I’d like to offer my opinion to all the SAA salary bashers who have taken the trouble to voice their heartfelt emotions on this thread. Perhaps I can provide a positive angle on a rather negative subject. SAA has set the salary benchmark for airline pilots in this country for the past few years, and everyone else down the line will follow – good or bad! SAA is the number 1 choice for any pilot in South Africa. Why - because the pilots are the best paid, and fly the latest equipment. There are only a certain number of positions available and, as in any competitive environment, only the top performers are selected. Even the guys/gals who fall into their respective population groups are the top performers respectfully. Unfortunately, this means not everyone can be selected. To those who managed to get in to SAA, fantastic, well done! If you’re a white male and you got into the company, you’re the very best of what the market has to offer. If you didn’t get into SAA, there is enough room in our industry to accommodate the overflow, yes a very definite second choice for anyone honest enough to admit it, but sadly for less money, and on older equipment. That’s just the way life works, and no amount of winging is going to change that. Please stop badgering us because of your own misfortunes, and be proactive about your own careers if you’re not happy. If you’re a senior captain in a competitor airline, negotiate parity with us, after all you do the job just as well as we do. If you’re a youngster with ambitions to get into SAA, start by not listening to all the negativities around race and colour, and focus on achieving your objective. With a bit of self-belief you’ll surprise yourself. These are turbulent times we are facing at SAA, but I have no doubt that once the dust has settled, expansion will be on the cards. To my disgruntled colleagues in the South African industry, I wish you all the best in the careers you have chosen. To the contented others, enjoy this wonderful career which has chosen you. Happy landings.
