Caribbean Airlines
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curry goat > i am 16 and still in secondary school but i plan on being a pilot however i have duel citizenship and i was just wondering benefits of working for caribbean airlines ...
Join Date: Apr 2003
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Jason, welcome to the forum pay no heed to the likes of curry goat... I say no more. Its very good for you to take an interest in the "labour" aspect to working for an airline. Unfortunately I have no productive info that I can impart. I'm sure that there is someone else on this forum that can. Bear in mind that you are only 16 and by the time you possibly get hired at CAL, at the very least 4-5 years from now conditions and benefits might very well be different to what they are today.
As far as rumours go a junior turboprop F/O makes about 18-20K TTD.
As far as rumours go a junior turboprop F/O makes about 18-20K TTD.
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@ chocktochock thanks man ... i was actually reading on the caribbean airlines and i saw there requirements of age 21 however afterwards i would use the time to make up my hours ..... should i start at briko or just start at a foreign school ?
@surplus1 > hey man i was born in the US but i currently reside in trinidad so i have considered caribbean airlines however is there any information you can give me about american airlines or even if i would still be considered for employment ? thanks in advance ...
@surplus1 > hey man i was born in the US but i currently reside in trinidad so i have considered caribbean airlines however is there any information you can give me about american airlines or even if i would still be considered for employment ? thanks in advance ...
Join Date: Aug 2011
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Yes chocktochock, I admit to being a bit facetious with young Jason. My point to him is that he is putting the cart before the horse. If your passion is flying, go do the license and worry about the job and lifestyle thereafter. If it is however that he is basing his decision to learn to fly on what the lifestyle and pay is at CAL, I think he may want to chose a different career.
CG
CG
Join Date: Apr 2008
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Jason,
At 16 is a very young age and is great that you aspire to be a pilot but dont let that be just all you want to do. I know one or two guys who barely could have made it out of high school and can barely read better than a 8 year old ( Yes I sat next to one in training in the airline and I almost choked at his reading skills ) and are flying jets now simply because mah Daddy was in the airline and mah daddy knew I was going to be a pilot even when I was born and thats all I knew in life to earn the big bucks , which is SAD in my opinion.. So dont be that guy.. Too many kids in T&T want to get in flying because of the ultra cool factor, want the big bucks and the lifestyle and their parents got money to burn and want to just give their son something to do other than cruising around in his BMW because he cant do jack sh*t with his life... They get out of a cessna and into a turboprop and thats all they know off.. When u ask them of their training, they have no fond memories.. It was just something to do as quick as possible so that they can get on the RH seat of CAL and get in the uniform..
Don't just be the guy who came right out of GCSE's and went and did flight training and that's all you know to do in life.. flying is great but there are other facets of life that can enrich a person. Get A levels and a degree too and that will broaden your horizons, transferable skills and make you more marketable . It will go a long way since it will be something to fall back on and shows a level of maturity which the airlines like to see.
At 16 is a very young age and is great that you aspire to be a pilot but dont let that be just all you want to do. I know one or two guys who barely could have made it out of high school and can barely read better than a 8 year old ( Yes I sat next to one in training in the airline and I almost choked at his reading skills ) and are flying jets now simply because mah Daddy was in the airline and mah daddy knew I was going to be a pilot even when I was born and thats all I knew in life to earn the big bucks , which is SAD in my opinion.. So dont be that guy.. Too many kids in T&T want to get in flying because of the ultra cool factor, want the big bucks and the lifestyle and their parents got money to burn and want to just give their son something to do other than cruising around in his BMW because he cant do jack sh*t with his life... They get out of a cessna and into a turboprop and thats all they know off.. When u ask them of their training, they have no fond memories.. It was just something to do as quick as possible so that they can get on the RH seat of CAL and get in the uniform..
Don't just be the guy who came right out of GCSE's and went and did flight training and that's all you know to do in life.. flying is great but there are other facets of life that can enrich a person. Get A levels and a degree too and that will broaden your horizons, transferable skills and make you more marketable . It will go a long way since it will be something to fall back on and shows a level of maturity which the airlines like to see.
