airserv
The post above from goaround7 reveals one of the main problems in Airserv - there are two systems operating simultaneously within the organization. It is difficult enough to make one aviation organization function smoothly but it's a nightmare when it subcontracts a lot of its work to a second organization. Hence N and ZS aircraft with two sets of pilots and engineers with different SOPs, regulations, salaries, and so on. This lends itself to major finger pointing on a variety of issues. I could give a few stories supporting the above post and many more contradicting it. In terms of experience there are beginners and veterans in both sets of pilots. Sanity and competence or the lack of it are also equally distributed. The maintenance standards are definitely lower on the contractor side with many of their planes either grounded most of the time or flying with squacks that would have the FAA grounding the fleet. The cash salaries are higher for the contractor pilots but those who have worked for both the contractor and Airserv itself prefer the benefits that come with working directly for Airserv. (There are RSA pilots working for Airserv directly who worked for the contractor in the past. You do not find the reverse). Aside from insurance and so on, Airserv pilots continue to collect their salaries while travelling and when a political crisis or maintainance issues keep them from flying. For example, when the contractor aircraft is grounded for eight weeks in a row due to its inability to send parts to keep it fixed, the Airserv pilots assigned to fly it continue to collect their pay while hanging out on the ground.
The comment about "what type of pilot would work for half the salary they could get at home," is not really fair. The salaries are fine for the beginners relative to American ones and less so for experienced King Air Captains. What's relevant to understanding the situation is that you have different social samples. South African pilots are a relatively normal cross section of their pilot community. They are in Africa because they were born there and are working on the continent outside their country because that's what they have to do to make the next step in aviation. Often they are looking to emigrate. This is neither good nor bad, but a fact. The non-South African pilots are eccentric to the pilot communities they come from. They have made a choice to go to Africa. This choice is a tangent to their careers and often is a step away from a normal pilot career. In addition to a sincere desire to do humanitarian work you will find people who want to do missionary work, who want to try out African women, or who want adventure, and yes, there are probably some who don't quite fit into the mainstream of the normal pilot community and have passed on the chance to get a normal airline job. This too is neither good nor bad, but a fact. Having done both I would rather make less money flying Doctors Without Borders to a dirt strip in Africa than a lot of money flying a businessman to a golf game in Dallas.
How the controversy with the contractor shakes out remains to be seen.