job in Hawaii
 

You have to take everything you hear from a KIwi with a grain of salt, pay a bond for a Chieftan job, you would be nuts. I am a Yank , who is living in NZ, and have been for the last 15 years. Trust me, Do not get involved. There have been more start up operators in Hawaii, who ground to a halt than lippo suction jobs in LA.. You can do better. Hang in ther mate.

X man

Jezza,

I was inferring using personal knowledge about the aviation industry in general, and if the future boss is concentrating on asking you whether you'd be willing to do other jobs (ie office biatch) vs your flying experience, then I reckon you could make a pretty accurate assumptions and inferences about what you'd be in for.

I got Snarly, or as you say

because you are telling others that

That is utter crud, you are the one that has a lot to learn with that mindset.

AND MY PERSONAL FAVORITE

You're the 'young' one here mate. With 850 hrs you are 'young' experience wise, and I don't care what your age is.

So go away, and grow up.

j3
And I have no idea why you are so vehemently fighting either...

This forum reminds me of a school kids playground. Grow up guys we're on here purely for advice and opinions, not smart ass comments.

Jezza, went to the interview myself on monday. Upon meeting the guy, immediately got a bad vibe.. Then came the interview..

Lacked in many areas. Firstly, he informs me that the comapany is no longer starting up in Hawaii, due to the 25/12/09 attempted terrorist attack. The company is to be opened in NZ. Later in the interview, he tells me the plan has been seven years in the making. I assume this is seven years in the making having the company based in Hawaii?? yet it takes only a month to move it to New Zealand?? what happens to the supposed contracts he already had in Hawaii?? how has he found enough buisness contacts in a month to establish the company in NZ?? And the fact that he's trying to break into the small freight industry, how does he expect to compete with other already established and highly successful companies??

He went on to ask me how much the salary he had mentioned was, and also what he had said the start month would be.. a couple of very basic, but essential things you'd think an employer may remember..

as you said, he seemed far more interested in everything about me other then flying, in fact I don't recall him asking me a single question to do with my flying....

Yes he did say the bond would be payed to a solicitor, but wouldnt give me a name, it could be his mate at the local pub for all i know.. wouldnt put it past him considering the interview was held at his home residence!!

Mate, the list goes on, there's way to many warning signs to trust this guy, and if it's not a scam, then it's a poorly thought out buisness plan, either way this idiots not getting anywhere near my wallet.

All the best.

Sooooo.........

No more Hawaii?

20k bond (upfront) still stands?

No aircraft?

Sounds legit to me. Have at it, Bro. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. It's win-win. Get in at the ground level. When the airlines start hiring, that RHS PA-31 time will be invaluable. Don't call it a BOND, it's an INVESTMENT in your future, mate!

It's all good! What could possibly go wrong?

Go to the Caribbean... Its ICAO, they wont bond you, you have people to do everything for you all you need to do is turn up and fly. GA at its best. Plus they pay $US

Jezza

I worked for NZ GA... I know what your talking about.

Just letting you know that there are GA operators out there that do treat you right, and pay decent tin to do what you were trained to do. You just have to look hard to find them.

NZ GA can be the best and the worst.


And to ZK-NSN

I wonder if this guy has been chatting with RMCK!

Could very well be Mr T, it has that Rothmans smell to it. :ok:

Running freight in NZ in a cheftain is pretty unlikely these days, even Aztec and six operators are losing contracts. More economical to run a courier van than an aircraft, The economy still being very slow contracts would be very hard to come by anyway.

Dont worry jezza, i reads reel ok, its just me speeling that needs to get gooderer at. If he offers you the CEO job and says "dont worry its just some paperwork thing".....take it.

To the pub!

I would have thought the Cook Strait would be one of the few places where a light twin operator would make some freight money. Wellington to Nelson is a long trip my road with the ferry crossing and that. Not that I can think of any who are... but I'm quite young...:oh:

Thanks Krazy for starting this disscussion, its interesting reading everyone's thoughts on this potential job opportunity.

In the current entry level job market there aren't too many opportunities like this that come up. For them to be asking for a $20,000 up front bond on first impressions seems odd as that isnt the norm, but also quite sensible. It cuts down the amount of potential applicants and also ensures that you have pilots who are committed to you for the 12months.

I would be interested to hear from anyone who has proceeded past the first interview.

I guess until you are at the point of handing over your hard earned cash, what is the harm in applying for this role?

Well I know he's still doing interviews. Have now been told non-residents will find out about their interviews next week. Which means he's already behind the schedule he set for himself a couple of weeks ago!!!

If your willing to pay 20k for a PA31 Job, whats next? 50k for a A320 endorsement and 500hours on type? or maybe 70k for A330 with 500 on type?

