Air Japan, Tianjin, Or wait for US Major
Greetings! I have been a long time lurker of PPRune and have finally decided to reach out for advice.
I am 26 and currently an EMB175 Captain for a US regional. I have 4000TT and 1000 PIC in the EMB175. I have lived in a couple different countries growing up and still have the urge to explore the world further.
Here is my dilemma:
I have been reading these forums about flying all over Asia and it seems quite exciting and pretty lucrative. Growing up I always thought I would end up working for a ME carrier, but it seems the lifestyle and T&Cs have deteriorated fairly rapidly and doesn't seem worth it to me anymore.
The Air Japan thread is very extensive (big thanks to Dominican and Fratemate), and it sounds like a great contract and place to work..especially with the commute taken care of. With my EMB time, it seems the only Chinese contract that I qualify for would be Tianjin Airlines EMB190 Captain, which seems like a good contract on paper, but I can't find any real information on what it is actually like to live/work there. If anyone could shed some light on what it is actually like there, I would love to hear it.
Most people I fly with and talk to over here think that I should just "wait until a major calls," but that might honestly never happen. I don't think it is something to bank on. I also don't quite buy the pilot shortage story being sold here and don't have much confidence in the unions at the US legacy airlines. Do you guys think it would be worth it to dive into the contract world and do something like Air Japan or Tianjin for a few years?
Thanks for your input!
Last edited by PeterGibbons; 16th Jul 2016 at 04:03.