Astreus training

[G-BBAE]

What does it involve, how long is it, where is it?
Are they a good company to work for?

[Little Miss]

Astraeus are a good company.

They're office is in Gatwick.

[dee123]

They are also based at Manchester, and I agree, they are a good company!

DEE123

[Hostessmostess]

I worked for AEU for a season in 2002.

There is very mixed opinions on AEU, and some love it, and alot hate it. Search the forums, there must be a lot of info on here.

The only thing I would gurad you against is the £600 training bond and also the dodgy routes: - Malabo, Sieraa Leone (Freetown) etc...... plus there going to Canada in a 737 with no IFE!

[Puritan]

W.r.t. dodgy routes and all:

Malabo ( Equatorial Guinea ) – Well you’re there for a whole 16 hours ( a minimum rest type of trip, albeit separated by two night flights ). One feels inclined to say that the hotel is an 'adventure in architecture’ and the pizza restaurant around the corner is pretty good for eats. Overall it's a funny little place which you’re not in for very long, and wherein the clientel are nearly all workers in the Oil&Gas ( Energy Supply ) business.

Djibouti ( Djibouti ) – A somewhat similar trip the Malabo( albeit via Paris / CDG ) – but in this instance the hotel is a Sheraton and ( as it’s in Djibouti ) is run by, and for, the French – and is thus very pleasant, as is the food and the pool !

Freetown ( Sierra Leone ) - Crews are there for either 3 or 4 nights and are presently staying at the Lungi Hotel adjacent to the airport ( the airport only has about two flights a day – and so is very quiet ). The hotel is run by a Swedish chap and he and his staff try very hard to look after us ! The rooms are large enough ( and captains get a suite ), the beds comfortable, the aircon is quite good (albeit subject to the occasion power cut – which the hotel are working to fix, as I type ), the rooms have fridges, drinkable ice is available from the hotel bar, and I’ve yet to see a mosquito in any of the rooms that I’ve stayed in. The food in the restaurant is good enough ( and the steaks are very good), and the hotel put on an evening Barbeque for us too ( usually by the pool under the palm trees & stars of the dark African night… and includes some of the best & freshest seafood I’ve ever eaten ! )…. and did I mention that they chill the beer to within an inch of its life ….. and it’s cheap cheap cheap !
Next to the hotel is a disco, which is certainly loud enough, and frequented by a fair number of ‘night fighters’ ( and they happen to be quite nice girls actually ).
Trips into Freetown can be made ( helicopter, hovercraft, or ferry ) and the whole thing is an eye-opening adventure – where it pays to remember that you are in Africa !
Some of us have been fishing down there, indeed the Barracuda is very good – both to fish and to eat !
Temperature wise it’s in the 80’s day and night, and the humidity is bitchin’ – which I think’s pretty good actually ( especially when it’s freezing cold in the UK ) !

Accra ( Ghana ) – Can’t report, as yet, coz my first trip down there is not until next month, but I suspect it’ll be even better than Freetown.

Of course some people don’t like Africa; which I’ll put down to having no sense of adventure and / or LMF ( Lacking Moral Fibre ).

If it helps, here are just a few of the Africa trip pics I’ve taken - all within the last two months ( nb . these are the tamer ones, wherein good few of the others are probably un-publishable ;) )

Freetown - probably not quite the hell hole some would imagine it to be – Alex’s bar (http://www.honesthorses.com/freetown/FT_AlexsBarPatio.jpg)
Freetown - great seafood at Alex’s - huge Snapper and excellent live Crayfish – and mucho cheap too ! (http://www.honesthorses.com/freetown/FT_FreshSeafoodAtAlexsBar.jpg)
Lungi hotel - A very pleasant way to spend a day (http://www.honesthorses.com/freetown/SL_LungiAirportHotelPool.jpg)
Lungi hotel - the restaurant veranda, for when it gets too hot by the pool (http://www.honesthorses.com/freetown/SL_LungiAirportHotelRestaurantPatio.jpg)
Freetown - high above the city, the country club has great food and a nice pool (http://www.honesthorses.com/freetown/FT_TheLodgeCountryClub.jpg)
Freetown (at the Kissi port) - one of the older ferries, and certainly and adventure – 1st class is only £0.70, but travellinh ‘coach’ in with the locals is much more fun (http://www.honesthorses.com/freetown/FT_TheOldFreetownFerry.jpg)
Djibouti - must get some more pics of this place... but here a bit of pool and hotel (http://www.honesthorses.com/djibouti/DjiboutiHotelAndPool.jpg)

There are occasional day trips to other locations – especially so in the ‘shoulder’ period either side of the main seasons.

W.r.t. Deer Lake ( Newfoundland / Canada ) – These flights are presently conducted aboard the B737-700 ( with ETOPS ) and will move to the B757 ( also with ETOPS ) in late May ( and the B757 has IFE ). That said, these flights are presently straight there and back events ( albeit that they’re about an hour less overall than is, say, a Gatwick – Aswan, which we also do there and back ).

Additionally, rumour has it that, India trips are coming soon ( but I can’t / won’t say where just yet ) and that some similarly other ‘interesting’ destinations are on the cards ( and more aircraft ).

[TightSlot]

Well Puritan - I'm jealous! Us Britannia folks don't get much Africa, but the various destinations I've been to over time have been amongst the best trips I've done. Crews tend to stick together more (less shopping and Gym time I guess) and make the best use of what facilities and entertainment there are. Certainly more exotic than MCO!