Typical roster for Sydney:
- 12 to 13 days OFF per month
- 13 days ON per month
- 3 to 4 Standbys per month
Likelihood of being called in on a Standby day is higher than many other bases.
Likelihood of being called and offered work day off payments also higher than many other base.
Of the 13 rostered day’s on, expect roughly 9 to 10 of those to be 4 sector days, with an average rostered length of 8.5 to 9.5 hours.
Eg SYD-MEL-SYD-YBCG-SYD
However, given most of the shifts will find you flying into places like Brisbane and Melbourne, factor in fat for delays as well as the fantastic Sydney commute to the Blue Emu car park to wait for a Blue Emu bus - typically you can find yourself getting Home 12 hours from when you left your garage.
Personally, I felt Sydney had a use by date. You will feel burnt out yet you’ll also feel obligated to accept work day off payments to help pay the million dollar mortgage.
I packed my bags and went to a lifestyle base and haven’t looked back. If you are desperate to stay in Sydney then it’s doable until you can get on the 787, but current wait is 5 years to transfer to right seat.
It’s a great job guys, but unfortunately Sydney sucks the fun out of it. But right now that goes for pretty much every airline operating out of that airport.
Good luck