View Full Version : CX, the truth.
sisyphos
29th Dec 2007, 06:08
to whom it may concern :
lifestyle freighter europe is at an absolute lowpoint.
rostering to the max, which means 12 days on duty, 4-5 days at home. If you don't live at your base ( frankfurt anyone?) as NOBODY does as far as I am informed, substract another two nights/month which you will have to stay at your expense in a hotel( early morning departure). That's 8(!) nights at home in my case in december including X-mas. Plus -10 % loss due to weakening currency ( make that 30% if your salary is in HK$/US$), uncertain upgrade after god knows how many years, tax starting april direct substracted, intimidating sim/line checks,monotone roster/layover, crap hotels,below average allowances ( 40 Euros/day Dubai e.g.),transfer to PAX base unlikely in the next 20 years with retirement age 65, cynical ignorant management,flight delays are the norm not the exception,lethal pollution,poor child education "support",more and more freight ops with serious implication for everybody's roster,zero union power,etc etc.:mad::mad::mad:
CX - biggest mistake of my life.
Artificial Horizon
29th Dec 2007, 08:09
Sure are glad then that I just turned down the offer of interview. After seeing the new pay grades that come into effect as of 1st Jan it wasn't even worth my while considering DEFO. Shame, Cathay used to be something I aspired to.
kesskidi
30th Dec 2007, 12:39
hi
I'm new here on pprune and didn't have time to check all the past thread concerning CX
where is it possible to see this new payscale ?
how does the roster "pax pilot" look like, as ****ty as the freight ?
working @ Air Canada I can tell you each airline seems to be on its way down as their new goal is to keep their customer from lowcost airlines, and management is not so great too, but not intimidating which would be a real shame.
thx for the infos and keep it up
K
dragon501
31st Dec 2007, 00:50
Please leave.
Bwatchful
31st Dec 2007, 04:36
Please leave:
If we could speak French as well as he speaks English we would be happy.
kesskidi
31st Dec 2007, 14:30
hum... please make a sentence.
thx
corporal klinger
4th Jan 2008, 10:43
unfortunately Sisyphos is right, this place sucks. shame, used to be a good place.:(
What is this new pay scale for DEFO's? Anybody know where it can be found?
Kane Toed
5th Jan 2008, 00:41
http://www.pprune.org/forums/showthread.php?t=295764
*sigh*
sisyphos
5th Jan 2008, 09:28
when you evaluate the numbers : be aware that from april on CX is participating in the PAYE ( pay as you earn) U.K. tax system, which means the tax will be deducted upfront from your salary!!
Y1: 45000 - 35 % = 30000 / 12 = 2500 pounds/month net !!!!!!!!!!!!!
There is NO x-mas bonus/13th month etc on a base !
:ugh::ugh::ugh::ugh::ugh::ugh::ugh::ugh::ugh::ugh::ugh::ugh: :ugh::ugh:
555orange
5th Jan 2008, 12:55
Ya...but thats 500 bucks a month more than Kesskidi makes at Air Canada....lol.....Canucks take it up the hu hu when it comes to taxes....Love that tax freedom day in June last year!
PAYE or not it doesnt matter.
That starting pay in the UK is sub par. There is a famous holiday company flashing for pilots on the main page of PPRUNE that start on £47.5K and home every night.
CX HR may need to lower their requirements soon.
MAX:cool:
Craggenmore
8th Jan 2008, 07:23
Y1: 45000 - 35 % = 30000 / 12 = 2500 pounds/month net
Have you added flight pay/away from base pay to that?
corporal klinger
8th Jan 2008, 16:01
you would get allowances on top of that plus hdp (hourly duty pay) ,but very low since you do not reach high duty hour numbers on the freighter. per diem(or allowances) are been paid at the hotel in local currency. But rates are really low, e.g. Hong Kong around 60 Euros/day.( don't quote me on that, but it is really not a lot). expect around 400 Euros/month extra all in all. plus you have to pay tax on both ,hdp and allowances, as well !! the money as a based freight F/O with CX is really a joke, especially considering the gruesome patterns..
stilton
8th Jan 2008, 20:28
After 20 years service at the American carrier I fly for, I realize my 'progress'
up the seniority list is now and will be nonexistent, thanks to the age 65 change.
Without getting into any CX pro's or cons, just curious what their retirement age is now, pax, freight all operations inc Dragonair ?
Anyone feel like updating the Pilot Career Centre it seems to be telling a different story :eek:
http://pilotcareercentre.com/APilotsLifeDetail.asp?APLID=180
Cathay Pacific is an awesome company to work for. :ugh:
Do you need a college degree to work at Cathay.[HK or N.A.] What are the mins. for applying.
Sgnr de L'Atlantique
13th Jan 2008, 17:33
Have been offered a couple of opportunities to do the second interview.
Started doubting more and more....
Finally refused as it is simply not worth it anymore.
A real shame....CX used to be the dream of many pilots! Now it just became one of the many Asian carriers....
Good luck!
Cripple 7
14th Jan 2008, 02:49
Barley wrote it:E
corporal klinger
19th Jan 2008, 13:07
more bad news for the classic guys : long delays expected regarding change over to pax fleet, no transfer within 3,5 years AND no bypass pay either.
