Luke;
Here are some recent figures. All in USD. All are 320 jobs, or will hire 320 Captains.
NAS 16k for 6/2
ANA 16k 5/3 Average pay over 5 years
KAL 12.2K 5/3 plus free accomodation
Asiana 10.5 5.5/2.5 free accomodation
Tiger 14k non-commuting
Jetstar 14k non-commuting (Singapore)
Jetstar 10.8 6/2 (vietnam)
Cebu 12k+ 6/2 Changing daily and going up rapidly
Hong Kong Airlines 15k But this might no longer be accurate
Chinese 320 gigs are averaging 16.5k
I don't know the exact figures for Air Asia but I believe it is above 10k.
Everyone of these jobs pays for overtime as well, which makes the VAC job even less competitive. The only way VAC becomes competitive is if you work 9/1 or 10/1. 10 weeks in a row in Saigon would drive me nuts.
I did enjoy my time at VAC, and might go back someday. But the pay right now is too low for me as well. As far as places to live for a contract job, Saigon is worse than any of the above places except NAS (Saudi). Despite the bad rep that China gets, the cities are modern and comfortable, and the pollution is getting cleaned up rapidly. Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou/Shenzhen are all decent places for expats to live, with thriving expat communities. Much better than Saigon.
Why go to VAC?
FO pay is pretty high. (Big +)
They upgrade FO's. (Very Big +)
You can tell your buddies you've been to Nam
flexible time off (sometimes)
you've never been to outer space
Flying is fun
You enjoy MEL's, and like to memorize as many as possible. (Deactivated brakes, no APU, etc)
Why not go?
Low pay for Captains
No overtime pay
your not culturally "sensitive"
horrible commute, except for Aussies
You can't ride a motorcycle
The above are just my opinion of course, except for the pay rates which are accurate as of now, or very close.