Dragonair DE FO Interview Experiences/Feedback
 

Hi all,

Been invited to an interview for a Direct Entry position with Dragonair in the next few weeks.
Just wondering if anyone has any feedback or examples of what they were asked at interview?
I have worked through some other threads, but the information is more relevant to the Cadet Programme.

Any information would be much appreciated.

:ok:

Hello Bongo,

Can you please give me an idea of your experience level? Do you hold a HKID card? Just trying to get an idea of what candidates they look for, for DEFO.

Cheers!

Skysook,
I trust you've been to link and seen the published requirements? These are what are being applied.

In accordance with HKG employment law and just like almost all other countries, work permits for foreigners won't be issued when sufficient local talent is available. As there is no industry (G/A, flying schools, regionals, etc) to 'feed' the airlines in HKG it's a vary rare thing for a HKID card holder to meet the DEFO experience requirements. Long story short: no, you don't need one.

Regarding experience, those who have been starting of late all have transport category aircraft / airline experience. Airbus experience is preferred but not required due shorter training requirements (read: saves time and money). It's not a job you go to from an aero club. If you aren't flying jets (either seat), multi-crew turbo props in airline ops (either seats) or biz jets (command) at this moment, you are unlikely to be successful.

Bongo,
A couple of interviewers are a little more tech-centric than the others but knowing company info (history, fleet, engine types, etc) your current type and AGK basics shouldn't be a challenge. By far and away, the majority of people come unstuck on the personal. They are unprepared for personal questions or speak off the cuff - disastrously - in response to personal questions they haven't considered.

The sim ride is stock-standard airline recruitment profile. Airborne, general handling, vectors for an ILS, go-around, some kind of failure (ie. engine failure), ILS and land. Raw data, hand flown. If you haven't flown an Airbus, get someone who has to talk to you about control inputs in normal law so you don't try and manhandle it around the sky. It becomes very easy....once you know how

Milking a mouse
 

Thanks for your reply. I have 1500PIC on the Q400. I applied more than 6 months ago but have heard nothing since. So I'm just wondering what the experience and qualification levels are for those that have been invited for an interview. What you say about the HKID card sounds reasonable so I'm thinking the preference is airbus time or indeed jet time. Has anyone else with only the turbo-prop command time been successful lately? I would really like to know where I stand in terms of competitiveness.

Hey there everybody.

So I've been to the interview/simulator assessment in HKG. Have not received a result yet and thought it might be an idea to post my thoughts here before 'result-bias' ends up clouding my judgement.

Interview; I found this part to be particularly demanding. Here are some questions.

Some A320's have sharklets, explain why and what they do? The 777 doesn't have sharklets, can you explain why? The RR Trent engine has 3 spools, can you explain why? Memory Actions for unreliable airspeed? Can you think of any accident in recent history where this happened and what do you think of it? Describe the airconditioning system of the A320? If flying from HKG towards indonesia with the sun in front of you, how fast do you need to fly to never see the sun set? What is CRM? Do you have good CRM? Can you explain this TAF? The WX system you see on the SIG chart, does it rotate clockwise or anticlockwise? Why? Low temperature corrections for approaches? Can you fly a managed non precision approach in really cold weather? What is a ceiling? Can you dispatch to this airport with this weather? And General questions about the history of the company and it's current fleet and destinations, why you want to leave your current outfit if you are flying somewhere, etc. What will you bring to KA? The questions in themselves were not rocket science, but truth be told I had a lot of difficulty as I felt under a lot of pressure. They were very good at making me doubt myself even if I was making sense on some rare occasion. They caught me off guard with the personal questions or company related questions, as I thought that was what the HR interview was for in LGW. Otherwise they were very friendly people in what seems to be quite a respectable company indeed.

The simulator I found to be quite straightforward. It was conducted on an A330 (which flies beautifully) and the requirement was the ROSE/VOR displayed on the ND. The AP/FD/AT were off. Fly around and do airwork, including some radial intercepts. Come back and fly a two engine ILS approach, missed approach on minima, vectors, engine fire with ECAM actions until engine secure and a MAYDAY call. Single engine ILS and landing. All in all my perception was that I did reasonably well in the simulator, but generally felt like I did bad on the interview. If you are flying from Europe to do this, make sure to plan your rest. I was on the back side of the clock and it badly affected me. All in all it's very difficult to say what the result will be, although I am expecting a no at the moment because as I said: they took me for a ride during the interview. The other candidates found the interview to be demanding also, although I did have the impression that it was me that struggled with it most.

After all of this they took us all for a company sponsored post-war beer in a very relaxed atmosphere in the Headland hotel at CX city.

