caribbean airlines
 

Seems "the bad ole" days are back in the hole 38+ million $ last year, and on-track for more this year, forget about pilot jobs as flying is down to 30/40 hours a month.:uhoh:

The entire Caribbean airline industry is a mess.

The travelling public are victims of inflated pricing designed to keep these flabby, unproductive airlines going.

The solution is simple, deregulate, open the airspace up, remove government support, allow new entrants to the market, stimulate competition and let the fittest survive.

Neither LIAT nor CAL are fit by any known metric and use government connections to stifle competition and prevent the airline industry from developing.

Can't see it changing any time soon.

I'm not saying CAL doesn't have its problems but your information is incorrect (apart from the losses widely reported in the press).

Pilots are being hired both Ab Initio and contract on all fleets and all seats, 737, Dash-8 and ATR. There continues to be a demand for more pilots. Rostes run 55-65 hrs/month on the 737.

CAL has taken delivery of 2 767-300s this past week which will be servicing JFK and YYZ and later, London Gatwick.

The entire airspace has been Open Skies for several years now and many airlines have tested the waters. Spirit has come and gone as has TravelSpan but WestJet flies into BGI with JetBlue pushing further and further south.
RedJet was a disaster of bad planning and a poor business model from the beginning so I'm not even counting them.

Removing Government support cannot work because in order to operate a service like the air bridge between Trinidad and Tobago economically will require a higher airfare, plain and simple. Poorer people will not be able to afford it and it remains necessary for people to travel between the islands.
It's a similar story with the North American routes. If the government left it to AA, Air Canada and the like to link T&T to the rest of the world, they risk exactly what happened several years ago when Air Canada decided to stop the POS-YYZ route with 3 months notice.
Trinidad cannot risk leaving air links to carriers that do not have Trinidad's best interest at heart.

ok
 

@ zigzog well as we know caribbean aviation is always rumour laden, my points were made after a disscussion with an active 737 pilot, who`s words were that this is the worst he has ever seen including the old BWIA days.

@airjet,

Fair enough.........I think rumours make airplanes fly in this part of the world! Well, that and paperwork!

My humble opinion is that the human mind sees the past and remembers only the good bits and therefore 'the good ole days' seem alot better than they actually were.

CAL is a wholly owned government operation, as was BWIA. That means good (subsidies, job security) as well as bad (political meddling, mis-management). BWIA was the exact same.


@A330B777,

I believe the plan is 2 more ATRs for a total of 5.
There's been, I believe 14 new hire F/Os hired for the ATR in the last year or so and many contract pilots on the Dash-8. I'm not aware of any decisions on the Turbo-prop fleet but the rumours say that nobody's particularly happy with the ATR. A deal was reportedly struck with ATR whereby CAL had to take delivery of the minimum (5) aircraft.

@17PA

On the recruitment information they state that they hire Trinidadian and Jamaican nationals only. However, i have seen from posts on various other threads that they do take into consideration applicants from CARICOM (this was a while back though and considering the restrictions on current recruitment, it may seem rather difficult).

Where did you see that?

Most likely not, they also just received 2 767s. I`m sure Jamaicans can apply just as long they have a TT CPL. It is a Trinidad based airline after all. I know they just called the last remaining batch of successful candidates from the February interview pool, some are in France training and the others should go round Nov /DEC.

Thats very good news... Im jamaican but dont have TT cpl. Only FAA and JCAA.. However I threw my name in the hat, sitting on TT980 and 75multi.

I do not know, I just know of a couple people who never got any feedback whatsoever after the FEB interviews, while others were called to training shortly after. Those that didn't hear anything mostly thought that they were unsuccessful until they received a call in the last couple weeks telling them to get their medicals done. I would imagine tho, that If one has not receive a call-back to this date and they have put out an ad for recruitment then it is fair to assume that they were unsuccessful. It seems like a rather cruel way to operate, but sadly, they are the pretty much the only chance of work for most local hopefuls so they can do as they like.

I suggest you get your conversions done, that´s some very nice time you have there are you an FI? Most of the new ab- initio guys have way less than that, but some are Instructors and many have at least a Bachelors Degree.

With regards to foreign contract pilots, I believe that they do hire them based on an immediate demand- they would hire already type-rated professionals, As for Caricom Nationals like any airline in the region they would hire suitably qualified individuals over a Non-caricom national.

Yes I have my FI certificates and Bachelors degree in Aviation. I wish I could do my conversions, but I wouldn't even know where to begin to find that money. Do you know the process of converting Jamaican cpl? I couldn't find anything on the TT civil av website.

