HeliExpress - Letting the cat out 'o' the bag!
No secrets - just a small company with few pilots, so I suppose any posts could easily identify the poster unlike many of the larger companies. A loose comment here or there could cause trouble in the future.
However, with balls on the line, here's the best I can do for an objective overview.
Operations:
Currently 5 S76C+. There is talk of a fleet upgrade in the near future, but no decisions as of yet!
Pilots and engineers are from all over the world, bringing a range of experiences. Senior captains include Ex- RN, HeliJet, Bristows, GFS, CHC, Scotia?, (in fact many of the major players in twin helicopter industry).
Operations, are all cross-border, Macau <> Hong Kong, and Macau <> Shenzen. There are plans to expand the service to other destinations in China. Although there is still the odd local charter / tour / photo flight in S76s, the company closed down its Hong Kong B3 charter / tour service last year.
Most flying is VFR or SVFR, with options for IFR to HK in poor weather, and requirement for IFR to Shenzen at night and in day-poor weather. Most pilots fly between 700-900 hrs per year (900 is max allowed).
Conditions of Service:
On the whole the conditions are O.K. for pilots. Of course, like any company there are aspects which need to ironed out with HR and Admin departments. Some issues are in gross need for attention. There can also be cultural differences which sometimes cause friction between the largely expat pilot base and the more local management / HR / Admin side of things, but this is no different to any other overseas operation. Despite a major pay review last year, pay still needs to be continually reviewed to keep up with global climate in this sector, and local costs of living which are steadily rising. No surprise that this is a continual issue for the pilots.
Roster pattern is "4 days on-2 days off-4-2-4-4" with 28 days annual leave. Not bad, considering you get home every night at not too stupid a time. Shifts are around 6-8 hours, earliest being at 8 in the morning, the latest ending at 12 midnight (due noise regulations).
There are medical and dental benefits for all staff (and families), and Child Schooling benefits for Captains (Copilots don't have kids apparently!). Overseas contracts come with 1 return flight per annum home. Currently there is no 'loss-of-license' insurance assistance. Tax is almost non-existent! And cost of living is generally low.
Pay for Senior Captains will work out at just over $100,000USD, once the housing allowance is taken into account. Senior copilot pay works out to between $65000-$75000 (including housing) and new copilots are on about a third to half that depending on experience and time with company. Non-type rated pilots are sent to Flight Safety for the conversion, and usually bonded for this.
Although HeliExpress is a commercial operation (along with the usual commercial pressures), safety is taken seriously by the company, and any commercial pressures are kept in check (relative to other operations I've seen or heard about), with pilot decisions (go / no-go, mx etc..etc..) generally supported by flight ops and maintenance departments without question.
Due to having AOCs in both Hong Kong and Macau, licensing and medical issues are more frequent and slightly more complicated than normal.
Living:
Macau is a place of rapid growth, and the future is bright and busy. Lots of new development happening there and in the Pearl River delta in general. International schools are good quality. Pollution is probably the single most detracting factor of that region, with haze reducing vis to less than 3k on some days. Depending on your interests as well, Macau can be a little claustrophobic due to its size.
Recruitment:
At the moment there are about 30 pilots. There has been some movement recently and the current number is just below the ideal for the roster. So yes, HE are looking at the moment. Best chance at the moment is to have multi-experience for senior co pilot position, or S76-command experience for direct entry into Captain position.
Due to the hassle of getting a lower time pilot on the line (because of HK and Macau AOCs) the company is steering away from those hires for the time-being, but still worth a go if interested. Something to for lower time guys to think about is there is currently no way for copilots without previous PIC to gain PIC experience in order to become upgradeable. (Hence the recent movements).
Hope this is of interest!
Gei Si
Last edited by Chi Sin Gei Si; 9th Aug 2006 at 10:42.