Sunwing Interview

[Flyer34]

Anyone out there in the know about Sunwing?? I have an interview on Easter Monday and was wondering about a few things.
1. Who is the Chief Pilot??? (Usual methods have failed me in finding this info)
2. Salary to Start?
3. Time to upgrade?
4. UK bases in the summer?
5. Bond / Length?
Thanks and Happy Easter,
Flyer

[richardhead]

Cp is George Axe I think. Some of the bases I heard were. Glasgow, Cardiff, Newcastle amongst others. Other than that I can't help you much.

[MuddyBoots]

The spelling is Acs. George Acs as CP.

The Bases this summer I belive are GLA, DUB, NEW.

Regards

MuddyBoots

[doo]

What positions are open? DEC or F?O's.
Thanks

[pic_on_B737NG]

I fly for Sunwing and I love it. Management is great, the flying is great, the B737-800 is great. I am happy!

Here is some info:

- Sunwing is somewhat desperate for direct-entry captains. I believe they want people with airline experience as PIC on jet (CRJ seems ok). Corporate time (for DEC) does not seem to work for them. Qualified? I recommend you come forward now!

- FO's have been hired with B1900D experience and no jet time. Time to upgrade is based on your previous experience, on your performance/attitude during training and on your performance/attitude on a daily basis.

- First year salary is about $80 per credit hour for captains and $100 after a year. FO's get about $48 then $60. Minimum credits paid per month is 80. Overtime is paid generously. Eleven guaranteed days off per month.

- Permanent bases are in YYZ and YUL. This year the temporary european bases are Dublin, Glasgow and Newcastle. All positions are determined by seniority bids. This year some junior captains and some junior FO's are not going to Europe as a result of the bid. It seems some senior pilots love their summers in Europe (and the per diems).

- Six aircraft flew this winter. Unconfirmed but we are hearing 10 next winter, including 2 wide-body aircraft.

- There is a training bond. I think it is 24 months at $1000 a month. It is discussed during the interview which is straight-forward in a relaxed setting with two persons from management and one guy from the pilot association. It is mostly a discussion followed by a short technical quiz taken in another room.

- SOP's and manuals are very well written and adhered to.


I hope this helps. The Chief pilot is indeed George Acs and the person in charge of hiring is Slawko Borys (Manager of Flight Ops). This is a gem of an airline/tour operator. If you want good times in a great environment I suggest you send your résumé to [email protected]

[208inICE]

I also work for Sunwing Airlines and have to say it is a great place to work. Make no mistakes there are some growing pains and you always get people complaining, but the overall attitude at this company is second to none and definitely way ahead of the "big show".

Here is my comment to you: I suggest that the girl at the front desk, commonly known as the receptionist, was at the Sunwing vacations head office. That is why she would not know the chief pilots name since Sunwing Airlines is accross the street.

My tip for your interview and your career at SUNWING: CHANGE your attitude!! Before banging your head against the wall at someones "apparent" stupidity do your homework first.

As I said just a suggestion.

[Flyer34]

Thanks to everyone for giving me some info/advice to my questions for Sunwing. I have a few contacts there who I have finally gotten a hold of and they have given me very positive feedback regarding the company. I look forward to meeting the folks at the office soon and maybe joining the ranks if sucessful.
208inICE - no harm meant to the front line personnel taking my resume, wrong terminolgy, my mistake. The receptionist was very nice and despite being very busy, was able to take my resume and get it to the right person so that is exactly what I needed. And now that you have mentioned it...I think I was in the wrong office on Fasken!! I had not noticed that there were two different offices for Sunwing Vacations and Sunwing Airlines!! I thought everyone was in the same spot. Homework complete. Suggestion noted.
Thanks everyone,
Flyer34

[pair_of_pratts]

Sunwing people:
How much per diem do you recieve in Canada/North America/Europe?
Does the company provide lodging/transportation in Europe? If you do the Europe thing, is it possible/doable to bring your family with you?
Hiring for YYZ/YUL/both?
11 GDO's per month; any other days off during the month?
How much overtime is normal? Is it seasonal (ie less during the summer if not overseas)?
Do any of those fancy RNP approaches?
I realize that some of these questions might be hard to answer as its still a new operation but would any info would be great. Thanks in advance.

[doo]

Do you regularly exceed the 80 hrs per month?

[Flyer34]

Couple of More Questions...Wondering someone could tell me a bit about the written test when they took it? Any w/x or regs or is it just ATPL tech stuff?

Also are you asked alot of CRM style questions in the interview like "Tell me about a time when you didn't follow company SOP's and how did you feel about it?" I hate those questions.

Do they ask technical questions about your current a/c? (I once had to run through the engine fire on T/O drill for my a/c on one interview)

Thanks again and Happy Easter

[doo]

Maybe a big one but: longevity forecast?

