Flying cargo airplanes... opinion, please.

[Bokomoko]

Hi mates,
I’ve been flying for the same airline – only passenger fleet - for more than 20 years. However today I’ve an opportunity to get a job with a cargo operator in Asia to fly the 744 as DEC. The question is: What are the pros and cons of flying only cargo airplanes for a long period of time - let’s say 10 to 15 years?
You’re experts with cargo flights so I’d appreciate your opinion.
Bkmk

[BANANASBANANAS]

I am no cargo "expert" but I have just joined as a DEC on B744 fleet in SE Asia after 11 years of flying passengers.

Its early days yet but so far its an improvement on everything I have previously done and I am very happy. The top gun jokes about hauling rubber dog poop out of HKG do not reflect the reality of the job. We recently flew an F1 teams cars to a Grand Prix and there is always something new such as a special charter to keep you on your toes.

There are no cabin crew so you become fairly good at working the ovens but the quality of food is good, the schedules are great and there is a decent amount of time off between trips. Leave could be better and there is a fair amount of positioning but no job is perfect. A stable roster, decent time off at base between patterns and the confidence to be able to make plans is a welcome improvement on what I had become used to in my last outfit.

Great bunch of guys to work with and the salary is not too shabby either.

[topoftheloop]

You really want to burn 10 000 liters an hour to fly refigerators
or maybe formel1 cars or other bull**** nobody needs around the globe ?
If it makes sense to you, of course, go ahead,
if it doesn't make sense, there are plenty of other possibilities !
just a thought

[BlueEagle]

I flew both pax and freight for SIA, give me freight anytime, no hassle, no drama. Only drawback is that at some stations you tend to be left to your own devices re transport etc. as there are, just occasionally, no SIA traffic staff on duty at your time of arrival/departure, its been arranged but sometimes the wires get crossed! Only very rare anyway so not really a consideration. Not everything you carry is either a refrigerator or a F1 car, you will also carry quite a lot of essential supplies to the oil and other industries.
Should add that in those days there was no separate cargo contract or company.

[Kaptin M]

I was around SQ (as an F/O) in the 742/743 days, when we would alternate between pax & freight.
Invariably, the freighters always recieved No 2 priority in respect to just about everything - departure times, refuelling, maintenance, etc.
Delays - sorry, rescheduling - was often done in 24 hour blocks.
But it was enjoyable - no late pax, no no-shows, no need to worry about how the attire looked going back - many of the locals used to wear track suits.
All in all, the operation was much more "relaxed", imo, as the turnaround times were usually fairly generous.
As someone else commented, the catering was usually better than the pax flights...the lobster out of Brussells, the biryani rice ex Dubai.

I have heard that now that SQ runs a dedicated freighter company, the guys are away for VERY long stretches, which isn't conducive to a good family life, but more suited to single pilots (or those looking at re-achieving single status!).

[Prince of Dzun]

Bokomoko;

As someone who flew the B747 freighter for a number of years I can endorse the sentiments of both Blue Eagle and Kapitan M. It always seemed a relaxed and easy going operation, always good makanan (food) when you felt like it and not when some pen pusher in crew admin decided you could have it. Always something different to carry from race horses to gold bullion to containers of whatever. Many is the hour I've settled into a first class seat closest to the bulkhead and with the flight deck door open watched the First Officer get on with it. Without fail this always generated thoughts of " what a great job this is ". Give me freight over foolish passengers with their silly whims and problems every time. If you are offered a position as a freighter pilot then my advice is to grab it . You will be happy and you will enjoy it and one of the reasons for this is because you will be mixing with men who dont care about the gold braid on their shoulders .To them just flying is more important.

Prince of Dzun.

Ps; B747 freighters usually had six or so first class seats on the upper deck for the carriage of positioning crews.

[Bokomoko]

Thank you mates for your replies:ok:

[fullforward]

It seems that we're players from the same team!...did you already got a job offer? Thinking about resigning from the golden star? Or decision already made?