Getting in the "back way" - has it ever been done ?

[Jnr380]

Hi guys just a question ive been thinking about for the last 3 years.

Say i apply for VB as either ground crew or even in their IT section (got a degree in IT). And on weekends / days off i work building up hours instructing etc..... and get to the minimum required (maybe enough to be a 2nd officer) after say 4 years.....
How loyal do you think the company will be when i apply for a flight crew position?...and also, would they care that i provide 4 years of loyal service to the company and be more inclined to hire me?

Has anyone done it before?

Jnr380

[Next Generation]

How loyal do you think the company will be

:yuk: :yuk: :yuk: ROFLMAO

[Luke SkyToddler]

Dunno about VB but I've heard there's a very friendly bloke at Air NZ who can help people who are interested in, erm, getting in the 'back way' :ok: :ok: :ok:

[Yon Garde]

Dont waste your time. Once you've got all the qual's just go flying and try and benefit from the apparrent movement in the GA industry.

VB couldn't care less if you've worked for them before and even if they did, you'd be turning 60 before you gained the required experience doing an hour or two a week on your days off.

There plenty of other (arguably much better) airline jobs in and out of AUS aswell.

Good luck:ok:

[Ovation]

It won't do any harm by being an office or ramp employee in the "airport/airline" environment.

My brother was an A320 Captain with various airlines around the world and he said you should offer to drive the "honey cart" so they'll know how keen and committed you are.

[neville_nobody]

Mate surviving GA in Australia shows a hellava lot more commitment than working on the ramp :rolleyes:

Really going the ramp option trying to get into the airline probably shows that you are not committed and are taking the easy option. If you want to be flying then get flying not wasting time loading bags. I know certain operators will take you to task in an interview if you were to quit flying to load bags, or once you had a CPL then keep loading bags. Do you want to be a ops dude or a pilot?

[Wizofoz]

I dis-agree with the general vibe here. In my experience people working for an Airline, getting them selves known etc. and then getting their flying Quals are often treated well come interview time.

I know one ex Flight attendent who is now an A340 Check Captain, and another guy who was the recruitement clerk who hired me was later folling the RHS of my aircraft.

It can happen.

[Next Generation]

In my experience people working for an Airline

But he's not talking about working for an airline. He is talking about Virgin Blue.

There is a vast difference! :E

[Enema Bandit's Dad]

I'd better not go there....:uhoh:

[YesTAM]

From what I've seen (which is not much) some Ansett LAME's ended up as flight engineers, but that was a long time ago.

I guess it depends very very much on corporate culture.

I can think of some corporate cultures where the mere suggestion of you becoming a pilot from an I.T. or engineering background would be regarded as "sedition" and would put an immediate stop to any future promotion and perhaps grounds for retrenchment in the next round of cuts.

To put it another way, the meta message you are sending your employer is "I don't have any long term commitment to this job or department, the real career I'm after is being an airline pilot, and that's the only reason I'm hanging around here".

Now while I guess this is acceptable in flying schools, It certainly would have been heresy in the old Ansett culture, and I don't know if it would be acceptable in Qantas either.

In fact, the only airline I can think of where this would be regarded favourably is Southwest (I think) in the U.S. of A. I have never seen a more motivated and positive group of people, one minute they are issuing your boarding card then its "pardon me" and they are martialling the aircraft and loading it. If you want to see "commitment" then seeing a girl wrassling with an external power lead that weighs more than she does, is it.