have no idea who does what now. I have no idea who the training guys are and who is head of training these days? Is it still the safety guy?
The above change in personnel in key positions is just one layer of Swiss Cheese.
Engineering. We used to have Engineers on the line dipatching us, we now have mechanics. Result? A degredation in the support afforded to us by the Engineering department. I have never flown with as many ADDs as I do now and that is the truth.
That is another layer of Swiss Cheese.
Another one is the general low level of morale. We have not won a single prize of note in quite a few years. Those prizes made us all feel proud and kept morale high, now, as a result of a ridiculous pace of expansion and associated cost cutting in key areas, the prizes have dwindled.
Another layer slides into place with holes lining up too nicely for my liking. I could go on and on and on, but my Cappucino is getting cold.
For anyone in a position of power who may be reading this, the pilot group, almost as a whole, are very fatigued and tired. Many of us are looking around for new opportunities and feel that Emirates is going away form its original emphasis on quality and its original corporate culture of being the EK family, a family that it felt good to be part of. Now ask a DEC if he feels part of that original corporate culture and he'll probably answer, well, so long as you pay me enough.
Please, many of you who read these posts think that they are the work of evil and malicious pilots, intent on bring the airline to its knees. Wrong. This is the only place that we can air our frustrations and try and get someone to listen to the genuine fears and issues that we, on the line, are facing every day. But then it hasn't worked so far, so why should it now?
And GN, just in case you were wondering, morale is at its lowest in the eight years that I have been here.