Lion 01

As an outsider, 40 years in the business and a 10+ year flight crewmember at another freight carrier, I can only read the posts here and comment on what I read.

First let me give you a little advice, PROOF READ BEFORE you post. HEAR is what you do with your ears. And that is only a little bit of it. Maybe English is not your native tongue but there are spell and grammar checks built in to all word processors these days.

Also as I posted the other day, I know for a FACT that Midex has hired two crewmembers that were terminated for very good reasons at another freight carrier. This in itself would scare me to death if I were asked to get on a flight deck as a crewmember with either of them as part of the crew.

I wish nothing but the best for all my fellow flight crews. These are very difficult times we are living in. But I have had to endure the derelicts at Fine Air in the early eighties. I left because I was afraid I was going to get killed having to fly with them. And as it turned out I left at a very good time.

Proofread
 

Fr8dog: Thank you for the advice. Your right and I should have reviewed my comments before posting. I will know better next time and will wait until I have my glasses handy and my first cup of coffee before responding. And yes it is "here" and not "hear" and the "cat has not gotten my tongue."

As for your comment about he two individuals in the employment of Midex Airlines who were terminated at there previous airlines, we are doing our best to improve our recruitment and screening process. I believe I know the two individuals you are talking about and it is just a matter of time before they will be shown the door. We don't want to have unsafe crew members on our flight decks and SAFETY will (and is) be our #1 priority.

I wish everyone the best and I hope Midex Airlines continues to survive so that we all have a place to work at. It may not be the best situation but it's work.

Hey Lion 01,
Any word on the contract out of Europe to S. Africa? Is that the reason for the UK hiring? That sounded like a solid contract with lots of flying! Certainly an increased need for crews.

WhaleDriver
 

It is my understanding that the contract in S. Africa is in it's final stages.

Over 57 cannot get resident visa in the UAE

Article 20: Oral Modifications Not Binding

This instrument is the entire agreement of the Company and the Employee. Oral changes have no effect. It may be altered only by a written agreement signed by the party against whom the enforcement of any waiver, change, modification, extension, or discharge is sought.

Thanks for that, Shroom.....

Do you really think the Doc won't try to implement the 10/3 rotation over the objections of the "contract-abiding" aircrew?

For those crewmembers reading this: I received an email from a Hotmail email address about an anonymous discussion group forming on MSN relating to Midex. Anyone else get one of those and join? Might be a good place to talk about the company and the latest "contract" (I mean, "toilet paper") issues.

This will be my only post on here and I will not answer a bunch of none sense remarks. Management is out of hand here at Midex. We all signed a contract and came here in good faith. Dr. Khairallah has taken it upon himself to change that contract without any negotiations or discussions with us. This is clearly not following the contract or the law as he claims he does 100%. We all know times are bad and the pilots would have been happy to discuss options and make reasonable changes to make Midex profitable and make it through the bad times. We have all been forced by Midex to over look a lot of things concerning scheduling, rosters, duty times, required rest, call out times, an etc….. We have done this to try and make Midex work. If someone can explain the reason 10 & 3 will make Midex profitable they should. The pilots with many more years experience in aviation than any one in management cannot make those numbers work.
We all hear this line of Dr. Khairallah’s qualifications as a doctor in the USA. What has this got to do with running an airline? Can anyone verify that he graduated from OSU or even practiced medicine in the USA as he claims? (Post the proof if you can.) I have tried to Google search him and he is not listed as a graduate of OSU or shown as being recognized by the AMA. He only shows up as Issam Khairallah being President of Midex.
When Dr. Khairallah and management recognize the pilots as professional assets and treat us this way they will be surprised as to how much help we can be. We do not appreciate being taken advantage of and treated as minimal labors with no respect. We all have many years experience consisting of our licenses and ratings. We have to follow the GCAA rules and regulations as well the Midex Operations Procedures approved by the GCAA to assure we do not lose our licenses, ratings and approvals to work in the UAE by the GCAA. So Midex quit being HILLIBILLYS and follow the laws, rules and regulation as close to 100% possible as you claim.
Be safe and happy flying!

Whats the status of the contract from UK to S.Africa. Howcome a UK carry can not object like MK or GSS?

Midex has rules only when it suites the Dr/ Graas.

Know of atleast one 747 captain who was hired post 60.

