Air Belgium

[limahotel]

Hi,

does anyone have any info on their latest recruitment drive, roster, pay? They were supposedly in big trouble a while ago. Have things changed?

[austrian71]

Stay away !

[limahotel]

Could you elaborate a bit?

[Banana Joe]

I heard they are a decent company. They had a rough start due to a Chinese operator that did not respect the contract clauses and got out of the deal, but they are focusing on flights to the French Antilles at the moment. They also do ACMI on behalf of LOT out of Warsaw. I don't know if they are still flying for BA. The management is not new in aviation, they founded TNT in 1999, so they know what they are doing.

Not the best paid job in the industry, but if things keep going well for them, that can also improve in the future.

[Icelanta]

Actually one of the better Belgian airlines to work for.
They have long-term ACMI contracts secured and their own operation to the Antilles is proving succesfull.

Pay is below-market due to Belgian taxes, but atmosphere is said to be excellent with Belgian Training Standards (meaning best in industry) and support from management.

[limahotel]

Thank you all for the input. Any idea about the roster (commutable or not)?

[IFLYyouBREATH]

Any guys attending assessment soon with Air Belgium?

[Jonnyknoxville]

Despite several ads about for crew , I believe that all hiring is finished for the moment

[Callsign Kilo]

Belgian Training Standards (meaning best in industry)

A/P, F/D and auto thrust off at top of descent ;)

[spacemanspiff!!!]

Anybody some info on current terms and conditions? Thanks

[Tebbit]

Icelanta

You mean manual flight everywhere but the cruise?

[Climb150]

Are they hiring?

[booze]

Pre-covid they were the lowest paying wide body operator.

[Banana Joe]

Belgian taxes are high but if you can get a special tax regime as a professional coming to work in Belgium then you can get a nice expat package.
I personally am on one at another Belgian operator and I am quite happy.

Hard to beat those Belgian beers as well. Big plus!

[Bus Driver Man]

booze

Gross or net?
High gross and low net salary is not really their fault, is it? But I’m very interested in the actual figures, including any extra benefits.

[booze]

6-8k GROSS for skippers, depending on the amount of flying done. That is before covid...

[gpsprimary01]

Hi everyone,

I've heard that Air Belgium will operate 4 A330 freighter . They've already received 2 A/C and planning to receive the other in summer. They also open the cockpit crew member position on their website.
Anyone know of they will start to hire pilots anytime soon?

thanks.

[Coastrider26]

Does anyone know what the package would be like for a 748 captain Air Belgium?

[LimaJuliet]

Does anyone know the ' roster of Air Belgium?' Is it commutable and is it stable? for example 20/10 or 5/4 ? Or is it totally random, and how many off days average do you have per month?

[airbuske]

pretty random roster as I heard - 7 or 8 days off a month

[slam_dunk]

Hi everybody, I'm looking at applying at Air Belgium on the 747-8 as a captain however i noticed that a lot of pilots (34) have left the company in the last year.
Can someone who (has worked there or) is working there give an update on working conditions?
Working schedule? positioning?
How is the daily operation?
Is there enough support from management?
How is OCC and Crewing operating?
Do you have enough support from them?
How the the simulator training?
Are you happy with your colleagues and their proficiency?
Are operations on A330 and B747-8 similar?
Last year there were rumours that the company was about to collapse, is there enough trust that the company will survive?
I recently noticed that Robert Denis, the fleetmanager 747, is leaving the company to be a Flight Ops Inspector at the BCAA. Is there a successor appointed?

Thanks if you are willing to answer my questions!

[cefey]

Hi everybody, I'm looking at applying at Air Belgium on the 747-8 as a captain however i noticed that a lot of pilots (34) have left the company in the last year.
Can someone who (has worked there or) is working there give an update on working conditions?
Working schedule? positioning?
How is the daily operation?
Is there enough support from management?
How is OCC and Crewing operating?
Do you have enough support from them?
How the the simulator training?
Are you happy with your colleagues and their proficiency?
Are operations on A330 and B747-8 similar?
Last year there were rumours that the company was about to collapse, is there enough trust that the company will survive?
I recently noticed that Robert Denis, the fleetmanager 747, is leaving the company to be a Flight Ops Inspector at the BCAA. Is there a successor appointed?

Thanks if you are willing to answer my questions!

Hi mate!
I can share limited info I got:
Many pilots left for CMA-CGM for a better salary. Most of them were french guys returning home, so it does make sense.
The working schedule is random, depending on the fleet, experience, and company needs. You can expect between 2-3 and 7-8 days OFF between flights, so not bad.
OCC/Crewing is a challenge, just like every other company. That being said, there were some major changes in crewing recently and it is supposed to get much better.
All in all daily operation is smooth, with not many delays or issues. Of course, you might bump into issues in outstations, but that's part of being a pilot I guess.
According to rumours, 747 is very profitable, so should be safe´ish bet work-wise.
No idea about 747 vs 330. I would assume it is, I guess a lot depends on the contract/whom they are flying for. But (again, the assumption from my side, take it with a grain of salt!) Chinese own half of the company and they are deciding a lot about 747. So it supposed to be very stable. Once again, this is assumption.
There is good atmosphere within the crew and seems like quality on the crew is high.

There were rumours about AB going bust even before their first flight 4 years ago. AB did managed it well, did well during COVID and now they got some additional $$ from the investors (again, not insider info, but what can be found online).

Sorry for not being able to give you more concrete answers. I've recently joined the company and so far I like it a lot. Just like any other company it got its issues. Would I recommend it to a friend? Absolutely yes. So far I really enjoy my time in this company.
Downside, as you said yourself, its ICME with financial uncertainty. So if you plan to take your kids out of kindergarten, wife to quit her job, quit your stable job to move here - risky. If you don't have family/plan to commute as long as possible - might be really good option.

[slam_dunk]

Thanks :ok: Much appreciated!

[Porco_Rosso]

Hello, having the online interview for the FO 330 position in a few days, anyone has info about salary, roster traing etc, i can't find information anywhere. Thanks!