I have simply no words for the way this company treats its people, it is such a disgrace really..
dustyprops
19th Jan 2008, 21:17
This is a good thread, and should be treated as a real heads up to anybody who is thinking about leaving their present employment for a job with CX. Everything written is true except for SMOC, i have a feeling that comment is a PR spin. This company has to be absolutely the bottom of the stack in terms of pay, lifestyle, and how we are treated by management. I am based and on the freighter, we have lost 6 guys off the base in the last 8 months, with one more to go end of this month. Joined because i was sold a lifestyle. Turned out to be absolute bol@#$ks.
The job stinks, please pay attention to what is written. both forums.
Cypher
20th Jan 2008, 02:39
Does someone want to tell us what it's like on the PAX fleet... ?
Better hurry because I have a CX interview in the next few weeks...
dustyprops
20th Jan 2008, 11:33
cypher, it's less flying, but the same old s@#t. If your interviewing as an s/o remember: you do the p.a. check, make the bunks for everyone, do the paperwork, and eat the sandwichs. That's the sum total of your onboard duties. Off the aircraft it's Wanchai, and the sim every 3 months. Awesome.
Cypher
20th Jan 2008, 19:26
Cheers dustyprops...
I have been looking at the threads up to 3 months ago, not many positive posts to be had.
I understand company will say 18 months as S/O but reality is anything but.. (3-5 years)? Depending on fleet?
Dan Buster... apologies... I omitted the following off my last post... :ouch:
Glass Half Empty
20th Jan 2008, 22:12
My vote would be to look elsewhere however an interview costs you nothing other than a bit of homework. If you get to the second interview then a free trip to hong kong is available. You can go and have a look for yourself but more importantly you can see the pollution for yourself and ask the guys who work there what its like. That way you only have yourself to blame if you join, and you won't kick yourselves for years that you were swayed to not apply by anonymous people on an open forum.
atpcliff
28th Jan 2008, 20:08
Hi!
The pay at Cathay is better than virtually ALL the PAX airlines in the US.
Where are these airlines that pay a lot more than Cathay, that Americans could work at?
Thanks!
cliff
KYIP
NewEssO
28th Jan 2008, 20:54
lol!
the crappy thing is, if you don't plan to stick around for long there isn't much point. SO time (P2X) is not recognized ANYWHERE in the world as I was told.
bobjet
5th Feb 2008, 19:50
What seat are you in over there and how long have you worked there?:ooh:
Lugano
7th Feb 2008, 17:49
The pay at Cathay is better than virtually ALL the PAX airlines in the US.
Where are these airlines that pay a lot more than Cathay, that Americans could work at?
This is exactly correct. From someone who once worked for a European airline all I can say is that most places have no idea how good they have it. Many Americans would love to work for such bad conditions......
I am sure it's far from perfect, but very few US carriers offer much of a career anymore, which is why so many are starting to look elsewhere, including CX.
Incompetence, apathy and a complete lack of accountability abound at many US carriers nowadays and some pilots would like to escape that.
Bograt
19th Feb 2008, 13:28
Lugano, you will NOT escape that same crap here at CX.:yuk:
corporal klinger
9th Apr 2008, 01:44
Anybody interested in a europe base : salary is in pound sterling, regardless of your base ( fra, cdg, lon, man ) . This means a pay cut of almost 25% due to a falling pound vs the euro over just the last 2 years :(!! ( mind you, the salary wasn't very good before that! )
Additional, the outlook for the sterling is grim: with further interest cuts due to falling house prices in the U.K. and E.U. central bank battling inflation with steady or even rising interest rates the sterling will most probably fall even lower.
Cathay has no exchange rate protection program like EK. Plus going on shore will add insult to injury... :ugh::eek:
alphaflight
15th Apr 2008, 14:38
I am considering to interview with CX for the freight side, with a US base, what kind of schedule could one expect?
Will I interview for the freight side, and waste my time and money and be offered Hong Kong?
Do all your trips start and end at your base? or does your 6 days off start in BFE?
Can DEFO's pick, a US bases?
What US base can a new hire expect?
Is CX worth a dam? for a married guy with kids, that has a life?
any good info is greatly appreciated.
atmonaut
25th Apr 2008, 05:55
Hey guys,
For those of you wanting to know the pay and benefits. Check out www.airlinepilotcentral.com (http://www.airlinepilotcentral.com) on the international section. It is in US dollars, but it might give you an idea.
Later,
FIRESYSOK
25th Apr 2008, 13:36
As written before, the www.airlinepilotcentral.com scale for US DEFO are not correct for new joiners. Get with the programme, will you?
MayanAviator
19th May 2008, 01:11
Hey guys,
I sent my online application for DEFO at CX with a US base, by reading your thread's i'm trying to find out ,if joining cx is a good idea.
I work for Aeromexico in Mexico city wich is one of the best airlines in my country, in the last 6 months we (the pilots) lost the 30% of our income as FO (from 6,000 to 3,800 a month) plus we have an increase of taxes in the last 3 months.
Then, if we talk about pollution, in mexico city we have the highest level in almost everything air,water,trash you named plus if you add the crime, is almost impossible to live here.
The exchange rate is 1 usd= 10.5 mexican pesos and is getting worse
Does anyone have the correct scale for US DEFO for new joiners?
Pls tell me?, if i'm waisting my time with CX.
TKS