Join Date: Jun 2005
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Bim
Bim isn't being what you've paced him to be. He is so correct and I would encourage my kids to do anything else than fly for carriers in the West who have nothing but greedy top mngmnt who disenfranchise our hard work put into their airlines. CAL did the Jamaican Pilots so wrong and maybe ZIg wasn't one of them who had experienced what happened so he has absolutely no first hand view of this. Become a Doctor or even a nurse and be home each night with your family or friends rather than busting your butt for no benefits and the lowest wages of anywhere in the world right now.
When CAL took over they terminated a lot of guys and the ones they retained got only 6 month contracts with no way of know if they will be able to feed themselves nor a family after 6 months. They terminated thousands of ground jobs which wasn't a part of their initial plan but they had fooled the people.
Bim isn't saying don't fly but be smart if there's something else you can do instead of spending the rest of your life in an uncertain future with these tricksters. I am bitter and I have no fear of admitting it because we were driven out of our country to find better compensation befitting of our profession. If you want to fly for peanuts then my hat is off to you but even if you were borned rich don't settle for less as you are among those who encourage the Top Brass to abuse us....
When CAL took over they terminated a lot of guys and the ones they retained got only 6 month contracts with no way of know if they will be able to feed themselves nor a family after 6 months. They terminated thousands of ground jobs which wasn't a part of their initial plan but they had fooled the people.
Bim isn't saying don't fly but be smart if there's something else you can do instead of spending the rest of your life in an uncertain future with these tricksters. I am bitter and I have no fear of admitting it because we were driven out of our country to find better compensation befitting of our profession. If you want to fly for peanuts then my hat is off to you but even if you were borned rich don't settle for less as you are among those who encourage the Top Brass to abuse us....
Join Date: Jun 2011
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Aspiring FO
Good Morning Keithos,
Currently, I'm an aspiring pilot that hopes to one day land a job as a First Officer with CAL just like you. I have a Bachelor of Applied Science Degree and I've nearly completed my Masters in Science. I'm blessed that I have a great job and was able to pay for my training without loans or any debt from beginning to end. I'm nearly completed my Instructor Rating and planning on teaching part time in the evenings here in Toronto Canada. I have all my ratings including dual citizenship for Trinidad and Canada. Not to mention, I also have my TNT Commercial Pilots License.
I'm debating on doing the 737 type rating in Florida at Aerostar in a month or so and was wondering if it would be beneficial to me.
Also, it is rumored that CAL will be hiring again soon, what are the minimum requirements?
What was your journey like to the right seat at CAL and do you have any other words of wisdom/recommendations for guys like me?
Thanks in advance and hope to fly with you one day.
Currently, I'm an aspiring pilot that hopes to one day land a job as a First Officer with CAL just like you. I have a Bachelor of Applied Science Degree and I've nearly completed my Masters in Science. I'm blessed that I have a great job and was able to pay for my training without loans or any debt from beginning to end. I'm nearly completed my Instructor Rating and planning on teaching part time in the evenings here in Toronto Canada. I have all my ratings including dual citizenship for Trinidad and Canada. Not to mention, I also have my TNT Commercial Pilots License.
I'm debating on doing the 737 type rating in Florida at Aerostar in a month or so and was wondering if it would be beneficial to me.
Also, it is rumored that CAL will be hiring again soon, what are the minimum requirements?
What was your journey like to the right seat at CAL and do you have any other words of wisdom/recommendations for guys like me?
Thanks in advance and hope to fly with you one day.
Join Date: Feb 2007
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I won't disagree with a thing Keithos has said. If flying is your dream, latch on to it. BTW, I worked for Caribbean from 10/2010 to 6/2011 on contract. There are worse places to be.
My intent is not to be negative, but something must be pointed out. Keithos' age is shown as 35. He's making $23,000 (US) per year, plus allowances. He'd doubtless be making more if he had gone into industry with his education. He wants to fly. Fair enough. If you've a burning desire to make money aviation might not be the best choice (unless you go the corporate MBA route). These days the hot setup to make money is in accounting / CPA.
This is all just food for thought. Somebody young and single can do okay on 23k; this will change with a wife and a couple of rugrats. By then, though, it's usually too late to question your career choice. Again, if you love flying, great, but go into the career with your eyes wide open.
