max AB

You're joking right? I guess they have sand on them instead of stones...but that's about it. The surf is crap and if you haven't noticed the beaches are slowly disappearing, as is the public access to them. Yes, if Brighton beach is your yard stick then the beaches in Dubai are indeed superb...

Shake

Nick,

Bymonek likes it and fair play to him. What he does highlight, inadvertantly, is that once you make the decision to come here it is NOT that easy to leave as he and others would like those of us who rue the decision to have ever come here do.

Those of us who don't like EK for various reasons (cx previous posts) have to live with the decision we made and find a way out when the time is right for us, not because Bymonek doesn't want to hear the flip side of matters EK, but because we have to minimise our losses and the effect it will have on our families.

Be very careful and I truely hope you make the right decision for yourself.

Believe Brother

Well said Shake. BYMONEK, you don't just easily move a family around the world. Most people I know who are contemplating leaving (and there are quite a few) are trying to do it in such a way as to minimise the stress on their families. Goodness knows, EK these days certainly places enough stress on families as it is.

fatbus

Do the math 1200 pilots now 2500 by 2012, upgrade looks like way more than 3 years.The next guy hired might be lookig at6-7 years.
Don't be coming to EK for the upgrade.The fast track upgrade looks like a thing of the past for now.
New hires soon might see the 380as a F/O.
The routes are nice on all fleets but you have to do a bit of the **** flying sometime, rumore that the 2 class 777 will slowly take over India.
The current villa's are very nice and centrally located( Al Bada).
Talked to a Teacher last night said a Canadian School is in the plans as well as tha Emirates International near the Meadows( K to 12).
Schools are tight now but should get better and with that prevent them from raising the rates(wishful thinking).DAA ans ASD get away with charging to much for Primary, with DAA opening a new Primary school this Aug will be very interesting to see how full it will be.
Beaches are great,not everyone is a surfer, kids love it. Golf is cheap.
Pay is average and if you keep converting to Pounds or Euro it just keeps looking worse so don't. Alot of people have property oversea's, that is costing them more and they blame the company.
Cost of milk just went up 15% hope that's not an indication of the cost of inflation.If you exclude housing cost of living is not bad.
At the present time the Middle East is not a win fall of cash, I don't think anyware is right now. If there is please yet me know.
You will not save much as a F/O and will be in that seat for awhile, that fact will start to efect recuirtment and the overall package so maybe when things pickup outside the Middle East the package will change for the better.

Time for a coffee

6100

It's not that we don't want to leave, it's just that there is no where to go yet.

If that changes, you wont have to wait long to see the smoking trail of families, who dont call the UK home, heading for the airport.

To call the beaches here "superb" says more about where you come from than it does about Dubai.

Nick 1

Thank all of you mate , i know is an hard decision.
But i don''t want to go there ,at the inerview to waste their and my time, in my opinion if i go to the interview is because i wan to to be hired. If they hire me obvious.
You know , by single is a very simple decision , but as a man with a family is not so easy , because we always worry for our child and for their future , and i must decide , like most of you in the past or in future , if is better to stay in a very nice but precarius company , or in a more stable one . (If today we can speak of stable position ).
Anyway your warmfull reply will help me to dispel the fog.........
Cheers Nick 1

EL CAPITAN

Sorry to change the subject a little bit, PAYSCALE, how much do you spend a month in golf, ie, playing twice a week, do you have the time to play more than that???????????sorry for the non golfers................The Cap.......

BigGeordie

Aren't we getting a little bit obsessed about beaches and surf here? Surely nobody would make a decision to come or not based on what the beaches are like?

(For the record I like Dubai but hardly ever go to the beach...)

6100

Has nothing to do with the beaches, it just helps to highlight that one mans paradise is another mans sh*thole. Has always been this way and always will.

Nick 1.

Do not be the least bit concerned about wasting the company's time and money. They have plenty of it, and they are not concerned about wasting your time and money.

An interview is a two way process. It is as much for you to look at them as it is for them to look at you. You cannot make a calculated decision without coming here. What you read here is not that relevant, as you don't know yet whether you will be one of the guys that love it or hate it.

By the way, you won't be wasting too much of the company's money because they make you pay your own way here. That, in my opinion, is the single best indicator of how the company will treat you in the long term.

They say all the right things, but words are cheap and airfares expensive. That sums it up for me.

sluggums

6100.......spot on, that just about sums it up

sandkfir

Just to put Dubai in some perspective.It is not as safe and civilised as some would have you believe. Scratch the verneer of shiny glass and marble and you have a rather savage and primitive society. These links are from the local news within the last week. It may be argued that this could happen anywhere but this sort of thing seems to be becomming a regular occurrence here and needs to be considered by someone bringing a family here.


http://www.gulfnews.com/Articles/Nat...ticleID=143430

http://www.gulfnews.com/Articles/Nat...ticleID=143065

donpizmeov

BYMONEK,
I know that all looks grim for the Bus FO community in Ek at the moment, but I think this wishing all Capts to leave so you can get an upgrade a most desperate effort.

