Gents, I am not within GSS, merely a humble applicant but having done LH for many years maybe I can answer a few of your questions,
Money: No it isn't much, you can earn a lot more flying for BA or VS but you will work a hell of a lot harder. Cargo ops often entail lots of waiting around and positioning so total hours flown will be less. Also rosters as per the website FAQ's show 2 or 3 trips per month lasting up to 7/8 days. With BA or VS you will do up to 6 trips per month with minimum days off in between. Take it from one who knows, that is not a lot of fun if you are commuting. Not much fun even if you live near the airport for that matter.
So in short, you will earn that extra 500/1000 quid per month and remember the taxman takes a huge chunk at every available opportunity.
Many of the GSS FO's are older guys who may be on a pension from another company with lower retirement age or those who have paid off their mortgages, kids left home and want a nice number to get them away from the missus a couple of times a month. Money is very important when you are younger and have a growing family and large commitments. Once those factors go away, it is less important than lifestyle. One of the few benefits of getting older. Apart from saga holidays of course and the chance to embarrass your children.
It sure is a difficult one to fathom. Such low FO pay might be OK if upgrade were ultra quick, but it isn't because BA FOs nick most of the commands.
Show me any company where widebody commands are ultra quick. Maybe VS in the mid 1990's but not any more.
BALPA negotiated this little gem as BA use GSS for their cargo ops. There is no secret about it so if it is a show stopper for you, don't join. Worth noting that any cargo work
not for BA and any extra aircraft as a result does not fall under this rule.
almost double the pay can be had by flying the 744 in Europe, and even more in China or Korea.
So go to China or Korea then. They have very strict age limits for FO's (50 in China and 45 in Korea, I know because I tried.) Not the nicest places to live for a European but if it floats your boat then go for it. Be well worth reading the relevant section of Prune to find out what it really is like. Age and other discrimination may be outlawed in Europe but it most certainly isn't in Asia or the Middle East.
I wonder how many of the pay to fly brigade will jump from somewhere like Ryanair thinking I don't mind going to work for sh*t money cos its a big jet and a stepping stone onto something bigger and better. Their plan will be to stay for 2-3 years and then get into Big Airways now that they have heavy jet experience.
First off BA are not looking for heavy jet experience. The shortfall is in 737/A320 and is likely to remain so. Again in the heady days of the last 10 years before the banks did their thing, it would be an advantage. All the signs are that BA can fill their LH requirement from within for the forseeable future.
I may of course be wrong but you may as well save yourselves 9 grand if this is your master plan. If you can afford to write off all that money then buzz off after 2 years then good for you. However the recruiters will be more than aware of this and may ask probing and difficult questions. I know this because I have been in recruitment and used to do just that.
I reckon most are props driver for whom the move would actually be an improvement. Other than that, can't understand.
The requirements give preference to those with
jet airliner experience. No reason why you couldn't transition from a Q400 to a 744 but you would need a lot of training. GSS are quite small and probably don't have the capacity.
Number of sectors / landings per trip
How fun is the flying... ie do they get to do much hand flying ...
Long haul FO's spend a lot of time as heavy crew. That means no flying, you just operate the radio in the cruise. On the plus side you will become expert at crosswords. Expect 3 landings per month. Maybe.
As for hand flying, if you want to hand fly at the end of a 12 hour overnight sector in horrible weather into busy airspace then you probably also like self flagellation. You will also be increasing the workload of the equally knackered captain who may not thank you for it. The most hand flying you will do is in the simulator every six months and maybe occasionally on a nice day into somewhere quiet. If you want lots of flying and sectors, do short haul. This is also why most LH operators insist on a level of experience for you to fall back on when the autopilot trips out or the ILS throws a wobbly in poor vis and you are having major problems keeping your eyes open.
Fun? well yes but it's a job. A very routine one at that. Once you get over the fact that it is a large jet, then it's no different than sitting in a 737 except you get to do it for much longer periods. The flight deck isn't that much bigger either. If you want comfort and lots of space for your dinner tray, fly an Airbus.
Hope I've answered a few questions for you LH aspirants. If it is for you and you apply, go in with your eyes open. And all the very best of luck to those applying.