I found this article by chance. It was published by ABS-CBN News so I guess posting an article meant for public consumption won't be an issue for PAL Avschool people prowling in the forum
. To me, the implications of the article is good for aspiring pilots who just want to fly as a career in our beloved country...So good luck to us all...hehe...Few pilots and high demand for their service equals great opportunity for pilot wannabees - enough said. Sana matanggap ako hehe.
Govt pressed to stop pilot piracy
By JOHN ANTHONY A. CONCEPCION, abs-cbnNEWS.com
Philippine Airlines (PAL) on Saturday stepped up its call on the government to stop the exodus of well-trained Filipino pilots.
During the weekly Kapihan sa Sulo Hotel news forum, PAL vice-president for flight operations Johnny Andrews said for the last three years, the company lost 74 well trained senior pilots to foreign airlines. He said the figure is about 20 percent of its pilot roster. Andrews said for the first quarter of 2006, a total of 15 senior pilots were hired by foreign airline companies, which PAL described as "deep-pocketed foreign carriers seeking to save cost, time and effort and bypass the long training of pilots."
PAL runs an aviation school, he said, and the airline company spends anywhere from P1 million to P1.8 million per pilot for training alone.
He said once a pilot undergoes training at PAL Aviation School, he is bound by a contract to work for PAL for five years. Andrews said some honor the contract and then leave while some just "disappear."
He said some foreign airline companies pirating PAL's trained pilots are from Singapore, Qatar, Vietnam, India and countries in the Middle East. "There is a very thin buffer now. We are not yet at the critical level but will soon be if the poaching continues. If 20 of our pilots leave at the same time for overseas jobs, then PAL will be in a very difficult situation," Andrews said.
PAL's vice-president for human resources Ceasar Lamberte, also present during the forum, said foreign airliners offer their pilots a minimum of $10,000 (about P510,000) monthly pay. Lamberte said PAL pilots earn anywhere from $4,000 (about P200,000) to $7,000 (about P350,000) gross.
Although PAL officials are not sure how the government can stop the exodus of pilots, Lamberte said authorities could help by going after pilots who violated the contract.
He said PAL is playing a vital role as the nation's largest carrier of passengers and cargoes and if the airline would be hit by pilot lack, the air transport industry and the economy in general would suffer.