1Time Pilot Losses
 

Just heard that 1Time's Chief Pilot has resigned!! Anybody know why? I guess he just got tired of beating his head against the brick wall!!:ugh:

I think this brings the total up to about 7 or 8 resignations in the last 2 months - that's got to hurt a little company with a such a small pilot group! The cost of training up replacements is going to put quite an unwanted burden on 1Time - especially in the face of new competition, rising fuel prices, broken aircraft, etc.

Happy pilots don't leave their employers - it would make better business sense to look after the guys and protect the huge investment that the company has to commit to them. But short sightedness, greed and poor planning seem to rule the day!

As stated in other threads, the guys can only take so much abuse and then vote with their feet. When will operators like 1Time ever learn?

To all the guys that have resigned - good luck!! The world's markets are waiting!!:ok:

Surprising development this, if true, not what they need in these kind of market conditions- especially with the December holidays looming and the prospect of full cabins. Everyone needs a good December because there is going to be mayhem during the seasonal downturn in late Jan and early Feb.:hmm:

Are you talking about AS? Sad news if that's the case - what a great guy! The kind of guy I'd be happy to to work under.

4HP

Yep 4HP - the one and the same. I hear he's got the patience of a cow, so obviously things must have got really bad for him to go!

I think that leaves 1Time with only one instructor - should be interesting to see how they're going to train up replacements, without cutting corners. Hope the remaining instructor is also not on his way out - that'll really leave 1Time up sh:mad: street!

Shouldn't come as a huge suprize for the 1Time management team that their pilots are bailing at the rate that they are. Mate that flys for them reckons the 7-8 resignations are just the tip of the iceberg. Seems the standard response from Mr.O when approached with any pilot-related gripes was:"If they don't like it, then they can @#$%off". Well Mr.O, seems like thats just what "they" are doing.. :D

Why ??????
 

Can't imagine why pilots would want to leave one time, not like their bonuses or any other promises made by the gods have been kept.You can lie to some of the people some of the time ............
Guess the honeymoon is now finally over.:D

Six Month Tops!!!
 

thats the word on the streets.
1 TIME will not last as long as SAA keeps doing what they are doing.

It seems that SAA only wants to kill the little guys. And they will as long as there bank account keeps full. (SOUTH AFRICAN TAX PAYER)

1Time was a breath of fresh air here.
Lets all hope they pull thru!!!!

At least the tax payer is now getting cheap tickets for his bucks.
:ok:

Cant blame the crew resignations on SAA. All this stuff is internal.

What’s happening here in the employment market is that finally the supply and demand curves for experienced commercial pilots are meeting. If a company wants to earn a quick buck on the back of the pilot workforce then they will wind up with no pilots and therefore no operation- this is going to happen quite soon by the looks of things irrespective of anything that SAA is perceived to be doing. When SAA opens up for recruitment then this situation is only going to be exacerbated, I don’t think Mr O is going to be telling too many more pilots to #%$@ off lest he wants to preside over an apron full of red planes.:hmm:

I have a question- how many of the guys hitting the road already had a DC9/MD82 type rating when they arrived? I doubt a guy with a huge training bond hanging over his head is going to just stroll out the door, or if things are that bad then they would I suppose.

Not sure, but think that quite a number of the ex (Lanseria - 2nd Try) Sunair guys joined 1Time when it just started.

Guess that helped with the initial Crew Training Bill..:O

Just out on TNN:

Seems quite cheap for 15% stake of 1Time and you had to agree to lease their equipment- what a deal for Avstar! in a few years they will make that investment back in lease costs. Cash flow problems Mr O?

Ahhhh but Deskjockey, as a concerned SAA employee, I see it involves ADDING an additional 2 aircraft to the 1time fleet. On the other hand, I have just seen a statement from SAA announcing that they are retrenching 1000 employees. Seems to be the opposite direction.
Hope you not one of them !?
Wander how many more retrenchments will come at SAA as Mango grows?

Dog, dog, dog......for a 1Time employee you are not the brightest…. Let’s see where these new routes are shall we, I have a feeling this will be more about getting rid of DC9’s than new routes. Lets also not forget about that extra cash to tide us over for xmas…..:ok:

Now about those 1000 jobs…. Problem is it should have been 3000, but the boss knew the unions wouldn’t swallow it- it was difficult enough getting them to agree to the 1000. I think it’s the biggest step in the right direction SAA has taken in ages- that and launching Mango! Im also hoping more than a few hundred managers get the chop ahead of the junior staff!!:ugh:

As for me I really appreciate your heartfelt concern for my wellbeing, its really touching thank you, but I have a feeling there will be few folk ahead of me in the line...:ok:

Ah Deskjockey....Thanks for the quick reply. Glad your views on "what should have happenned" tie in with ours !! However, Xmas time is good for us. Even the LCC guys can afford Peroni`s now.:ok:

Glad you not next in line. We would miss your input on these matters terribly.....!!!!:p

Mr O'C you should really stop taking those loong lunches- they are the reserve of those lucky enough:} to be employed by the guvemeent!

Whats with you guys and Peroni is it a staus thing- jeez man! cant you guys drink normal beer! How about lunch next week, speak to Mr P and let me know.

Retrenchments?
 

Definitely not from pilot pool!In fact newbies have a start date!!!