Best of luck to all applying and make sure to read ACE or Pilots Reference guide or something. I spent most of my time preparing Airbus systems, but really had the feeling that every time I knew something they were keen to move on to talk about something else. :}

Drfaust
 

Can you please tell me what your experience level is? (hours/ratings etc) and if possible the experience of other candidates you met on the day?

Cheers!

You're heading in the WRONG direction, is the answer, a totally irrelevant question.

I question the relevance of said question also, but for slightly different reasons. It was made clear that you are flying towards the west. The point is more that, you don't have a map, you don't have any distances, speeds, bearings, etc. They want to see how you would solve a problem like that.

skysook: two of us were close to 4000TT, the other was 8000TT. One guy rated 330, me rated 320 and other non rated but plenty of heavy time.

drfaust

Sounds to me as though you will be fine.

CX/KA interviews are renowned for the odd really strange question that seems totally irrelevant and just trying to catch you out. Over the years many have tried weeding these out of the interview process but they always seem to creep back in due to the "wisenheimers" who love trying to trick people for their own personal satisfaction.

That particular gem is simply trying to ascertain whether you know where Indonesia is (roughly spread out along the equator) and what the circumference of mother Earth is at the equator. 24 hours one revolution etc.

Never try to read too much into any question. They can invariably be solved by some 1:60 rule combination or commonsense. I think the answer crwkunt roll suggests is, while correct, not going to be well received...bit like the candidate who was asked about the engines on the 737-400 he flies ...."blue ones" was the response.

Usually the sim session is more important. Doing well here shows that the company cannot afford not hire you as you have already saved them millions in training costs.

If you can get across the message that you know a bit about the history of the group and that you want to live in HKG then that also helps.

FWIW

It is a behavioral interview question dressed up as a technical question to see how a candidate uses logic to solve a problem under pressure using assumed knowledge that is applicable to the position advertised. The person is using a bit of high school maths, geography, navigation, and flight planning.

At HKGs latitude (22N) you would need to be flying M1.46 to meet the earths rotation, at the equator, M1.57, and in Jakarta (6S) M1.56 [1.57xcos(latitude)]. Track to Jakarta is 195, 4 hour flight time traveling through 28 degrees of latitude.

The other ballpark way is by looking at the earths rotation, it rotates at around 900 kts at the equator (360 degrees x 60 nm per degree/24 hours), in the 4 hours flight time to Jakarta it will rotate 3600 nm. Mach 1 is close enough to 600 kts (574 kts at FL360 on a standard day).

The answer is a big number either way, well in excess of what any airliner is capable of. It is not really relevant to passing of failing the interview. What is being assessed is the logic/problem solving, and the persons demeanor.

Think about it from a CRM problem solving model point of view. If presented with a problem one did not know the answer to on the line, would you B/S the other crew ? or would you tell they you don't really with the information you have, CLARIFY if there is additional information available (e.g. how long does it take to fly to Jakarta ?) offer your input/logic so the problem can be solved (look for solutions and evaluate) as a group.

Interviews are interactive, you can always seek additional details or clarify the problem.

Then they follow it up with two questions on what your perception of CRM is, and if you think you have good CRM. Then they have the comparison of how you put it in practice with the sunset question.

Someone has put some thought into the interview structure.

Dr Faust,

Sounds like you did really well!

My experience, albeit with Cathay, is that you don't need to be brilliant just show you have cared enough to pull your finger out. Make them believe you really want the job and that you have made some effort to get it. Sure, some of the questions, are a bit obscure but they will just be checking that you have some knowledge, can apply some common sense and are generally going to fit in. The common sense bit is quite important as Asia (china) is going to offer up many interesting challenges which you are just going to have to deal with.

When you get here, tuck on board the bit about 'make them believe you really want the job and that you have made the effort to get it' as this applies to all assessments here. You get left alone 95% of the time but for your 2 PC's, your line check and any upgrades just play the game and make some effort. Easy.

Sim check? Just do what you would do normally. If you stuff up the approach, go around! Don't land on the grass like one former colleague did because 'he thought they wanted to see a landing'.

Good luck. Enjoy Hong Kong. It can be a fabulous place to live.

M1.46? Hmm.

I am about to shoot myself in the foot, I'm sure, but here goes nothing.

Assuming a track of 195 degrees towards Indonesia, surely the speed required in order to make the "horizontal" vector equal 900 Kt would be about 3,477kt?

Turning the problem into a right angle triangle, with the hypotenuse being your track to Indonesia (15 degrees left of South), and the short ("opposite") side being 900kt:

Speed = 900/Sin 15 ?

Edited to add: Of course you could also be on a heading of due south (towards DPS), in which case the speed required would be infinite..



Go ahead: shoot, flame, educate!