Conversion info
 

Conversion information

Converting to a Trinidad & Tobago CPL would cost you approximately $1500 TTD (roughly $250 USD) if you have to write all the exams. The exams are:

Air law (40 Questions)

Technical subjects:

Theory of Flight
Flying controls
Gas Turbine Engines
Supercharging and Piston Engines
Hydraulics
Air Conditioning & Pressurization
D.C Electrics
A.C Electrics
Variable Pitch Propellers


Note: At the TTCAA, you can have your credentials assessed for a small fee, i think it is $150 - $200 TTD whereby they would inform you of the exams you need to sit. ATPL holders are also exempt from some examinations. I know if you have a Canadian issued licence, you are exempt from "theory of flight' and 'flying control'. If you have an FAA licence, you have to do all the exams.

Also, you can sit nine(9) exams at once but a minimum of six (6) has to be done. For the most part, there are 15 questions per technical with the exception of a few (Piston engines and gas turbines) are 30 questions. I am not sure about Theory of flight and Flying controls.

On another note, Failure of any exam would incur a higher fee on the 2nd attempt.

You also need to obtain a First Class medical from an authorized doctor (they will give you a list). This will cost approximately $700 TTD.

Lastly, once you have all the required documents to submit (logbook, photocopies of all licences and the medical) to the TTCAA, there is a licencing fee for the grant of TT CPL of $300 TTD

That wasn't the case two years ago. I was exempt from several. It may well have changed; it frequently does down there. :)


There were at least two doctors in Trinidad who did FAA medicals, and I'm pretty sure they did TT medicals as well. They'd (almost) certainly do the exams concurrently, so you could theoretically update your FAA while meeting the TT requirement. I don't know what they'd charge for this. One (Stuart Millar) does TC medicals as well. Many (not me, yet) have FAA and TC certificates. You could possibly do a triple medical. I'd make sure I was in really good health before doing this, especially for the first time. :)

@ Rotorhead1026

Interesting, I've spoken to a lot of guys that have their FAA licence and they weren't exempt from any of the exams. Keep in mind these were guys that just obtained their CPL's (Fixed Wing). Rotary wing holders were exempt from alot more though (I forgot to mention that). I can't remember which they are exempt from though and how many.

Also, what i have heard from some pilots was that for a short time (I believe it was last year), there were no exams necessary for conversion of Licences to a TT CPL. This was done for a couple months but then they re-introduced the exams as they are now so essentially pilots who came back during that time simply paid the fee and were granted a Trinidad and Tobago CPL.

The list of medical examiners (total of 4 approved doctors for the TTCAA) were on the list I received and they are located in various areas so you can go to the closest one or whoever your preference may be.

This was for an ATP, and I've held the FAA ATP ticket since 1979. What our posts prove is that requirements do indeed change frequently.

No word on anyone getting interviews, or hearing back?

ATR interviews
 

x2

Have they started the interview process for the last advertisment for ATR pilots?

Has anyone been called for an interview?

From what i hear they'll conduct interviews at the end of November...a buddy of mine got an email saying he'd get one around that time as well.

CAL/AJ
 

There seems to be some movement for sure in T&T to gather its ATR and B767 FO/PIC. Thats great news, but what is happening with Air Jamaica. Have they forgotten about us?

Someone please post whats going on?

has anyone been called for the ATR interviews ? End of november is approaching

CARIBBEAN B767s?
 

Can anyone working for Caribbean Air please answer the following for me.

Does C.A. actually have any 767s in their fleet as of today and if so what routes are they operating?

Can you advise what model of 767 are they flying, -300 or -200 ER? etc.

Who conducts CAs pilot training for them? Is the SIM done at PANAM etc, and who actually conducts their line training?

Are the 767s leased or owned outright?

Thanks very much, TT.

So... Now what?
 

Trinidad and Tobago's Newsday : newsday.co.tt :

According to this source, the last ATR (5th) had been delivered. Is CAL interviewing because its now say its allowing the Dash pilots to operate both types.
Any comments on this people?

From the article, it says the aircraft came in last Thursday. It's been on a few flights since 21 nov from the looks of it. It's weird no publication of the aircraft coming into Trinidad until now as I always check news for such events.

Anyway, no word yet again from anyone I know of getting interviews. I have heard that they are only looking for a few pilots. Anyone knows how many crews would be needed to run this aircraft? I know it depends on the aircraft and the company. I would estimate six pairs (6 Captains and 6 First Officers) per aircraft.

