For those people looking for info on RBA.
As others have alluded to the package is significantly below the going rate for a contract A320 Captain in Asia. The package has not increased significantly for many years and has been left well behind the going rate over time. Any increments (2.5% last year) are only applied to the basic salary so make very little difference.
In the past people accepted the lower pay because you could expect to fly 50 hours per month and with a reasonable amount of leave (more on that later) you could have a pretty good family lifestyle.
Unfortunately those days are over and you can expect to fly 70 plus hours per month. Those 70hrs a month require a lot of duty hours to achieve because of overnight split duties, nature of the route network, inefficient rostering etc.
The way the roster is written seems to be designed to give the pilots as little free time as possible. You will get 8 days off per month. Generally expect to start on an early and finish on a late. Another favourite is a SBY duty until 2300 before a day off. It is normal to have single days off in the roster.
The lifestyle in Brunei is not for everyone.
It is a very quiet place, a dry country so no Bars etc at all. A relatively small expat community (and getting smaller) that some people may find a little bit claustrophobic. Spouse's will not be able to work, about the only exception being teachers. It is also a very long way from the UK/Europe, especially when RBA starts messing with your contract leave tickets.
Brunei relies on oil and gas for 90% of its income. With the low oil price there has been a noticeable reduction in spending by the government, whether they will continue to pour money into RBA is anyone’s guess (RBA has never made a profit, it's just the size of the loss that varies)
The website mentions a "generous" amount of leave. 48 days sounds ok at first glance but there are a few things not obvious from the outside. Firstly those pilots already here get 56 days, HR are trying to effectively introduce a "B scale contract". The leave days are not working days. If you take a week’s leave that will be 7 days from your entitlement and you will lose 2 days off in that month (down to 6 from 8). Don't expect to get days off before or after leave.
The package is made up of a few parts as listed (all in BND) approximate figures per month.
Basic salary. $6500
Supplementary allowance. $3000
Expatriate allowance. $1700
Duty pay - variable approx. $800
RBA will pay an Education allowance of up to $800/mth per child 5yrs and over. This will only cover a little over 50% of the school fees at the international school (if you can get a place)
Housing allowance provides for a reasonable 3/4 bedroom detached house.
My advice for anyone considering joining RBA.
Do your due diligence. If you are offered a contract, insist on RBA flying you to Brunei for a good look around. Speak to the pilots/spouse's already here and decide if your family will be happy living here. It's too late once you are here to question the contract/conditions, staff travel, cost of living, school fees etc. It will suit some people but don’t turn up thinking it will be like living in the UK/Europe.
For type rated A320 Captains there is a big shortage worldwide. I would suggest that you are in a strong position to insist on the same contract (leave) as the rest of the RBA pilots.
Bob