Great Post ground pounder12,
You hit the nail on the head.
This is where the rubber meets the road.
Midex managment never asked or questioned pilots how can we reduce operating costs.
By changing us to 10 weeks on and 3 weeks off the perdiem cost more than our tickets home, the only conclusion we have is that managment just doubled the crew availability with no additional cost for the company, since current contacts and pending contracts will require more.
They did this without any regard to how many pilots they may lose because pilots being away from home 70 days sitting in the desert with no roster or scheduled days off.
We have no roster here, you are expected to be on standby 24/7 with no minimum call out times.
GCA regulations are not enforced or in compliance.
As said above we all came here in good faith ,yet they are changing the contract and treating crew like children, violating FD times and saying accept these changes or go home.
Some have taken the go home option, others well time will tell.
Not a work freindly GCA compliant operation.

Confirmation
 

Well this just confirms what I have known about this outfit.......

Once they start this crap from management, it's just a matter of time before they shut the doors.

Just as I predicted......:} :} :}

Hey happy man, welcome back.......
 

Storpikk, always like to read your positive posts. You ever hear the words:

"Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them." ?

In other words: 'do unto others as you would have them do unto you' or in this case ' wish upon others as you would have them wish upon you'.

Things going well at home then? :ok:

Problem in midex
 

Mid-Exodus
 

Good for you Aviation6789.....

Hope like hell you cleared out your bank account before you left and didn't lose too much in the interim. Are they still trying to retract pay from your account if you leave early?

On a positive note, heard the Doc isnt too happy with CM being away in BKK too much.... Pink Slip impending???? Could only be an improvement.

Best of luck, Guys !

PS: Lion 01.. How's OAIX these days? Still pretty as ever?

Oh yes, they also like to withhold pay until the employee is physically in the country. If you're on your time off at home and pay day comes...too bad! You're screwed until you return to the UAE. Never mind that the toilet paper, sorry, CONTRACT states that employees will be paid by the 10th of every month. Why, even guys who are up in Brussels in the simulator, on company business mind you, have not been paid. And won't, until they return to Al Ain. Don't like it? There's the door!

With the imminent pilot exodus (by the way, excellent re-naming of the company Podunk!), this company will soon be standing all alone on the playground bouncing its ball, but will have no one to throw it to.

What does MIDEX stand for
 

Crews are departing the fix as fast as rats leaving a sinking ship. The latest from crews there....... if you leave you owe the company many thousands of USD in training costs.

Midex does not honor the contract, and has been cheating the crews since the company began.

As Predicted
 

Well As predicted !!!...............

From what I understand the remaining crews at Midx are operating under extreme pressure from managnent just to keep the company going.
The president of the company thinks the pilots are nothing but trouble, do not act as adults and treats them as such.
They are not paid on time or according to contract.
The few I have contact with there suggest that the president actually go on some flights and see what is really going on and how crews are going the extra mile to see these aircraft fly.
Lots of no no business going on with duty times, operational issues as such.
This president needs to look at the real picture here.
If the crews started operating by all the regulations this company would end tomorrow.
The president has lost support from his crews.
Just another fly by night operation that has gone bad and unles you are really desperate , need a job no matter what, this one needs to be side stepped at all cost.

Do you really think either the "Doc" or the Sheikh would stay in such close proximity to the lowly aircrew for the duration of a flight? I hardly think so!

doc scream
 

MIDEX 1 year contracts coming up
 

Greatly stated Boeingdriverusa.
Airbus drivers right behind you, blaze the trail.
DHL recall in Europe soon,
Anyone wanting to go there better review the facts.
Contract terms and conditions are not followed.
You will sit for 70 days in the sand with no schedule, no days off on standby.
If for some reason you cannot get a visa, company will can you, no pay and you pay your own return ticket.
Ask the latest departure, American passport, born in Iran 50+ years ago. UAE wont allow anyone with Iranian connections to stay.
UAE un written rules.
Would midx do the correct thing and pay this individual since it was their mistake?
No they booted him from the complex owing him much back pay, and said pay your own return airfare.
If you have company business, flights sim ,that is on or near the day you get paid, you wont get your salary until you return to Al Ain.
Example, if you attend the simulator on June 1st, finish June 3rd, then go on days off, you wont receive your salary until 3 weeks later after you return.
You will also be required to shell out transportation cost from AUH, DXB when traveling to and from days off, cost 280-300 AED, though this is in your contract, they dont pay.
If you are rated and previously qaulified, want to leave they try and charge you thousands in training costs, will even take the money back out of your Emirates bank account after deposit.
Not a good airline, when in fact its down to the bottom feeder levels.
Edit:
So Sorry, forgot to add about the F/O that could not sign the new contract reflecting 10 on an 3 off due to family obligations.
Midx threat,, 28,000 usd training cost if he did not sign the ammended contract.
He departed the fix.