Good luck getting your $20,000USD back after a year!

20K is on the money for an A320 endorsement! I didn't know the PA31s were so complex! :yuk:

I suppose it cuts out all the applicants who are not willing to drop their daks and bend over, and all the guys who would make good decisions in the cockpit...because lets face it, if you pay a 20k bond for a PA-31 your an idiot.

Better not put it on ebay, the Kiwis will be paying over 50k after a bidding war :}

smy turn bro :ouch:

You could use the 20k to live on the front door step of your favourite operator until they hired you. Or use it to pay the bond when you get arrested for trespassing and public nudity.

Any other people who've interviewed who haven't shared? Your story is of much interest.

I went for a interview earlier this week. When I got the info about the job, the first thing I thought was, this sounds a little dodgy, but hay worth finding out a bit more about it.
Did a bit of research into it, esp the man himself. He has been director of many companies before, including kiwi airlines ltd back in 1998 and was also with origin pacific and we all know what happen there.
Set up does sound a little weird, he wants to start up in Hawaii, but now has been put off due to "security issues", and setting up a courier business in NZ with one of the PA31. So what is going to happen to the NZ business when Hawaii is all up and running?
Apparently the aircraft have been brought and are in Hawaii, and getting ZK reg, then bringing one to NZ.
If it is all legit and he is really making a good go at this, what are the chances of competing in the market.
Bond wise, yes it is steep and the main reason why it sounds dodgy.
Anyway, not going into this blind and will be asking a lot more questions.

So his intention is one PA-31 aircraft in NZ.

Does that mean he is only looking for 5 pilots now?

With respect to the Cash Bond, I understand from the posts that this is to be lodged with a third party solicitor, however there is usually a Bond Agreement to accompany it that spells out under what circumstances the Company are able to 'call on the bond' and withdraw the money from the third party. Does anyone have details of this?

As long as the 'call' is in accordance with the clauses of the Bond Agreement the third party can happily release the bond to the Company without fear of any legal redress.

The wording of the bond agreement is crucial and I urge the 'chosen few' to pay particular attention to this document above all others.

I think that if you read the letter he sends out to applicants, it all becomes clearer. He says -

• BOND: If you accept to go ahead you will be required to pay $5,000 by 29 January which covers immigration costs, airfares and legal expenses. When immigration is approved, you will then be required by 12 March to pay $20,000 as a security bond. If you join the business as a fully qualified Multi Engine Instrument rating, Commercial Pilot this will be refundable after 12 months.

What the bond is actually going towards (for some applicants) is a complete licence, multi instrument rating and type rating, not just a type rating alone. It is actually a pretty good deal if you are an ab initio. Of course the next question would be, why not have a two-tier system for those who have the CPL and multi instrument? Although the qualified people get their 20K back (hopefully) which makes it a simple loyalty bond for them.

Makes you wonder if he still wants the extra 5K, seeing as how Hawaii is off the cards for now (and probably always will be).

If you can verify that whoever is holding the money is trustworthy, and if you don't mind doing everything else besides flying, and if you actually have the cash in the first place - may be worth a punt. You'd need to be pretty desperate, though...

Remoak

I don't know if your post was in response to mine but the paragraph relating to the bond within the letter is certainly sketchy to say the least and for any legit business operation which MT purports to be there should be a lot more detail than this - and I hope he will provide this in due course.

Tell me, based on the information you have to hand, and assuming you had the money would you take a 'punt'?

If so, then I think I would think twice about being your first officer I am sorry to say. With everything looking doubtful you would still be the one to take the risk anyway rather than walk away. Think the airlines would have something to say about your risk profile!!

Biggles


ps. Is MT a pilot himself? Sounds a bit odd that someone starting a new business would not do some of the flying himself to keep overheads low at the beginning? Who would be his Chief Pilot?

biggles7374

No, you posted while I was writing my contribution, so I didn't see it until after I posted.

Would I take a punt on this? Not a chance in hell! But then I have over 10K hours in my logbook, mostly jet, and I'm not desperate, so...

No company (in my experience) tells you much about the bond until you accept the job, other than how much it is for and how it is administered. I would need a lot of convincing to sign such an agreement, but if you are an ab initio looking to move straight into a Chieftain, it could well be a very sweet deal. There are a huge number of "ifs", though.

I don't really think it is a big risk if you do your homework properly, and pay close attention to what your head is telling you, rather than your (aviation) heart. Any third-party lawyer who retained your bond outside of the scope of a bond agreement would be wide open to fraud charges, so really it comes down to reading the contract carefully and getting advice if you are not sure.

As I said, for an ab initio it COULD be a fantastic opportunity. Just be careful.

Cheers Remoak, I appreciate your response.