Bahrain & Gulf Air

[Trader]

How do you guys find the cost of living in Bahrain on the FO pay?

Do some of your wives work?

[navmode]

you will be on the bread line with housing and schooling and whats left is food................ good luck

[picobello]

Difficult to find a job for your wife. Not impossible but difficult!

F/O salary ok for single but with familly:bored: .

Bahrain flat rent have rised 30% in a year:uhoh:

Fuel still cheap but how long?:E

[Trader]

What is the rent like!!??? Up 30% is a lot. What about buying in some of the new developments that allow foreigners to buy??

[vfenext]

GF will pay for your accom. You just go and find a suitable place and they will sign the lease, often they will pay more than your allowance if you do it this way. The FO salary is as good and often better than most airlines and remember there is no tax. As far as food and entertainment is concerned it's the cheapest place in the Gulf to enjoy yourself. Cars and fuel are cheap and we just got the first of two pay rises this year and a bonus on the way also. Others who posted here either don't work for GF or did so a long time ago. Also don't forget the average time from 320 to 330/340 is now around 9 months as long as you have ATPL. You will not ever be on the breadline that's just BS.

[tafran]

vfenext:
Give me a break, GF will fined you housing but ask you to pay the diffrence, and schooling will kill you what are you talking about. tax free yes but the exchange rate will make the sallary next to nothing. lets tell the truth vfenext.

[vfenext]

If I am telling a lie then I must be sitting in a sandy field right now! My accom is more than my allowance and I do not pay the difference. At least 5 of my colleagues are in the same situation. You obviously have no idea how the system works. No idea about schooling cause I don't need it so can't comment. My rent is 85BD more than my allowance but I only pay my allowance.

[navmode]

well it must be for some because i was told,GF has no housing and to go and fined a house and i will have to bear the diffrence.the system should be for all not a few.

[costalivin]

Vfenext----“ just go and find accommodation and GF will pay for it”???..... not quite.
Most GF crew accomo. Is in a designated appt building ( wonder why!!) and these appts are mainly in Juffair away from the expat family hub of Saar where the required schools are.
I know of at least 4 pilots who, when requested that the lease on their villas be taken over due to exorbitant rent increases( bd480), were flatly refused. 2 were told to look at designated appts in Juffair ( 600BD) the others tried in vain to see the relevant manager but when they turned up for arranged meetings the boss was out of town on a flight!! No explanations were given nor emails answered.
In saying that I also know GF pilots whose leases were taken over by the company but they are few and far between. There is no set rule, I suppose it depends on the mood of the relevant manager on the day, so don’t take it as a guarantee that GF will find you decent accommodation.
A FO housing allowance is BD350, I dare you to find a decent 3 bed villa in Saar for less that BD500 per month.

Regarding the school fees, if you have 2 or more children in school here then you will not save a penny. For example, if you have a 7yr old and an 9 yr old your school fees per term will be BD 1439. Your GF school fee allowance will be BD 230 per child per term. That means you need to hold back about BD250 per month to pay for school.
I know of 2 FO’s who will be sending their families back home this year, (one to Canada), as they just cant keep their heads above the water. So go figure ....