HNA 787

[Irish_Roll]

Morning. Looking at HNA 787 on the 20 on 11 off contract. Are there any uk/ireland pilots on this contract? Would appreciate this inside gen on company and ethos. Their presentation the other day was good but rose tinted like all the others!!!!

Many thanks all and safe flying.

[pitot_phil]

Morning. Looking at HNA 787 on the 20 on 11 off contract. Are there any uk/ireland pilots on this contract? Would appreciate this inside gen on company and ethos. Their presentation the other day was good but rose tinted like all the others!!!!

Many thanks all and safe flying.

Hi Irish_Roll,
sorry, I can't answer your question, I am just interested in HNA like you. I joined the roadshow in Amsterdam recently.
Could you please tell me why think "their presentation was rose tinted"?
Many thanks!

[Irish_Roll]

This really isn't the debate I'd like on here. I meant only rose tinted by the way all companies paint a glorious picture of what life is like working from them when reality is different.
It was a presentation with an edited semi pro video of a chap walking on beaches and getting beers at a bbq.

I am interested in rosters, accommodation, leave etc. The reality side.

No company will give you the real low down on the negative side and there is alway negative experiences to be had at all companies.

I just want a more rounded picture.

If you are not interested in Hainan or work there then please keep comments to yourselves. :)

If you work for Hainan on the 787 please PM me as it would be great to hear your side.

Thanks all.

[MXer]

I have good friends working there and the picture is the following:

Yes you can choose the 11-days-off contract option. But 11 days off means you might not must have 11 days off at home. They try to organize a reverse-roaster from your overseas base, but if they cannot in a specific month you will commute to/from China as dead head crew on your days off, so it‘ll be just 8-9days off at home, so 3days less than advertised. Plan about +50% reverse scheduling, subject to change in both directions.

The following is true for most chinese airlines, not specific to HNA I think:
Plan to live in a permanent state of uncertainty. Noone knows how long your training takes, e.g. 2-3month is absolutely unrealistic, the madness of bureaucracy in CAAC is huge. Till being released as a solo-captain on a long haul (or better say mixed with domestic) fleet like B787 at HNA expect around +1year! that means in between you gonna work as a cruise relief captain (F10).
Everything(!) you are saying or doing is supervised and someone will spy on you. I am not saying that your chinese colleagues won‘t be nice to you, but don‘t expect to go on a long haul trip and „have a fun time with your mates“ there...

Noone knows if you gonna pass if you gonna pass the multiple sim checks during your training. The training department is not the recruitment department. If there should arise any problems during that period or during line training you will hardly be able to sort this out as many trainer’s ability to speak english will be very limited. If in doubt they just kick you out, contract terminated.

If you fail the CAAC medical (2x/year >40yrs), no pay. fail permanently, contract terminated.

I am not saying that this will happen to you, but let‘s say 1out of 10 guys is getting into serious trouble during their time on contract.

Finally the good thing: the money is really good, even as the above mentioned cruise captain you will receive the full capt salary, plus variable bonuses, plus overtime. On „11 days off“ you can easily make +300k net USD/yr! But there‘s a wise saying regarding every contractor job: you are only as good as your last paycheck;-) Can be over tomorrow or can work out for the next ten years, noone knows:-)

[pitot_phil]

Hi MXer,

thanks for sharing this useful information!

Do you know from your friends if commuting as dead head crew is with confirmed tickets? Or standby with a chance of not being accepted on a flight?

And one more question: You mentioned the CAAC bureaucracy during training. It sounds like a lot of free time during training. Is it like this? Are you obliged to be in China during this time?

[safelife]

Yes, free time; yes, you cannot leave.

[MXer]

Commuting is confirmed eco, c-class seat availabe.
Yes afaik can happen to stay at home for several month and wait. You definitely not have to stay in China during that time (only during work-resident permit application)