Notsvapid, will all the respect due, I have to inform you that permanent residency status is NOT a must to work for AO...
I had myself 2 interviews during their first selection. I have a British passport and I am married to an Australian. I have a valid 2 year TEMPORARY work visa for Australia and with this I was accepted to both stages I and II with Australian Airlines.
As far as I know, the only company in Australia currently requiring a PERMANENT work visa or Autralian citizenship WITHOUT EXCEPTION is Qantas (and ALL its subsidiaries of course), which leaves out Virgin Blue and a bunch of others... (don't know about REX though!).
Unfortunately, Dejvu, a permanent work visa is very difficult to obtain (unless you are a nurse... in that case you're welcome anywhere
) and most of the people coming to Oz receive this 2 year temporary work visa... others only 6 months... hard to tell... To know more, you should contact the Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs in Australia. Their website is:
http://www.immi.gov.au
but this is another story, believe me...
Good luck anyway!
Mrs. FloatJockey