My intent is not to be negative, but something must be pointed out. Keithos' age is shown as 35. He's making $23,000 (US) per year, plus allowances. He'd doubtless be making more if he had gone into industry with his education. He wants to fly. Fair enough. If you've a burning desire to make money aviation might not be the best choice (unless you go the corporate MBA route). These days the hot setup to make money is in accounting / CPA.
This is all just food for thought. Somebody young and single can do okay on 23k; this will change with a wife and a couple of rugrats. By then, though, it's usually too late to question your career choice. Again, if you love flying, great, but go into the career with your eyes wide open.
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23K
? What a bloody fu
en disgrace. The young starry eyed lads and lasses need to be quit prostetuting themselves just to sit in the right seat of a shiny T/P or Jet.
Terms and conditions will never rise until such time the mature adults band together and say enough is enough!
? What a bloody fuen disgrace. The young starry eyed lads and lasses need to be quit prostetuting themselves just to sit in the right seat of a shiny T/P or Jet. Terms and conditions will never rise until such time the mature adults band together and say enough is enough!
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IIRC 23k US per year is more in line with what turboprop f/o's at CAL were making, perhaps after taxes. Hopefully he'll chime in with a clarification. In any case 23k TTD per month is about 45k USD per year. Not as drastic, but my son was graduated with a BSME and was making more than that at age 22 - so I'll stick to the gist of my last post.
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Hey bro,
You are very fortunate to have no debts from flying.
CAL is rumored to start hiring in the first quarter of next year for the ATR 72 600. Though there may be more focus on Jamaica since the third ATR should be bound for Jamaica.
Once you have your T.T. Commercial and your degree, you have the Min. Your degree is actually an asset and will make you stand out.
The Type Rating is a great move since it exposes you to the rigors of a type rating. And it will show the airline that you are definitely trainable if you have such an advanced Type. If you can do it in a month, then definitely go for it. I did my 737 -300 Type at Pan Am in Miami.
You are very fortunate to have no debts from flying.
CAL is rumored to start hiring in the first quarter of next year for the ATR 72 600. Though there may be more focus on Jamaica since the third ATR should be bound for Jamaica.
Once you have your T.T. Commercial and your degree, you have the Min. Your degree is actually an asset and will make you stand out.
The Type Rating is a great move since it exposes you to the rigors of a type rating. And it will show the airline that you are definitely trainable if you have such an advanced Type. If you can do it in a month, then definitely go for it. I did my 737 -300 Type at Pan Am in Miami.
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and for Rotorhead... Horses for Courses I guess. And for the naysayers "haters" who want to compare apples to oranges a $4000USD is a VERY good starting salary for living in Trinidad even if the working conditions were worse; and they seem quite good from what Keithos says I'ts funny that some people criticize the situation, when they probably have don't even meet legal requirement to live/work here, and so they need not apply....
Join Date: Feb 2007
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Originally Posted by keithos
I can tell you in Trinidad and wider Caribbean, unless you work in the investment field, no accountant is going to make more than a pilot. Maybe even in the US.
to work 2 weeks out of the month, I think you're not doing too badly. Added to which, you have the opportunity and time to invest in your education and develop a thriving business. Furthermore, you have one of the coolest jobs in the world
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Originally Posted by chock2chock
and for Rotorhead... Horses for Courses I guess.
Originally Posted by chock2chock
when they probably have don't even meet legal requirement to live/work here, and so they need not apply....
They sent all us expats packing in May and June. Last week they contacted me for another contract. Go figure ...
Join Date: Feb 2007
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They were taking the Jamaican A320's out of service and training those guys on the Boeing. Between that and recurrents the check airmen and simulators were full up, which is part of the reason we were hired.
I was flying about 65 hours per month. A lot of their stuff is redeye (POS-YYZ; POS-JFK for example), so a lot of your rest and days off are in JFK or YYZ. All told I'd be gone about 17 days, but a couple of the days off were always in Toronto or NYC.
I was flying about 65 hours per month. A lot of their stuff is redeye (POS-YYZ; POS-JFK for example), so a lot of your rest and days off are in JFK or YYZ. All told I'd be gone about 17 days, but a couple of the days off were always in Toronto or NYC.
Join Date: Nov 2006
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I'm an ATR captain with AE out of SJU. We have been hearing rumors of CAL buying us out. With our current CEO supposedly going over to CAL. Have you guys at CAL gotten any word of this??