Our fearless leader...
 

An editorial in today's National that is fairly relevant to our situation...:

Is there a doctor in the house? Answer carefully

Sultan Al Qassemi

• Last Updated: June 20. 2009 8:58PM UAE / June 20. 2009 4:58PM GMT

Last year after writing "We have our own heroes, we don’t need other people’s" in The National I received an e-mail from a director in the Watani programme that began: “Dear Dr Sultan”. I must admit that I thought it was a nice compliment, but the thought stopped there and I promptly emailed him back, thanked him and pointed out that I do not have a PhD.

More recently, one of my students from the Dubai Men’s College invited me to lecture at a young professionals network he is part of at a real estate development firm. I decided to focus on ethical and moral dilemmas in life and in the business world such as the “Trolley Dilemma” – look it up on Wikipedia.


The truth is there are plenty of moral dilemmas that confront us in the UAE, many of them dealing with education and credentials. For instance, an acquaintance of mine had casually purchased his degree from a foreign university and is currently running a branch of a major financial institution. Should I inform the authorities and “do the right thing” and potentially harm his young family’s interests? There is no easy answer.


One of the most embarrassing moments in the first administration of the Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad came when the country’s parliament voted to impeach the former Interior Minister – the former head of the very same ministry that announced Ahmadinejad’s recent “landslide victory”. The minister, Ali Kordan, was accused of lying about his credentials and holding a fake degree from what he called “Oxford University in London ”.


The most notorious case facing the UAE was when The Spokesman-Review, a newspaper based in Washington state, exposed more than 9,600 people who had purchased their degrees from a fraudulent diploma mill. The list included dozens of individuals based in the UAE. These “students” had names that appeared to be Arab, European, African and Asian and they may or may not be currently employed in the UAE or in the region, possibly in influential positions.


A total of 68 Emiratis were among these naive “degree holders” as well as scores of other GCC nationals. These young Emiratis may have travelled abroad with the intention to study but in some cases found themselves spending too much time basking in their freedom. With limited follow up from their families or their embassies abroad, particularly in large countries such as the US and Australia, it would not have been difficult to succumb to this temptation.


This is by far not a challenge specific to the UAE. Last year Singapore announced that it had caught 400 locals and expatriates working there who had falsified their degrees. According to a report published in The Straits Times of Singapore, there are three groups of people who resort to buying degrees. The first is young people who were not successful in their studies and want to prove that they have achieved an academic qualification to get a job and support their families. The second group is comprised of employees who seek to get a raise at their current job or who are trying to find a new one. The third is a group of businessmen – who are already successful – who want the prestige of a qualification that can also help them in their business dealings. For instance, recently The New York Times profiled a UAE personality who had been referring to himself as a doctor. The newspaper discovered that the university where he studied does not even offer PhDs. His spokesperson said that even though he might not have a PhD he does in fact have two MBAs.


In the UAE the greatest danger of the practice of buying degrees is in the fields of construction and medicine. A few years ago I was looking to hire a project engineer for a construction project and the gentleman I interviewed seemed to be very capable and possessed the right qualifications. I was surprised that he was willing to leave a reputable firm to work on a relatively small project. I called his firm one day and asked for the engineering department in that construction firm. I was told that although a person with that name worked in the firm, this gentleman wasn’t a project engineer at all but had a much more junior position. I thought to myself how potentially dangerous it would have been had we hired him to oversee a project for which he wasn’t qualified.


Buying degrees can be very lucrative but very dangerous in the medical industry. Many people in the Gulf succumb to what amounts to witchcraft and sorcery but feel comforted in being told that these sorcerers are qualified doctors who can cure them from a disease or can save a loved one. Many victims of these tricks are too shy to admit that they have been paying for ineffective medicine. They choose silence over unwanted publicity.

So sadly, in the UAE this practice can still pay.
Sultan Sooud Al Qassemi is a non resident fellow at the Dubai School of Government

Re: Midex pay issues
 

For those who have not received their pay on time, whether you were out of the country or some other ridiculous reason, you should know that doing this is NOT LEGAL by UAE law. As referenced in today's Gulf News, the UAE Ministry of Labour has set up an ANONYMOUS reporting system on their web site for complaints about companies. You may also call the MOL hotline number ANONYMOUSLY (800665) to lodge a complaint, and the company will be investigated. To complain via the MOL web site, choose "eNETWASAL SERVICES" from the home page and then click on "salary complain" at the lower left of the following page.