21,600 nautical miles, as a nautical mile is a minute of longitude at the equator, so 60 minutes in a degree times 360 degrees in a circle = 21,600 NM in 24 hours, = 900 knots ground speed is the answer they are looking for I am guessing. Either way, dragons crappy old airbuses will need a 450 knot tail wind, not very likely at the equator.

Christ.......

Or leave at noon.

12:30 in HKG = 11:30 am in CGK.
Sun past the peak so its in front of you.
4 hr flight - Sun all flight.

I don't give a sh*t how fast the earth rotates.

I have no idea how to work this out, how did I survive 22000 hours?

Is that all ? Amateur. I've got more night actual than that.
I'll get my coat.

Although a relative greenhorn with only 19,000 hours, all I've ever used is fifth form physics and the three-times table.

Being able to work out crap like the above is now supposed to be a substitute for experience. The industry really is screwed.

Trick question. Heading south, you're not going to be able to keep the sun in one place. If you wanted to keep the sun in one place, you will need to fly West. At the equator, with the earth about 24,000nm in diameter rotating once in 24 hours, about 1000knots.

Seems like we had a CX invasion here. :} If anyone else has some experiences to write down from the KA interview, please feel free. It might be easier for future candidates to prepare for this stage than it was for me, as I found it really hard to come by any information. I'm really happy for you guys and your logbooks though ;).

Hello

Just wondering if anybody has been to Hong Kong for the initial interview?
PM me if any info if you like, just wondering what is involved. Expecting HR but not sure.
Thanks in advance

Round One - The HR Round
 

My experience in the first round was as expected. I had the unique experience of being the only pilot in the room, two HR specialists giving me the third degree. For a solid hour.


They basically went through everything on my application then started in on my logbook to round out the time.

They wanted to know all about my previous jobs (all of them), how I come to have so many passports, how I would feel if one of my former students was captain on a flight where I was the FO (very proud, actually), where do my family and friends live, who do I know at KA and what do they say about it, would I accept an offer from HKA (probably not), why not Cathay (I prefer short haul), what will I do if I miss out (stay put and upgrade in a year), where else have I tried (everywhere), what was I doing in 2012 (same as now, trying everywhere), how do I like living in Tung Chung, do we rent or own, how does my family feel about all this and what to they want for me, where do I live, where was I born, with additions for the classic questions:why leave your present company, what is your current roster like, what are your prospects where you are, ok so why Dragonair then, can you manage the workload (80 + on a short haul roster is punishing. Are you aware of how hard you will work and how will you manage it?) how do you feel about integrated patterns and overnights, can you live in Hong Kong, variations on do I know what I am going to be in for basically.

Was a hell of a grilling. They were thorough, there was no chance of skating lightly over any of it. I nailed a few big ones, and they did invite me back. ;)


I am expecting an even tougher time next round. If they are that thorough on HR, then I am thinking hardball in the tech round. ATPL fun (i.e. obscure) facts, classic Aerody and some Post Graduate Airbus. Probably with some diabolical personal questions that they have thought up in the meantime.


Anyone got any more to add? Good gouge is the only defence against such an onslaught.....


And they want to hear 900kts if the airplane is flying along the equator. I know a guy who asks that question in interviews.....


Happy Landings!


OFO

They waste your time
 

Went through the interview process in October and November. Basically it's a local bitch called Doris and her office buddy asking stupid questions on the first interview.
Second interview was was some miserable Canadian guy with huge chips on his shoulder, an English guy and again Doris the local bitch. Ask more ATPL style questions than any thing sensible. 10 minute in A330 sim with them all inside the box watching. Then a crocodile smile drinks in Dakota bar at CX city where they pretend to like you and be friendly. Overall they are not recruiting anything but locals, not ex pats any longer.
Waste weeks of your life waiting and build up false hopes.

You didn't get the job?? With your style and grace and positive attitude I would have thought you'd be a shoe in.

Gee, all the other xpats walking through the recruitment door must have done ok.

I don't know but all the guys that I know that have got the offer are expats, myself included. A bit of self-reflection might be useful before dropping derogatory terms like that.

UK Pilot 25.... That post made my day. Hilarious. I wish you the best in your career wherever you end up.

The system hasn't changed for about a decade then, trawl through some old posts. The info is out there.

Uk-pilot, they are recruiting expats, but on local terms. Its a good job search allowance if nothing else.

Prepare yourself in the obvious areas.

You and your attitude towards Hong Kong, show you have an idea of living in HK, as this is not a commuting contract, and there is no sign of that ever changing. It is a SHORT HAUL CHINA JOB with a smattering of destinations outside of China. Once your training is over, you will rarely get a trip outside of China as they are typically training routes for various reasons, but the main ones being sector length and roster stability.

