To be honest with you, I can't really comment much about management-pilot group relationships because I try to keep low key on politics, however, everyone in management I've ever had to deal with has struck me as pleasant and sincere-- but take that from someone who is pretty inexperienced (and a little apathetic) in the political scene. Having said that, in-cruise flight deck discussion doesn't normally revolve around how Management is screwing us, although occasional grievances are aired like in any company. I would like to mention that I was surprised though when James Hogan, our CEO, walked in on our new hire class to introduce himself and wish us luck-- at my previous airline I had never met the CEO in person. When I finished my line indoc-- I found a letter from him in my mailbox congratulating me on my success and wishing me a good career with the Company. Little things making it a nice touch.
What I do know is that the atmosphere on the job is good. Most of the crews are nice and I have yet to come across the backstabbing that one hears about at other airlines in the region, where there is a culture of crews confidentially reporting each other for really petty things. The cabin crew have a pretty rough life, we have a very high-turn over there which is unfortunate, but most are fantastic and they treat the flight deck crew very well (be careful or you'll put on weight).
We do work a LOT at GF-- I count 8 days off on my March roster, but with "non-ops" days (because after returning to Bahrain at about 1:00 am the rest of the day is off but not legally an "off" day) I can add on an additional two days. Our December and January schedules saw me logging in excess of 100 hours a month! January was a real eye-opener-- I hadn't worked that hard in years! Gulf Air runs lean and is quite creative in using it's limited resources-- beit in marketing, crewing, etc. This month's roster has been idyllic showing just under 60 block hours for me, with about 70 in April.
Keep in mind that in the Gulf Region, things may sometimes be a little slower or less organized than in English-speaking North America or some parts of Western Europe or Asia. On one of my first ex-pat gigs I ever had I was advised by our mentor "in the US we might make a list of 10 things we want to accomplish in a day. Here in this country, be very happy if you manage to accomplish three." Getting used to the local flow might take adjustment, but once you do, you might find it is quite a nice flow.
I have no idea on what is happening at EK, however, whenever I read the posts there I also cringe and am happy that I am not there. Fortunately, we do not hire DEC's at GF, and that makes for an overall happier climate. Like at EK, there are some people at Gulf Air who are unhappy. There is always room for improvement here at GF in a number of areas, but overall, I count myself as one of the people who is overall happy with his situation. We recently had one fairly junior FO resign to accept a position at British Airways-- and I cannot argue with that decision.
Like at any place, there are good days and bad days. However, when I look at all the major airlines here in the GCC-- Emirates, Etihad, Qatar, Saudi Arabian and Kuwait, I am convinced that I am working at the one with the best overall environment for pilots.
Last edited by Panama Jack; 22nd Mar 2006 at 16:34.