Re: Dune
Wow! A well balanced post on pPrune!
+ my 25 fills...
If F.P. you decide to apply to EK, I'd bet more on the accelerated command than the DEC position for a number of reasons.
1. Pass rate for DEC at the selection programme is very low (ie 10%)
2. If you have narrowbody experience with limited international flying
you already lost points from the 100 you start out with.
3. DEC at EK is too much work... not worth the money
a. The flying is very diverse and you deal with the best and the
worst the world has to offer.
b. The groundstaff in the majority of places is outsourced, and sometimes not knowlegable and
it's on you to set them straight (Ex, "Captain we can de-ice by throwing hot water out on the wing with a bucket, that's what we always do here" ... this not a joke, I wish it was
. Or "Captain you can use the higher holdover time, we NEVER have freezing fog in London!"
)
c. EK philosophy: Captain guilty until proven innocent.
d. As a DEC you'll never get senior = get quality of life, you'll always
be doomed to do night turns.
So you'll be better off to go in as an FO, get seniority, get the runnings of the system, learn how to deal with it's shortcomings, and be prepared to deal with it.