What do things cost in HK, where do you think you might want and be able to afford to live? Know some basics about Dragon, a little bit of history, what do we fly where do we go, who is the boss? We have a weekly update to tell us who the CEO is this week, they come over and do bit of work experience, accept a few self appointed awards, and then they are off to another Swires post. The goal for them is to do nothing, don't upset cathay, and spend nothing, keep your head down and wait for the next promotion.

2nd interview, expect a few pilots on the panel, and more of a tech quiz. They don't care what the answer is, they want to know how you answer it. If you don't know, they want to see how you approach not knowing the answer. They have their BS radar on, they honestly don't care how many hydraulic systems the Embraer has. Possibly some good cop bad cop going on here, and some selective targeting type questions. "Tell us about I time when..."

The aircraft you fly, if you are already airbus rated expect a grilling. If you fly something else, expect generic questions on your type. Know your companies current fuel policy and be able to apply it.

Have your log book up to date, and not 100 pages all written on the same day with the same pen.

UK pilot offered some suggestions on how to win friends and influence people. My personal opinion after many years in the company, is that Doris is an integral part of the interview and selection process, and a professional. Her BS radar of who will fit in and who wont is as developed as any of the pilots. She has seen thousands of applicants, and almost as many interviews. She has earnt the respect of the pilot managers through effectively reducing their work level at the second stage interview. Enough said.

There isn't a Canadian guy in the company I wouldn't happily share a beer with on an overnight, (not that there is much opportunity to do that, most overnights are minimum rest in good to less than good hotels). Not a single chipped shoulder amongst them, I would dispute that "one off" observation made earlier.

There used to be a test for each candidate that the interviewers used. That was " at the end of a long days flying would I want to have a beer with this person".
It had pretty good results for a long time. There was the occasional lapse ( a well known German who was moved on springs to mind) but generally the guys and girls at KA are a good bunch.
I have a feeling Uk pilot 25 might not have made the grade in the "being sociable" area

It would be Nice if you guys who apply and got invited for the interview tell us your nationalities if you don't mind.


Thanks

Kruger, there isn't a preferred nationality. They are taking from where ever they can get experience, it is just hard to attract experienced guys on the T&Cs on offer. They need to upgrade more guys than they have on the books now. Anyone with 4000+ hours, preferably a jet command, and one head is getting a look in. This is their priority currently to fill a hole caused by hiring all zero time pilots for years, 'suddenly' left with no one to upgrade.

Good luck, its not a bad stepping stone, they don't bond you, and you don't pay for the rating, just do your homework on Hong Kong. If breathing is something you consider to be a necessary part of your day to day routine, think carefully.

Was told 12-14 months to command if suitably qualified.

Lowkoon,

Thanks so much for that information. Something I've been trying to figure out for a long time. Simply meeting the minimum requirements for DEFO at Dragon is no where near enough to spike some sort of interest. Can finally put this option to rest. Cheers

That's unlikely! It doesn't factor in failures now ( quite high sadly ) who will come back through the system in 12 months and it seems overly ambitious on training capacity and ability.

I'd say three years which is dependent upon a healthy economy and a healthy plan for KA from its owners.

KA used to be big on hand flying in the sim at stage two. Easy on an Airbus even in raw data. Since CX took over there has been an unfortunate move away from these competencies so perhaps you now go into sim and fly around on auto-pilot making long winded and inane briefs identifying stuff like night time, KA coffee and your home port as threats. :)

Who would have ever thought that people would be queuing up to work for any HKG based airline on local terms - especially with jet time.

Hi! New to Pprune, Just done my Initial HR Interview been invited back for the Final interview with Sim check in Jan 2015.

Anyone done it yet? would appreciate some infos! would be a massive help!

Cheers!

-
 

Can you tell me Blue_Skies_ how was your first day? Any technical questions? Was it how other_flying_object said it was? Good luck for the 2nd session!

Blue_skies trying to get a job in HKG..:D

Good point, he has time to change his name to brown skies, or airborne toxic filth, something more appropriate to the region. The user name '****osphere' may still be available?!

Many moons ago I did an initial interview with a little short guy and Chinese lady who were all perfectly nice until the little guy started with the needle type questions. It was all very comedic, classic good cop/bad cop, or the KA version.
When Mr bad cop asked me when I would be available for a sim assessment, I asked him a question in return "is everyone at KA aware of your personal short comings?" Madam Chinese gave a short snort, bad cop short bald guy turned a peculiar shade of purple and I noted that his cateroid artery began to pulse. At that point I terminated the interview and skipped out the door having had a lucky escape :} I've often wondered if the little short tw@t died prematurely due to one of the chips on his shoulders falling off and causing him to topple over and bang his bald head.