Originally Posted by
CRJ-220
Hi guys
I got a few questions about cathay dragon.
1. Actual salary - in website it's 77000 HKD + 22000(housing) and plus extra flight allowance I guess which is around 14000 USD per month in total?
2. Average flying hours a month? I assume around 70~80 hours a month? with 8~10 days off?
3. Time to go in command course? I read 1.5~2 years since its expanding. Also the passrate has gone up recently.
4. Intensity of training? I only have flown boeing and last 2 years I flew long haul most of time. I assume around 6 months for non airbus experienced pilots?
5. Living expense? I am thinking around 3000 USD to rent two bedrooms apartment and food and other stuff are dependent on how you manage it. I am still single so I wouldn't have to worry about raising family in HKG yet.
6. How many intake per year?
Thank you in advance
1) Gross monthly pay will be HK $100,000-105,000 pm. Including all allowances. Out of that, you must allow for double tax in your first or second year (it's a lottery beyond your control) - could mean 30% tax in your first year otherwise it'll be around 15-17%.
2) Hours depend on fleet a little.
A320: 65-75 per month
A330: 70-85 per month
The difference being a crew shortage causing some overtime for A330 FO's. OT starts from 75.
3) The fastest command was circa 9 months recently but that guy had China and vast Airbus experience. Most people take 12 mo this to stop saying 'what's it doing now' + 6 months of command prep - limited by you *at the moment*
The pass rate has gone up a tad.
4) The training is intense. It was the first time I did not enjoy flying, though once on the line I enjoyed it. You will spend a few days doing conversion exams, a week in the office, then your type rating, then line training. The rating takes about 4 weeks, then with jet time you'll likely get 22 sectors plus a line check. Sectors start off with flights like a Phuket return and later you will be doing 40-120 min sectors in china on metric altitude around 12,000-15,000ft below optimum due traffic.
5) You can find cheap places to rent but they are cheap for a reason. Avoid Tung Chung. Around your figure (3000 USD) you should find something in DB, likely a bit more in mid-levels. You will spend $500 on a decent restaurant meal and $80-90 a pint in town (less at 7-11).
6) There is a large intake happening now and likely more next year for two reasons, 1) we are trying to expand & 2) standard contract people keep leaving once they realise just how expensive HK is. On a skipper salary it is possible to buy something after you get permanent residency (Google HK Buyers stamp duty) and save the 60% deposit for a $6,000,000 place. On an FO wage buying is impossible.
The people here are good to work with as an FO. Once you get your command it's much lonelier as the locals tend to just stay in their room on overnights. If you get a family, life is much tighter financially as you'll need extra space ($$$) to avoid suicide and school fees are eye wateringly expensive despite the allowance. Flying in China can be a drag with constant delays and stupidly low levels (it's noisy flying at 325 KIAS) though they are quite safe generally. The smog is a real drag between September and April then it's just the oppressive heat and humidity til September. When you can get on, the staff travel network is good but relatively expensive in the ID world.
Where are you coming from?
Hope that helps,
TSIO