CX Chief Pilot or... [Archive]

kyogen3

13th Feb 2004, 03:18

Hello,

I've been searching the board for info. but to no avail. Could somebody please post the name of the Chief Pilot or other person in charge of hiring? Trying to figure out to whom to address the cover letter etc...

Also, if there are any CX pilots here on this board based in the U.S., could you give me a feel as to what your monthly schedules are like? Are you on the cargo or pax side? Pro's and con's of each?

I'm currently an F/O on the MD-11 (U.S. supplemental)...do I have a chance getting on as a DE F/O or do they look only to qualified 747 drivers?

Thanks very much

Cpt. Underpants

13th Feb 2004, 09:02

The person to contact for hiring is Claire Delaney. Email her direct at this ([email protected]) link and send her your resume'.

You do not need to be typed to be hired as a D-E F/O on the B74F, and your MD-11 experience will help a lot.

Can't help on the schedules side - I am an Airbus driver (airbi are almost exclusively passenger, apart from an occasional DHL night op), and my roster is the pits. No bid lines, no success in requests, minimum days off, overtime for the last three months, etc. To answer your next question, I am a Captain, 15+ years here (quite senior).

Pax fleet (in my opinion) is better - far more variety, better layovers, more choice of aircraft (A330/340, B777, B744) but you'll start off on the pax fleet as a S/O (in flight relief) for about three years. While you lose in the beginning on salary, you catch up and overtake really quickly once you get your F/O upgrade. Pax ("B" scale) salaries are about 30-40% higher than freight, and if you're in HKG (not based) there are other allowances such as housing and education that are taken care of. On a base, this is forfeited.

Tax in HKG is a flat 16% (going to 17% this year) and while you can get anything you have in the USA, cost of living is high.

The company routinely abuses contracts and are belligerent in the extreme. Intimidation is normal and management lack interpersonal skills. Accept it as a way of life and you can be very happy here. If it's not acceptable, then a base is the way to go.

It's said that when you join Cathay, you two buckets. One labeled "SH1T", the other labeled "MONEY". Whichever fills up first, it's time to go.

- gear up, gear down, go to the bank -