Opdee, I'll do my best to answer your questions from the viewpoint you put forward.
Hi All,
Just wondering if there are any drivers/ex-drivers that would care to comment on the company from a drivers point of view.
How is the company culture?
Safety First risk averse culture and actively doing its best to raise the bar as high as it can.
In general is it a good place to work?
Yes, small and pro-active management doing its best to put the company in a position of continued growth and expansion.
What are the Captains like eg (helpful, arrogant, demanding, mostly pleasant)?
We can be all of those things, that is dependant on you and how much effort you're prepared to put into your work.... No one there is a sky-god so to speak.
How long for left seat swap?
Again, the ball is in your court, there are no hard and fast rules however you won’t get there without the effort and continued performance.
Pay and conditions?
As outlined in FWA/AFAP websites. It is all freely available if you dig around a bit.
Standards and checks?
Aim high, then put the effort in. No unrealistic scenarios presented during training (not like some of the horror stories generally heard about other regionals), but if you don't know your IFR applicable rules and have some difficulty with hand flying IFR to a decent check standard, you may well be better-off somewhere else.
Aircraft Equipment? - (Autopilot equipt... etc)?
Yes, they have F/D's, autopilots and have been standardised panels/GPS etc. There is a new addition that doesn't have an AP at this time, however that is yet to be sorted on the line. It has a few other bells and whistles too...
Maybe, a week in the life of an Aeropelican pilot....?
OK, I’ll do my best to keep it as real as possible here….
Wake-up, yawn, scratch nuts, tap missus on shoulder (sorry.... significant other in this day and age).... no joy this morning. Outta bed, standard coffee, dump etc (S,S,S & SS - if you have to ask you're probably a little young....), in the car and off to work in about 30% the traffic of Sydney (some of us actually get suspicious if we see more than a couple of other cars on the road we don't know). Arrive at work, limodriver has your washed and polished airport bus awaiting your very arrival and the Jet* hosties swoon in your very presence and ask you to sit next to them on the short ride to the terminal where you are met with a chorus of "hellos" and cheerful smiles from behind the check-in counters as you stride purposely toward the door leading upstairs to the office.
F/O has the flightplan/pax numbers/suggested fuel uplift figure (which you'll ignore on principle anyway) and your capaccino ready for you with just the right amount of sugar. You grunt your belated appreciation to him as he then scarpers downstairs to get the aircraft ready and fuelled. Make your way downstairs and small talk with the check-in staff as you make your way past and through security. You delight and brighten their dreary morning with your quick wit and intellect as you wait (feigning impatience at the F/O for not carrying your Jepps through security) for them to do their thing and you make your way finally out to the aircraft to catch-up on the latest goss with the refueller while he tops up your shiny steed. F/O has today’s newspaper on your side of the cockpit ready for you to peruse while the ground crew do their thing and the passengers arrive at the aircraft.
You taxi out and get airborne and ensure that the F/O earns his keep by flying all of the more difficult sectors and also get him to fill in the trip record, do the weight and balance and come-up with fuel figures for uplift at each port during the day for the sole reason that he needs to know what its like to be the Captain and all the responsibility it entails and just how difficult it is to be top of the foodchain as such and of course, for his own personal development as a functioning human being.
At the end of the day you inform the F/O that he can take the paperwork upstairs for you and award him 0.3 IF for the 6 approaches you made him fly to the minima, at which time you announced that you were taking over and you landed the aircraft, thus saving everyone from certain death by bringing the ship down safely..... again.
Dinner at home is another lamb roast with all the trimmings served up to you by your significant other in their best black lingerie... You work out the rest.
Repeat the above for the next four days and enjoy the weekends on your 52' yacht on your marina berth chomping on your cigars and downing 150 year old cognac.
If you're shy to share on this open forum, please PM me anonymously.
Any and all pertinent information would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you.
Opdee.
You're most welcome!