[MarvintheMartian]

Ok, let me look into my Crystal Ball....:cool:
They are in a special position, to be able to supply their own aircraft with passengers and therefore not have to rely on other holiday tour operators to fill their aircraft. That Sunwing Tours has been around for almost 20 years, I'd say that they have established themselves as a reliable tour supplier.
They are planning their growth of aircraft in a controlled manner and aren't getting too big, too quickly, even though there are people within the organization who would have liked to see more aircraft in operation this year.
In my opinion, as long as they don't lose sight of their business plan, Sunwing will be around longer then Canada 3000 and Royal were.
Doo...This winter season had a spectrum of flying hours. Many flew in excess of 100 hours per month, while others flew less than 80. This was due to the volume of training/line indoc that was taking place. Will next fall/winter season be the same? That is difficult to say, but I would hazard a guess that yes, there will be many pilots who will exceed the 80 hour/month mark.
Pop...per diem is paid according to the Federal Governments schedule for its employees. Right now for Canada, I believe it is around 3.21 cdn and US is also the same, but in USD. For UK, it varies according to location in UK. This year, accom and transport while in the UK, is the responsibility of the individual, so is taken into account with the per diem. Yes, if you were to be deployed to the UK, you can take your family over with you. The company has alloted funds for each pilot for such situation. That the deployed slots are filled for 2007 season, if you were to join Sunwing this year, you would not be required to deploy to the UK.
They schedule 11 GDO's/month. If the scheduling is lighter, then you could see grey days and or reserve days to fill the flying schedule.
As the company is growing and training is continual at present, it is truly difficult to say what is normal for overtime for either Captain or First Officer.
Captains presently are getting more overtime then the FO's. There is likely to be little overtime for the deployed operations and I am guessing some with the domestic, due to ongoing training with the new hires(am guessing here)
Rumoured forecast is 10 NG's for next winter and for summer deploy of 2008, 5 deployed and 3 domestic. So that being said, Sunwing is continuing to look for and want to hire good people for their operations.
Great people at Sunwing.

[pair_of_pratts]

Thanks for the info, Marvin.

[doo]

Yes Thanks,
How many a/c in Europe in the summer, and what do the Canadian ones do for the summer?

[MarvintheMartian]

3 Based in UK: Glasgow, Newcastle and Dublin:ok:
Canadian flying for the Summer: http://www.flysunwing.com/flybetter/DomesticFlights2007.asp
Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Toronto, Montreal, Halifax, Charlottetown, Sydney, Stephenville, Deer Lake, Gander, St. John's.
There will be some north/south flying out of Toronto and Montreal during the summer as well, so before you ask for those too, can I suggest that maybe you go look at the flysunwing site and use the links they have there and it will tell you all you want to know about destinations for the summer in Canada.:ok:

[doo]

Thanks again,
Looks interesting, how about annual leave, how many days, pension, lol, and other insurances, full Blue Cross or equivalent etc? Night stops, patterns?

[Jenny W]

Hi
I am new here and may not even have the right forum.
Would anyone know if Sunwing make exceptions for bringing a dog onboard??
This is not a seeing eye dog but rather a dog I rescued in Santiago, Cuba.

I have written a letter to Sunwing head office, enclosing my newspaper articles on this poor dog, asking if they can make a one way exception.

I realize the temperature in cargo plays a big part???
Any help much appreciated.
Ta, Jenny

[tbaylx]

Doubt you'll get him in the aircraft cabin, but if you have a suitable cage for him, he'd likely be able to travel as cargo for a fee. Least that's the way most airlines work now. The cargo bays are heated and suitable for live animals.

[MarvintheMartian]

As posted on Sunwing site, Sunwing does not carry pets. Sorry Jenny
Doo
10 days vacation to start, in 2 - 5 day blocks, where they then guarantee 2 days off on either side of each block. Stat holiday credits are added to the total annual leave(holiday allotment). Presently no pension plan. lol....yes lots of laughs. Basic insurance (life, medical, dental and glasses).
Night stops...............yes:ok: (landing lights required)
Patterns....................usually vectored but it does depend:)
(Most are out and backs, some double stops, some domestic deployments which could be up to a week long. ie ST. Johns, Halifax)
These are all things that they will tell you all about in the interview.

[doo]

http://www.hollandcanadaline.com/00_aerospace/00_candidates/listings/WAS0120070225.pdf

[baffinboy]

Does anyone know what their requirement is for DEC's? (Hours, experience......)
Thanks

[tbaylx]

As i understand it at least 500 hours command on jets over 55000KG. I'm an ex jetsgo guy flying 767's overseas now and was considering a Sunwing DEC position. They were planning on at least 1 course/month with DEC's but i see now that hollandline has postponed the contracts to 2008, so not sure if that affects non contract captains as well.