Nick,
EK is just another job. If you are living somewhere you are not too keen of, for a company that is causing hair loss, then the lifestyle change may be worth it. But if you want the job to fund your lifestyle (both now and in the future), you may be a bit disapointed. But you will never know unless you come on over and see for yourself.
If you come expecting to save nothing as an FO (if you have a couple of kids at school) and happy for profit share to pay the credit card bills. And understand that time in the right hand seat may be extended from what it is now. And that you may well see DECs come on in during that time. And thats OK, EK should be no problem.
You will start to save as a Capt as you will get more overtime than you thought ever possible (but less than what you would have made last month due to recent pay cut), and very little time off to spend the extra cash.
As has been stated before, the cost of moving home with family once here is pretty steep. So once you are here you will be locked in for quite some time. It is even harder to break ties once kids get to high school etc! If you are single, or kids are young, this is not really such a factor I guess.
There are a lot of positive things as well....great route network, new(ish) aeroplanes and a great bunch of fellas to go to work with.
Good luck with your decision.
Don

helen-damnation

Nick,

With hindsight and experience:

I would have stayed where I was or gone to Virgin/Cathay.
I can't leave now because there isn't anything better after the time I have put in here........so far!

But, the only way you will know is to come yourself and have a good look around. Ask lots of questions (like why have half the recruiters resigned recently ) and talk to some of the guys outside the recruiting/assessment sphere.

Good luck

planepilot

Nick,
I cannot tell you if you should come out here or not, (It is a nice time of the year for a holiday though) so you should enjoy the vacation in Dubai if nothing else.
The idea that Emirates Contract means anything is something debatable, given their past history with all of us here. I am on the 330/340 and this month I am doing 115 hours, great for the overtime pay, but I will be using most of it for doctors and divorce lawyersif I keep flying like this.
The newly changed t&cs have upset the crowd out here some (If that is not an understatement I do not know what is) but on the bright side we will be making a profit this year even though in the process we will have upset our customers (bags going missing, departments being understaffed etc).
My last experience with the t&cs of Emirates came as a surprise, but it should not have as I should have known better. I flew I day off for them, and when I quired if I would get paid for that when I came back from the flight, they told me NO. I am not joking, they will not pay days off although they have agreed to it in the latest info pay package we got, because what they forgot to clearly mention is the fact that we are contracted to have 8 days off in a month and anything more is not an obligation but a bonus. Therefore only if we have less than 8 days off in a month will we be entitled to the day off payments. Needless to say I was upset, but then again that is the last time I agree to work my day off.
PP

Yossarian

Surely you jest. 8 days off is a legal requirement or 7 in 28?

Believe Brother

Emirates? Legal requirements? That is spelt D-I-S-P-E-N-S-A-T-I-O-N

BYMONEK

donpizmeov

I'm all for a different point of view on these forums,however, I object to being quoted on something i havn't said. Please enlighten me as to where I'VE stated my desire for Captains to leave to make way for me? There may well be some people here who feel like that but i'm not one of them.

SandIgger

You appear to have a perverted obsession with limes! Anyway,thank you for your consideration in metric to imperial conversion. You are at least correct in your observation of the idiots who use the road here.By the way,where ARE you from?

BelieveBrother

I do appreciate that moving is a very stessful experience,especially if it involves moving to a foreign country and a job change as well.That is why i advised Nick to do the interview,discuss with wife/partner and then make a decision. I don't think for one minute that there is a single person out there who makes a decision like this without much thought.

I am only answering the question that was posted on this forum.It can only be answered from my point of view and not from anyone elses.Although I and my family are very happy here,you will see from my initial post that there are some negatives as well. There is no perfect place or perfect flying job and i did not expect Dubai or Emirates to provide that.I did expect,however,an improvement in my overall quality of life and that,i'm pleased to say,i've got.( ..AND YES,THAT INCLUDES THE BEACH!)

If people spent as much time and effort in trying to answer some genuine questions rather than condescending and personal attacks on other users,then these forums would be a better place to visit for all of us.

Believe Brother

BYMONEK

I hope you aren't suggesting that I made a personal attack on you, or was condescending. I think we agree about the stress of moving and changing jobs. I suspect I have been here more years than you, and for my part, enjoyed the first few years immensely. This was followed by ambivalence, I guess. I think then I was learning more about the organisation we work for. In recent times, since the arrival of AAR as our EVP of flight ops especially, I have seen conditions deteriorate significantly, and hostility shown towards the pilots and the families of the pilots by a condescending senior management. How many airlines throughout the world have a significant number of their captains placed on formal warnings for two years, accompanied by financial punishment, for unbelievably minor incidents? Emirates has quite a few in this position at present. Any potential joiners should think hard about that and the stress it could cause.

So, yes, for some it will be better, others worse. For me, having come from a democratic society, working here has become quite a chore in recent times. Dubai is nowhere near as nice a place as my home country. When I joined, the T&C's were worth making the move. Now, after all the changes in my time here, it is not worth it - my s*** bucket is overflowing I guess! So I am in the group of individuals planning an exit. But, I do understand that for others, it is different. So there, my few pennies worth in answer to the question posed!

tupac

hi all

I JUST ACCEPTED STBY INTERVIEW FROM EMIRATES, I REALLY APPRECIATE ANY ASSISTANCE REGARDING INTERVIEWS QUESTIONS,SIMMULATOR AND WHERE I CAN PRACTICE PSYCHOMETRIC TEST.

AND SPECIALLY FOR THOSE WHO HAVE DONE THEIR INTERVIEW RECENTLY .

THANK YOU

twieke

Can you also ask them about inflation in Dubai and if they are planning to do anything about adjusting salaries?

The answer will be that there is no inflation and salaries don't need adjusting.

Well, I ordered food in from a restaurant that I hadn't ordered from in a year. Guess what, the prices on the menue have increased by 20 to 30%.

Now this is just a stupid example but that's the way prices in Dubai are going, opposed to salaries. (Unless you are a governement worker).

Good luck with the interview.