Swissair

[yoland]

Anybody know what is like to work for Swiss. Roster stability, terms and conditions and time to command.

[oceancrosser]

Well, considering Swissair went bankrupt in 2002 the rosters are probably very stable... and dull.

[roybert]

Well, considering Swissair went bankrupt in 2002 the rosters are probably very stable... and dull.

Oceancrosser

His title may be misleading but he asked about Swiss airlines which is alive and well.

[a350pilots]

Since Crossair took over it is not the same anymore.

[Reluctant Bus Driver]

My friend from college is a 330/340 captain for them. A few years ago he was considering bailing out to one of the Chinese carriers that hire expats. Swiss pay is evidently below average with substandard work rules. As an example, Swiss flies ZRH-MIA with two pilots. LH operating FRA-MIA gets three. As LH is the parent company for Swiss one would think there would be uniformity in work rules but Swiss is treated like their red headed step child.
I think my friend would tell you to go somewhere else if you have the opportunity..

[INNflight]

Lots of uninformed gentlemen here apparently. In case anyone cares for some facts..:

Good pay in general, low tax regime in Switzerland, F/&O year one pay is around 6'400 CHF/month gross + per diems tax free + annual bonus if company performs well (it does) + Christmas bonus.
CMD top salary is around 17'500 CHF/month gross + all of the perks. More if you're any kind of training captain or instructor obviously. Pay is not super-extraordinary for Switzerland but definitely in the top 10 across Europe I'd guess. "Below average" it certainly is not.

Morale is generally good, lots of friendly people and low hierarchy between flight deck and cabin crew. Lots of part time options ranging from 65% to 100.
Bidding is relatively fair and works well for me, though opinions vary. Seniority plays a role but not like in other carriers - we also have something called "fair share", balancing out block hours more or less evenly across people, so senior guys/gals fly unpopular stuff as well and newbies get the odd nice layover too. Works for most I guess.

Quality of life varies with fleet mostly because work is tough on short haul at the moment, esp. the A320 fleet due to a shortage of crew and lots of expansion recently. CSeries fleet is almost complete now though training mills are running non-stop.
777 is probably the happiest fleet, they got most of the popular destinations from Airbus long haul, where life's OKish from what I hear.

Time to command at the moment around 9-11 years I'd say, with CSeries being available a little faster than the 32X.

Roster stability great on long haul, probably didn't have a change within the past year that wasn't either to my favour or for operational reasons or training of another crew member.
Short haul is a little varied from what I hear, esp. the CSeries fleet gets some less stable rosters. Still flight time limitations aren't as grim as people make them to be - way above EASA minimums. We have a very strong pilot union that takes good care of us, has a reasonably good relationship with management and safety culture / just culture is alive and well in Swiss.

Pilots are bitter old f*rts, but I'd still say the majority is very happy the way things are here at the moment.
There's definitely room for improvement in various areas, but if anyone finds the perfect airline let me know.

If anyone is thinking a Chinese expat mill or sand pit carrier will be more pleasant they're delusional.

BTW: German language is still a requirement for flight deck and probably will not change anytime soon.

[Reluctant Bus Driver]

"We have a very strong pilot union that takes good care of us, has a reasonably good relationship with management and safety culture / just culture is alive and well in Swiss."

I think I will share that quote with my friend when I go skiing with him next month and watch him screw himself in to the ceiling-:)

[INNflight]

"We have a very strong pilot union that takes good care of us, has a reasonably good relationship with management and safety culture / just culture is alive and well in Swiss."

I think I will share that quote with my friend when I go skiing with him next month and watch him screw himself in to the ceiling-:)

Do that - and make sure to remind him of the great unions currently taking care of people at Cathay, Xiamen, China Southern, Emirates, etc.
Just for s**ts and giggles.

[me179]

Can you please give us an insight abou what could / should be improved? Is it true that one doesnt get less than 3 days off in a row? Thanks.