For real bro. i'm in the same position, just have to wait it out i guess :(

Is CAL hiring expats?

As of late, (Sep 2012) postings have been for ATR First Officers. As last couple posts suggests...there are alot of pilots waiting for interviews from that posting as well as the initial pool back in Jan/Feb 2012 who have not received a response.
Restrictions are always: "When recruiting, prefer to hire Trinidad and Jamaican Nationals" although, they do state that they may hire highly experienced foreign nationals on short term contracts. So it may not hurt to try.. but right now, your guess is as good as mine.

No news as of late. We'll see in the next couple weeks as this year is coming to an end. Anyone else noticed that the Q300's are rarely being operated? Or am i mistaken?

Yea I know the deal was being finalized but didn't think the planes would have been phased out so quickly... The ATR's are all operating, that being said, i'm not sure if it was necessary to post another ad (Sep 2012) for more recruitment if all the aircraft are currently online. Wouldn't that suggest there are enough crews for the operation of these aircraft?

Don't know of anyone contacting HR other than to inquire about receipt of updated resumes...

I was interviewed in february, reapplied in september and is still awaiting a response. It's not easy bro.

How was the CAL interview process if you don't mind me asking... Some details would be good. Questions/Scenarios as it would be the most recent

I heard its just a regular HR interview, nothing particularly complex... questions like "where do you see yourself in five years" etc. Prepare yourself for an interview for any major job as you would.

Thanks for the insight guys, much appreciated

The passing of a legend
 

For the information of all the caribbean pilots who ever flew at Briko in TTPP, be informed that instructor Nolton Peters passed away on christmas day 2012. His funeral will be at St. Charles RC Church in Tunapuna @ 8am on december 31st 2012. He will be missed :( .

:rolleyes:So did CAL hire any pilots that started flying last September until today? Has the Flight deck recruitment gone Top-secret?

Latest news from HR department is that they haven't hired anyone since the job was posted in SEP 2012. They said there are positions available and they will be resuming the recruitment process (No idea why it was on hold) soon but no specific date can be given.

Sounds good especially the detail that they will be hiring. Like always its just a question of when! Who knows maybe they are considering replacing the ATR's with Q400's as a buddy of mine said he heard (can't confirm) but this could be a potential reason to postpone recruitment.

Is there anyone that has updated there resume since they applied in Sept? If yes, could you inform me on how you did so?

Yes it's excellent news as many were hearing rumors about the positions being filled etc etc. All that and the fact that all the ATR's were being operated 'smoothly' didn't help with the anxiety.

With regards to the ATR to Q400 switch. From what i gather the current board was not a huge fan of the ATR's as they inherited the contracts/deal. There was even a rumor that a Q400 was coming down for some "testing". In my opinion it would have been an easier transition from the Q300 to the Q400's. The Q300's have served the airline well, that alone should have made it a done deal (not to mention its performance and reliability). Other than that you have the mean look of the Dash8...a very graceful bird.

From what a buddy of mine heard they are looking into all options, leasing, selling etc etc. I wouldn't doubt it as they are only taking 5 as opposed to the 9 initial purchase as they have gotten (i believe) a buyer for the remaining 4 aircraft. Plus the aircraft are always in need of some sort of maintenance is the word on the street. With regards to affordability of such a move who knows. Cal is government owned so, anything can happen...


@NoJoy
A buddy of mine did update his resume. He sent it via email and then called in HR to confirm they received the updated version.
The email is [email protected] (as far as i know and have seen on PCC). You can always call HR and confirm this..to be on the safe side.

Does anyone know how long it takes for the cpl conversion from faa to ttpl, and how much it costs. Also what are the minimums for CAL being a local???

@ Triniflya

You can reference my post on page two (2) regarding conversion information [post number 22].

Brief summary: cost approximately $1500 TTD (approx. fees for TTCAA)
Timeline for completion will depend mostly on you. Mr. Nolton Peters was the go to guy for conversion process, but sadly he is not with us anymore, he was very knowledgeable and always fun to chat with.

Otherwise there is Pro ATS which is on BWIA Blvd who also holds a conversion course which a buddy of mine took. The cost was $1000 USD for their program. Other than that, he was happy with the program and the end result. Also, not on my previous post, if you have an ATPL you may only have to take the air law examination as a buddy of mine only needs to complete this exam for his conversion based on him having an ATPL ticket and the associated experience/hours.

Being a Local, Cal's last job posting for the ATR did not specify minimum hours. You require a Trinidad and Tobago CPL and Multi IFR (Group 1).