The Gulf News article:

It surely pays to complain

Dubai: More than 300 companies across the country have been reported for non-payment of salaries in May through the Ministry of Labour's new initiative which allows workers to report unpaid salaries anonymously. Six companies have been referred to the public prosecution, said a senior official.
The initiative, 'My Salary', was launched by the ministry on May 1. It allows workers to complain about unpaid or delayed salaries online or through the ministry's hotline.



The first month of the initiative brought in complaints against 331 companies, six were referred by the ministry to the public prosecution for failing to pay salaries for more than three months, 38 adjusted their situations and paid delayed salaries, 26 had their transactions stopped at the ministry and 66 of them already have complaints registered at the labour relations department. The rest of them are still under investigation, according to the ministry's statistics.

Humaid Bin Deemas, acting director general at the ministry, said: "This new initiative is a break through in the ministry's efforts to protect workers rights and mainly their right for payment of salaries. Confidentiality of the complaints has been a main factor in the effectiveness of this project as workers no longer need to fear any repercussion for complaining about their companies."
Earlier, if a worker wanted to complain about salaries, he or she had to file a complaint at the labour relations department and the employer was called in for a session with the employee.

"The majority of workers who took such steps were prepared to lose their jobs as a consequence. This meant that many workers did not report non-payment of salaries as they did not want to lose their jobs but with this new initiative the workers do not need to fear such consequences," said Bin Deemas.

As per the new initiative when the ministry receives a complaint, an inspector is assigned to look into it and the employer is made to believe that it's part of a routine inspection.

"So even if a company has two or three employees he cannot figure out who complained as he is not aware that there is even a complaint lodged," said Bin Deemas.

Maria (name changed to protect identity), a Filipino nurse, with a Dh2,000 salary, said she has not been paid for more than three months but dare not complain out of fear for losing her job. "I cannot afford to lose my job. I was hoping that the promise of paying the salary made to me on a weekly basis would be delivered one day," she said.

Hotline: How to complain

Workers who have salaries delayed for more than 15 days or have not been paid can file a complaint on the ministry's website at Ministry Of Labour or through calling the hotline 800665.

The hotline is in 12 different languages including Arabic, English, French, Hindi, Farsi, Russian and Urdu, while the portal only offers Arabic and English languages.

Are they flying?

are these guys still flying BEY-ORY on A300s or the 74 is doing that or its been dropped off completely? Also where are the SIMs taking place these days for A300s.
Last but not the least, whats the news on Mumbai and Karachi flight? Are they ever gonna fly to south east asia.
CBAFIL

Doc and his team
 

Saw a Midex 747, noseloader(or maybe the just nose cowl removed) in Kabul the other day.

Finished
 

Well this fine operation got what they deserved, with the management team and CP they had in place, the end is close!.....

Good luck to the crews! :ok::ok:

Hi there,
Well how many of you guys (dont think any gals) are actually flying for the Midex Organization.
To be honest, I am not personally. But I do know quite a bit about it. As per my info they are flying quite a few flight per week to Afghan and Iraq and the operating crew gets extra incentive to fly there. All or atleast the ones that I know there, are getting paid on time and full pay. This all indicates that they are making good enough from these charters to fly empty craft to mostly KWI or SHJ, then onwards to Iraq/Afghan and then fly it back empty to AAL.
Except for the management crap, dont you think its great to fly this classic beauty with that kind of pay. Man I would take that crap even on half the pay just to fly this beast, because I know once I have enough experience to be eligible for this job, they would be gone for ever.
Have fun and Happy landings,
CBAFIL

Storpikk
 

If I can't play, nobody can. Right Storpikk? How's that unpaid babysitting job coming along? Just curious, WHO deserves WHAT, IYH(FU)O? Good luck to you! :ok: :ok:

LOL
 

LOL you are a funny guy 280...:D:D:D

Midx crews, your contracts were never approved by the UAE labor comissian/board.
How did you ever get work permits and UAE license?
This could be shut down rapidly.

There's been a Midex 'plane in Muscat most days this past week or so.
First the 747 then Airbuses. I've noted two different airframes.

They seem to fly at night then daystop. Have they been booted out of AAN?

MEL

End in site?????
 

Seems like this end of the market [no pun intended (as in 'end of the line'....)] is beginning to open.............

Are these both MNG? I heard they purchased Solinair...........

Parc - Aviation

Captain A300-B4 - 200498053 - Flight Jobs

:ok:

long time no post!!!
Anything new happening around lately?

Mumbai? Karachi? seems like they are not planning for it anytime soon, unlike being said in a meeting in May, i think.

Happy Landings

The End
 

It must be imminent.......:}:}:}.