All very well getting more aircraft.. Who's going to fly them? Management? That should be fun! Sure, get some desperate pilots who are willing to swallow the BS from management, but its only a matter of time before they get p:mad: off and go work for someone else. Only so long any self-respecting pilot will put up with dangerously full rosters, no benefits, broken aircraft, broken promises and indifferent/incompetent management. Apparently, part of the problem with the management previously mentioned, are those looong lunches they so frequently take and, afterwards, don't/can't do anything of any REAL use to anybody (standing joke). :rolleyes:

Hear hear!!
 

Couldn't agree more Dexterdawg! Couldn't work like that. Seems some of the non-pilot types in 1Time management have a serious problem dealing with pilots in general. Was the same here and wherever they (MrO,O'C and P) have worked. Maybe a case of PE? (pilot envy???):hmm:

remind us please.... After handing them out to all and sundry, how many of those 100 odd Currie Cup final tickets you were given by the Free State Rugby Union did you offer to your air crew?:ooh:

There was a time when the pilots were invited to those extended lunches but not any more for fear of same pilots poisoning the liquid lunch our esteemed management seem so often to partake in. This was, of course, in the heyday of the company when the crew still believed that they had struck it lucky landing a job with 1time. When the world was promised. Sadly. Realisation has set in and all that is being realised is a rotten smelly egg. Well, I guess that does resemble the world of today!
With their crew out stoking the fires and generating enough steam to get the turbines turning and the lovely ladies are merrily welcoming the paying passengers on board, our esteemed management are out racking up the lamb with the company credit cards. Don’t worry about the cost of lunch boys, we can always make it up by $cr3w1ng our crew out of another promised bonus or benefit. Oops no we can’t do that because they don’t get bonuses or benefits in the first place. Oh I know, lets order some more shooters and pay for it by taking away their crew water. Good idea!!! A bonus for that suggestion. Oops no I forgot we still don’t give them bonuses but still a good idea so lets promote you to catering manager, seeing as how you made such a success of our computerised check in system. How is that system coming along anyway? It isn’t, oh dear well not to worry you’ve only had two and a half years to get it right and look on the bright side, at least we saving on printer ink hoorah lets order another round. How we going to pay for this one boys. I know… lets serve the crew vrot meals and make them pay for sandwiches off the trolley. Hoorah great idea another round for you. Hey, hey, hey I’ve got a good one; lets not employ enough crew for the roster. No we can’t do that cause we already are. Aaaaagh bad idea but another drink for you anyway BIG guy.
Hey there’s one of us missing where is he. Oh he is away gallivanting on some charter. Great that means after we have had mass resignations are desperately short of Captains and can barely operate on the crew we have, he disappears. Good move, the schedule isn’t that important anyway. Lets have another round of drinks on him.
Guys I’m bored, there just isn’t that much to do around the office anymore. We’ve taken the jump seat away, reneged on all our promises, attempted breach of contract with our command upgrades, changed the crew hotels without consulting with them, threatened our hosties with legal action, reserved all the parking bays for ourselves and single handedly been responsible for the high morale of our employees. I know lets jump on a plane and pretend we have some really important business down South. Great idea Blondie, grab the credit cards and lets go. But don’t we need to give 3 days notice for a rebate ticket. No silly, we scrapped that. Damn remind me to re instate that rule.
Don’t sit in the back of the plane as we might bump into some of our crew that are being forced to sit there while paxing down to start a 12 hour day. Lets sit up front but remember NOT to greet the cockpit crew. Yeah okay, lets treat them like something warm, wet and smelly that we stood in.

“Ladies and Gentlemen and very good morning to you and welcome aboard 1time this is your Captain speaking We apologise for the attitude of your crew today but as those very few of our regular passengers left flying with us will have no doubt realised, our management have taken a Swan and turned it into a Turkey. We do apologise and trust you will understand that it is for reasons beyond our control. Should you have any complaints, here is the number of our smiling assassin, oops I mean our CEO. If you are unable to get hold of him then just phone the 3 pubs closest to our office! We hope to be on our way shortly and once again apologise for the DC9, I mean delay” In the meantime we just going to fire this APU up for you to get the cabin to a nice pleasant temperature.”

“Ladies and Gentlemen from the cockpit once again we do apologise about the temperature but we seem to have picked up a little snag with our APU. Please bear with us, as it has only been broken for 3 weeks………

Note to those of you sitting upstairs having just attended the VB School of business.
Stop treating your employees like something the dog left in the driveway. Start paying attention to their legitimate complaints and do something to curb the mass exodus that you are solely responsible for. You have already lost a bunch of good pilots, cabin crew and staff. The aviation market is wide open and there hasn’t been a better time for crew to move onto greener pastures. Granted, the grass might not always be greener on the other side, but at least its getting water and is green. The smiling assassin once said “If they don’t like it they can **** off. Well they are finally listening to you and are doing just that!!! When 1time started, it was THE company to work for, now you are struggling to meet your required crew compliment because the word is out!
Stop introducing petty restrictions on your crew and start treating them as the professional body they are. Stop making endless promises to review the bonuses and then reneging on your word. Case in point “if oil reaches $60 a barrel you will get bonuses” Then coming up with some other market related variable as an excuse to **** your crew some more. Stop buying antiquated, clapped out DC9 – 10’s because you got them for a steal. Like it or not you are now competing against 738’s and your passengers (those people that pay for your extended lunches) are also not idiots and will also migrate to a better service. You have lost 2 chief pilots, numerous cockpit crew and umpteen-cabin crew and the only rebuttal you can come up with is to send out threatening letters of law suites. You should be ashamed of yourselves and apologise to each and every one of your employees for creating the unpleasant situation that 1time now finds itself in.

I’m off for a drink, but shall choose a bar far from the office and use my own hard earned cash. Anyone care to join me?