It's not all bad
There are elements of truth in the postings above but like everything in life it is down to you to make it what you want. I'm in my second decade with Virgin and it's had it's ups and downs but I can honestly say I have no regrets about my career choice. Depending on fleet the flying can be good fun. If you're on the -400 expect to make a lot of hand flown visual approaches in the Caribbean coupled with lots of procedural stuff if the weather is poor. It's enough to keep your mind and skills practiced but without having to do it 4 times a day. The 340 tends to be more automated to radar vectored ILS's but there's still a lot of non precision stuff (Canarse into JFK is always good for a laugh)
Life on the line in Virgin is actually quite pleasant. In general it's a very sociable atmosphere and you can adapt it to suit your needs. If you're flying on the business routes the cabin crew tend to be more mature (with quite few national crew on some routes) and there is plenty of opportunity for long lunches/dinners coupled with some fun and exploration. If you're on the leisure routes from Gatwick then the crew are much younger (probably average around the early 20's mark) but are always up for a party whether it's clubbing in Vegas or beach party's in the Caribbean. When you're in any of the "multi" destinations (LAX or MCO) there can be 4 or 5 crews in the hotel every night and that's always time for fun. No matter which routes and types I've been on I have always found crew who will come out and have fun whether it's sailing, skiing, climbing Mount Fuji, drinking or whatever you have planned it just takes a little charm and a small amount of organising (delegation).
As to the jet lag and time changes well everyone is different and copes differently with it. I won't say it's not a problem but you will find your own way of dealing with it. In the last 6 months I've averaged 15 days off a month (including some leave) and most of my trips arrive back early in the morning so although I sleep when I get home I'm up in the afternoon and can do what I please. It does build up and occasionally I find myself being pretty snappy with friends or family. There are lots of divided opinions within Virgin but having been with 4 other airlines in my career I can honestly say this has been the best lifestyle wise and I'm certainly nowhere near as knackered as I was doing 4 sector days 5 or 6 days a week. However it's all personal preference.
As to promotion, if that's what you're after, then don't come. The FO's now getting commands have been in the Company for twelve years and this figure will continue to rise so anyone joining now it will certainly be a minimum of 15 years. However that is for a Long Haul command and apart from the Middle East I'm not sure where you would get it quicker. Secondly my experience was that 95% of the Captains treat you like a grown up and expect you to make decisions and don't try and micro manage or use you as a human auto pilot. Virgin is roughly the same size it was before 9/11 and I think has found a plateau that it is unlikely to grow much in its current form. Yes we have new aircraft coming and there will probably be some limited expansion but then we have some aircraft that are getting old and will be retired.
Positioning gets a mention quite a lot but the inter island stuff in the Caribbean is no different to any one who has done long haul charter. As to the long haul positioning it was getting out of hand but several longer layovers in NYC, MIA, MCO etc have reduced quite a bit of it. 90% of the time I get an upper class seat, you get your hourly flying pay and although it doesn't count to my annual flying total it's not that bad. Unlike a lot of other airlines there are no early morning taxi rides or bus journeys across the UK and all the airborne stuff is in Perf A aeroplanes.
As to the fleet and route structures, they change. Over time fleet workloads and destinations alter and I wouldn't be too focused on what fleet you might go on as in 5 years time it will all be different.
The real downside, I guess, is the demotion and redundancy element. In the last 9 years we've had two big periods of demotion and redundancy so if you're a junior Captain or FO there is always a risk that the Company will "knee jerk" and you'll be out or demoted. However both times the recovery was quick and within a year everyone who wanted to come back had. After 9/11 some guys stacked shelves whilst on unpaid leave, some took other jobs and some did nothing and although it seemed a long time then it wasn't and they held their seniority. Basically like all business's they have an urgent short term need to save cash and in Virgin's case they use redundancy to do it. I guess that's just life these days.
As to management, what can you say, to be honest it's not that much different to any other outfit I've worked for. It is no worse or better than I've experienced but don't expect them to understand that you are actually a person who has needs. You will find that your current airline management team has "twins" in Virgin. You are a work unit and this is something that has changed since Richard left the scene. The "people" touch is not present but if you're happy to ignore that your colleagues on a day to day basis are a good bunch (again same for every other airline I've flown for). Basically most Pilots ignore the Company spin and if they need help tend to go to ex or current union reps first. We have a very fluffy internal comms team who seem to think that middle age, educated, professionals can be easily hood winked along with the 20 year old temporary office workers - maybe one day they'll wake up to the fact it doesn't work.
So if you're interested I'd say go for it. I've had a lot of fun over the years and the current salary and benefits package are good but do need an "update". If you want to get a real flavour ask anyone you know but find out how many other airlines they've worked for before as a comparator. I know there have been previous comments on relationships etc but in general the one's that don't work probably never were going to work anyway - we all look for excuses. So as long as you can get your head around being in the RHS for a long time you'll enjoy it.
See you all soon
Last edited by oxymoron666; 27th Jan 2011 at 19:46.