DHL 777 EMA base
 

Hi all, looking for info on rosters, money, route network, lifestyle info, time to command etc. Basically the whole rundown! : )

Good luck getting those answers. They haven't received a single plane yet!

Ppjn is your friend. As for the rest, rudestuff is about right

Yeah I get they don't have any 777's yet, but still looking to do some research in to the job and the company as I'm sure it will be similar to what's already there. It's a rumour network so surely there must be some qualified rumours from people in the company. Granted there will be new destinations and new operations, but the employer is still the same so I'm sure it won't be a completely different job to what's already there.

Ok. The company is a bunch of nice pilots with pretty reasonable mgmt. initially the 777s will probably go onto the Atlantic routes but when airframe numbers increase,who knows? Truthfully this will be a new type of operation for us and although I’m sure our immediate mgmt and higher up have plans and visions that we are not yet privy to. What can I say? I’m in my 19th year of yellow and red freight. It hasn’t all been wine/roses or beer/skittles (choose your metaphor) but has been getting better and better over the years. We’ve had some good pay rises and some good conditions eg contractual days free of duty, no forced draft (or whatever BA call it). We kept working through GFC and all through COVID with a full schedule, no furlough and a quick internet search will show you Covid bonuses for all employees world wide last year and this.

Research our parent company accounts - €7bn ebit of which Express (which we are a part of) a good chunk of that. Current share price all time high €50ish.

I’m not interested in the 777, but I’m very happy with the company I work for and would (frequently do) recommend it. Best bit - no passengers.

I know this is a bit light on detail but a lot of what I know is probably not yet in the public domain. Further to that I draw your attention to the following phrase from the ad

‘Soon to join us will be a fleet of B777 aircraft to supplement the network and provide global reach.’

Which sort of implies an unspecified number of ac and global has implications of distance and thus trip length.

hope this helps

rgds

Money -- as on ppjn,
rosters -- initially Atlantic routes once the operation is running they will go around the world with 10-12 day trips.
lifestyle -- well guess you will be able to figure that out. ;-)
Time to command -- if that matters to you, then this is not the company for you.

Thanks for those replies, every little helps!

Yeah I read the 10-12 day trips, that's certainly a long time away as I've not really done more than 8-9 days at most before. But if rostering is done right it can burn a lot of hours and result in long periods home.
Time to command is more like time to a good pay rise, the command in itself isn't really the goal, but sounds like it'll be long in any case!
When looking for a new job I guess there's two bits to it. The black and white hard facts, like pay and perks. Then the other bit that you can't read in a contract. How you're treated, the feeling in the company, how tiring the roster is, the standard of living down route etc. That's where the taking to forums and calling contacts that have contacts etc come in to play, so thanks for the info that you can share.

You are right, the thing here is, DHK is going to be turned upside down at the moment and in addition a new fleet is being introduced next year.
So the DHK you will see next year will be completely different from what it is now.

I can’t disagree with any of the above - I’ve been here for a few years and like it a lot.

Very much a transitional phase at the moment with the Austrian AOC for the 757PCFs and the U.K. AOC for transitioning to intercontinental (with 5 of the older 757s).

777s - yes. They’re coming. Only 1 is confirmed yet and is likely to be filled up internally - certainly for Capts. That doesn’t mean that we’re not getting more than 1 though… exact numbers are unknown.

as deltahotel says, it’s not always roses - but there’s very many worse places to be. I like it here, having come from passenger flying. Salary wise, certainly for FOs, it’s one of the best deals out there. But at the moment, our experience is only on 757/767. How this changes with the 777 is anyone’s guess?

You’ll almost certainly be doing the full 900 hours on 12/14 day trips. Days off afterwards… depends what BALPA and the company can agree.

hope this helps!

Hobnob, I would expect DHL to promote from within, but it begs the question: why are they advertising externally?

For a new fleet you need some experienced guys, the ad says permanent, that doesn't need to reflect reality, specially as it is one ad for CPTs and FOs together.
Often advertisements promise more than the company will actually offer, specially when it is not advertised from the company directly.

But as already mentioned above, lots is changing at the moment, difficult to predict what actually is happening next year.

New ac for DHL express?
https://mobilitywatch.dk/nyheder/fra...le13175303.ece




In 2024, the German transport company DHL Express can look forward to delivering 12 aircraft flying on electricity.

It writes the company in a press release.

DHL Express, a division of the logistics company Deutsche Post DHL Group, writes that it has entered into an agreement with the Seattle-based company Eviation for the delivery of the aircraft.

The aircraft can each carry 1200 kg of cargo, require half an hour of charging for each flight hour and have a maximum range of 815 km.

"We strongly believe in a future with zero-emission logistics. Therefore, our investments follow the goal of improving our climate footprint," it reads, among other things. in the announcement from DHL Express CEO John Pearson.

This is Eviation's first order for the plane, which goes by the name Alice. It is not clear what the price is for the flight order.

As EAM says, when a new aircraft type is introduced in a company, due to the fact that the airline does not have experience on that new type, during the first 6 months the aircraft should be operated by pilots that have at least 500 hrs on type. After those initial 6 months the company can do whatever they want. Believe this is an Aviation Authority requisite. Might also be an Insurance requisite (but not sure about this last bit).

