Hi there,

It depends on the status of the hold pool. When (if) the 787 arrives along with the rest of the A320's there will be a requirement for more pilots due to fleet expansion and the likely introduction of new routes. These positions will be filled by 'Yes Letter' candidates in the hold pool. If there are still vacancies, then one would assume that they interview and hire.

As for the amount of people in the hold pool, I have no idea so I can't help you there sorry.

The other thing to remember is the expansion in Mt Cook that we'll see over the next few years with up to 12 -600 ATR's arriving to be based in Auckland. Recruitment-wise what this means is that (because of Recruit-to-Group) the Regional airlines together will be hiring fairly steadily in coming years.

I was speaking with a mainline AirNZ pilot involved with recruitment and they said that in years past, it wasn't uncommon for the Link carriers to (collectively) hire 5-6 people per year. In 2012 alone they're looking at employing 80+. I guess that puts things into perspective.

So to answer your question - it depends on the amount of people in the hold pool and whether or not AirNZ exercise their options on aircraft they've ordered.

scanman24

A couple of things to keep in mind regarding mainline recruitment.

Firstly, the arrival of the 787 and a320 is not a fleet expansion, rather it's a fleet replacement. As this is the case I wouldn't hold your breath on any extra vacancies being created during this time due to aircraft being added to the fleet (although the 2 options taken on the 787 late last year may help). There is however a large number of ageing pilots and I think it is fair to say that natural attrition due to age is finally taking place. We are already starting to see some of the over 65s who have spent a few years in the other seat move on and the majority of pilots still retire at or before 65 anyway. To give you an idea of the current situation there are around 10 777 captains retiring before the year ends and I believe this will be the norm for at least the next 5 years, if anything this rate will increase.

Secondly, Air New Zealand likes to keep around 50 people in the hold pool. I'm guessing with the latest recruitment and the one towards the end of year minus a few other who have left, the hold pool must be down to around 30-40 people. This being the case I think you can expect to see at least one or two interviews before the years out. With the reasons mentioned above I also think there will be a steady flow of interviews from this point on. I don't like to put numbers down but I'm picking about 150-200 new pilots over the next 5 years, solely due to age and medical retirement.

Hope this helps.

Does any on have a copy of the Pacific Wings article? My news shop has run out :(

I am also keen to move back over the ditch, what sort of schedule do Air NZ So's have? How long away, days off etc.

Thanks!

The article is available online through the AirNZ aviation institute website.

http://www.aviationinstitute.co.nz/a...NGS-LAYOUT.pdf

,

and the 60 pilots presently on the 747 who will have to fit into the system when it finally departs - if and when the 787 arrives

Interesting thread.....there is a lot here not mentioned in the latest AirNZ hiring threads out there.

What is the latest prognosis on movement? It seems that there is a massive amount of hiring going on. I have heard people talking of 2 years to a320 fo and 5 to widebody fo. Seems a far cry from the numbers a few posts back. What has changed? A few new 777s is about it.

Maybe it is a better option to get in now than hold out for the command at one of the NZ based ozzy airlines ;)Things might be looking up for a relatively quick progressing career from how it has been in the past...or is it a temporary bubble that will soon burst, and a new hire now will still not see a window seat for quite some time.

It's a bubble. New planes spread over 4yrs, mostly replacement aircraft.
The HR people keep coming on here to make it look rosey.
Lots of hiring yes, though it seems jet is mostly internal and overseas pilots, and Instructors and low GA for Links. Call around NZ and no vacancies anywhere.

Just counted up, and there have been 82 new recruits to Air NZ in the last 14 months. Now I know that doesn't average out to many over the last (say) 7 or 8 years, but it is a lot in a short time. I'd say it definitely qualifies as a "bubble", but the question is how big a bubble will it be, and how long will it last?
I see it as a positive for everyone....those 82 pilots all came from another job, so it means movement for all, both in and out of the airline.
Can't see any reason for complaint at the moment....most current long term S/Os will have had the opportunity to bid for an A320 job if they want one, or if not, they soon will. Unless of course they decide to stay as S/Os....and there are commuters who have decided to do exactly that.....and wait for a long haul F/O job.
Personally, I question the wisdom of that, but then I don't live a comfortable life in Tauranga/Nelson/Hawkes Bay/Christchurch or wherever. Just saying, the music will stop sometime and there's no telling how long for!

Yes good news for all those with new jobs.
However at an approx guesstimate of 230 NZ pilots produced in the same period that is only 36% of that number.

How can that be? There is a pilot shortage.....I read it in the Herald.

There is a shortage of pilots - that fit the profile and meet the standard - it quite rightly shouldn't be a case of lower the standard to fill the seat.

Edited on suspicion that the previous post was an exercise in irony....but to be honest...I'm not seeing it

And me thinks you should learn to read better haughtney1 :ok:

Whybyflier quite clearly states

Ironhide, I do reed pretti gud, but the previous post on here, could be read one of 2 ways :ok:

It doesn't look good for anyone joining from here on in then. There are now 80 odd people above you that are possibly a similar age. When it all goes quiet it will be back to the 7-10 year s/o scenario probably, assuming a newly hired s/o won't have the chance to move before then. Surely those lining up at the door would be better off at Jetstar/JC/PB where the next 5 years or so will see some movement- yet they are still leaving. What is the attraction?:confused: Sit back at one of those other carriers, get a quick command and roll with the times.

I believe the number is somewhere around 50% that make it through the interview process, so I don't think standards per say are an issue.
You can of course talk about how it is done...:E

`There's a lot of aggressive work going on in that space. We'll end up with 25 wide body aircraft, a mix of 777s and 787s and that's going to enable us to deepen existing markets and access new markets'

http:// http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11116177

With a current fleet of 20, I would say this equates to a gain of 5 aircraft....a 25% increase.

On one recent link interview it was less than 50%.

Yeah, funny isn't it. We are good enough to be Captains for Air New Zealand on 50 seat planes (remember "we are all one company") and wear the uniform and deal with the public on a daily basis, yet we are not good enough to be second officers on wide body. The arrogance of the recruitment team is breathtaking - whilst they have swallowed the company pill they conveniently forget that it is the link groups supporting their overindulgent lifestyle.

As you can guess, I didn't get in. I think I wasn't gushing enough.

The simple fact is that in years gone by, the entry requirements to the Link carriers have been very different to the jet fleet. There is no automatic right of entry to the jet fleet just because you already wear the uniform. As many from outside the group are finding out however, link pilots are heavily favoured for interviews so you can hardly complain that you are discriminated against. Once you get an interview everyone is on a level playing field. It's up to you to chin the bar. If you didn't get in, fair enough, you are allowed to piss--d off. It's your career after all. However, instead of berating the whole system, maybe try to find out where you came up short, work on that and try for another shot. Everyone generally gets two attempts.