Hi guys,

on PPJN it states this for roster :
"numerous part time options are available if desired. 12/13ths, 11/12ths,10/12ths,4/5,9/12,2/3,6/12 and 9n5 fixed roster option subject to availability with part time options on the fixed roster too. Something for everyone"

I'm not familiar with these, could someone explain this to me? I'm sure its not 12 on/13 off?

Thanks

No, these are different options for the fixed roster and flex roster, it would be too much to go into details here,
as these options will not be available for new entries. DHK does have a fixed roster, but numbers in EMA are very limited and you will not be able to get on it,
specially as it is only available on the 757 fleet. Part time should be available for new joiners as well.

There are Flexi roster and block rosters (for now at least):

​​​​​​Flexi rosters are self explanatory; built using a magic dartboard with approx 10 days off per month thrown in randomly. Part time options are (mostly) measured in 12ths. 11/12ths would mean you get 11/12ths the salary, and 30 extra days off per year, usually meaning that you get 12 or 13 days off each month. 10/12ths would get you about 15 days off etc... There can also be options to have whole calendar months off, for example 50% flex could mean working 10 days a month every month, or it could mean 20 days a month with every other month off.

Block rosters are built around 9 day duties with 5 days off, hence 9n5 is the full time roster (on paper) - the reality is more like 7/7 with 3 blocks vacation (which is essentially 3 three-week holidays per year).
Because everything is a multiple of 14, and because 28 days goes into a year 13 times, Block rosters are (mostly) measured in 13ths.
12/13ths would essentially give you 5 three-week holidays and so on. There are also options for 75% which follows the 9/5/9/19 pattern (2 weeks in 6), and 57% which follows 9/19 (1 week in 4).

With a move to mainly long-haul a lot of that could change...

Whatever the T&C's, surely better than AeroLogic.

... and than working like a slave, clearing tables in the supermarket cafe...

I would like to state this again, the block roster is NOT available for new joiners and it is NOT available on long haul!!!!

DHK is a great Airline, great staff and Crews based in the Centre of the Universe. As to all the questions well I work for another Red and Yellow Airline and they had over 5000 applications for Crew positions albeit not all type rated. So in that case I'd keep questions stored for the interview should you get one....

Absolutely thrilled to receive an email from there HR within hours of applying. .

I was asked if I have flown within the previous 90 days.

So sounds like that rules out any of the poor sods made redundant from Middle East on 777 last year despite huge experience.

Yes. Hardly a fair request during current circumstances and considering the 3 takeoff/landing requirement could be conducted in the simulator.

Given the numbers applying, they have the luxury of asking the question. I doubt it'll be a deal breaker though.

Exactly. Supply and demand, and we're on the wrong end of it. It causes me to ponder what the future is for experienced captains who are presently out of work. Whereas before, contract (expat) captains have fitted in where expansion is too rapid for incumbent FOs to fill the places, if new/ rapidly recovering airlines (not surprisingly) now want 'current' pilots, those pilots' positions will be replaced through the traditional means of internal promotion (FOs who have been flying for the last 18 months, and are now able to meet company upgrade requirements). Vacancies thus created will trickle down to entry level pilots. Only when an airline starts up (or expands extremely quickly) and is willing to take non-current pilots will there be a demand for the high-end experienced pilots on the market. This could be another year or two, by which time it will be 2+ years since they last flew... A "stagnant whirpool" of pilots spectating the industry moving on without them. Thoughts?

Any movement in the recruitment process?

It’s ongoing

Has anyone been called forward for interview, or not till after applications close?

Is ICAO CPL-IR with 777 rating acceptable? Thanks

No. They've got way too many applicants to choose from to go off-menu.

Is there enough, current, B777 type rated, crew with a UK or an EASA license, in the market?
Middle Eastern airlines are also likely to restart a full schedule soon as interest is slowly picking up and a further traffic rise is expected in the market ….experience specifically on B777 is not very common hence less likely …

Yes there is, lots of them. ;-)

I'd be intrigued to hear from which companies this deluge of current 777 pilots are applying from...?

Half of Qatar Airways have applied, lol

well, is qatar recruiting? Since most of them refuse to go back to qatar

Cathy Pacific and your lot Emirates as well as the odd BA Nigel

Surely anyone currently employed (and thus the only ones current) aren't going to run away from their company in a pandemic? You may well be right, but I'm a little surprised. I suppose we'll see in due course.

Without going too much off topic, I'd suggest to have a read on https://www.pprune.org/middle-east/6...l#post11096515 to get aware of the work morale in QR.

Gosh. What a mess. Regardless, best of luck to all whom applied.

Where will the pilots come from?
 

"British (or EASA) licence, Right to Reside in UK, with 777 rating" will surely be the main culler.

From the group of pilots who fall in line with that requirement, who is there?

In addition to ME carriers there must be some from the Chinese carriers. Maybe some from Vietnam where expats were flying 787s - but might have previously flown 777s. As for the ME guys, even if they're on furlough, surely they'd take the first job available then reassess later if the old job knocks on the door.

Don't forget the ex-Norwegian pilots who also had flown 777 previously (as many had).

Whether pilots from CX and the Chinese will want to work for a fraction of their previous packages will come down to individuals' financial needs. A high percantage of those who I know (of) are able, and keen, to reitre or take up a small business (these guys are generally around 50yo).

Pilots from BA would surey be FOs, as captains would have been held in the company by seniority.

It's fun to guess, but who, besides those in the DHL office, knows? Either you'll get called for an interview... or not.