What's New In W. Africa (Nigeria)
Join Date: Feb 2004
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Aero Redundancies
Rumor has it that CHC/Aero is dispensing with the service of quite a number of expat pilots (double figures) very shortly. This is due to them losing contracts and having a number of helicopters not on contract. It's also rumored that they've cancelled all orders for new helicopters and fixed wing - maybe the CHC share will get bought out by a different foreign company with a less arrogant, we know everything attitude. From the jewel in the crown of the CHC empire, Aero seems to have changed to the 'log' in the toilet pan which won't flush away 
Join Date: Mar 2008
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Phone Wind slight correction to your last post, CHC didn't announce any staff reductions Aero is the one spreading that unpleasant bit. Also there never were any actual orders for new aircraft , not on the helicopter side anyway, again that was just Aero and their wishful thinking.
And finally if CHC does in fact divorce Aero I honestly can not see anyone in their right mind wanting to swap places with CHC thus becoming the new host organism to the virus known as Aero Contractors.
And finally if CHC does in fact divorce Aero I honestly can not see anyone in their right mind wanting to swap places with CHC thus becoming the new host organism to the virus known as Aero Contractors.
Nigerian In Law
What's happening in Eket ? OOL got it wrong, it was a kidnap not a robbery attempt. Are they still on complete lockdown ?
NEO
NEO
Things must work just a bit different in Nigeria.....usually it is the crooks that get "locked down".
Hang on a mo'......maybe it ain't all that different.
Hang on a mo'......maybe it ain't all that different.
Nigerian In Law
I think this incident will result in some real changes for the workforce in Eket. Some will be happy, others p**sed off but things will never be the same again.
Not that things anywhere in Nigeria resemble the way of life we had 10 years ago or more but now it will be a real lockdown, not just "tick in the box" for insurance purposes measures.
More choices, more jobs to be had. Interesting times.
NEO
Not that things anywhere in Nigeria resemble the way of life we had 10 years ago or more but now it will be a real lockdown, not just "tick in the box" for insurance purposes measures.
More choices, more jobs to be had. Interesting times.
NEO
I Try To Be Good !!
Join Date: May 2006
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The Eket crew have been moved out of their accommodation into Mobil's inner sanctum. I don't suppose that will go down well. Getting treated like a microbe by Rig Pigs who couldn't get a job anywhere else but happen to be direct hires will wear thin really quick !!
Why move people out of what has become their place when a convoy, not Darrels, was attacked ? Maybe they are acting on intelligence this time instead of ignoring it ?
The beer consumption will be monitored........... and reported !!
Watch out guys !!
Why move people out of what has become their place when a convoy, not Darrels, was attacked ? Maybe they are acting on intelligence this time instead of ignoring it ?
The beer consumption will be monitored........... and reported !!
Watch out guys !!
Join Date: May 2007
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Rig Pigs....thats a new one to me, I'm probably out of the business to long.
On Das Island in the 60's, our pax were referred to as Offshore (drilling co.) animals!!
On Das Island in the 60's, our pax were referred to as Offshore (drilling co.) animals!!
So you trade beer for the excellent cuisine.....seems fair to me.
After all....are you just not there to work...do your six weeks then go home to your real life?
After all....are you just not there to work...do your six weeks then go home to your real life?
Nigerian In Law
Sas,
I fear you are being a bit too flippant after recent events.
Life here now bears no resemblance to life when you were last here, so your comment is a bit hard to swallow with one pilot nursing a bullet hole through his foot and another facing a long painful road to recovery.
A long cool beer after a long hot day, especially when locked up until allowed out to fly/fix again is a small but valued "quality time" thing, even if Coke is the person's tipple instead.
Yes, we are here to work but part of the legislation that protects us stipulates mandatory rest. With Mobil watching and reporting every tinny that will be made more difficult. Bear in mind that events such as armed ambushes can have all sorts of delayed effects on different people. Some may need to get things off their chests later rather than sooner. I hope Mobil understand and tolerate..........
NEO
I fear you are being a bit too flippant after recent events.
Life here now bears no resemblance to life when you were last here, so your comment is a bit hard to swallow with one pilot nursing a bullet hole through his foot and another facing a long painful road to recovery.
A long cool beer after a long hot day, especially when locked up until allowed out to fly/fix again is a small but valued "quality time" thing, even if Coke is the person's tipple instead.
Yes, we are here to work but part of the legislation that protects us stipulates mandatory rest. With Mobil watching and reporting every tinny that will be made more difficult. Bear in mind that events such as armed ambushes can have all sorts of delayed effects on different people. Some may need to get things off their chests later rather than sooner. I hope Mobil understand and tolerate..........
NEO
NEO,
Rest as defned by the CAA and FAA....and even Bristow Ops Manual rules...do not include the consumption of alcohol.
I would think rest would be better described as good food, physical exercise, and a good book or movie on the television vice consuming a lot of drink....to the point the customer would be concerned about a pilot's fitness to fly the next day.
Living cheek on jowl with the customer always presents its problems and the current situation is nothing new beyond the additional burden of stress and risk you are having to endure.
Everyone of you are there by choice....not one of you have been press ganged or ordered there by your government in defense of the realm.
Perhaps you guys need to pull up your big boy breeches and get on with the job and accept the conditions you have to accept if you are going to do the job.
You are in it for the money....take the King's Shilling and get to work.
The question I continue to pose to you.....are you being paid commensurate to your risk? Does not sound like it to me.
As to the two wounded guys.....I have all the sympathy and concern for them as you do. Read back over the dozens of posts I have made criticizing the lack of adequate security, pointing out the shortcomings of the security setup, and stating there has been a lack of concern by your management.
No one likes to hear the news that people have been hurt in any way while working in Nigeria.
Prior to this last shooting, I was told you folks out there were quite happy taking the risks and knew the risks but were willing to stay there and work.
Well.....you have taken two more casualties to Nigerian violence. The company is now taking measures to improve your safety by limiting your exposure to the risk of ambush while en-route to your workplace.
Every security measure comes at a price....usually that means a loss of freedom or a loss of privacy. If you are going to work in a dangerous place then you have to be prepared to lose some of your freedom and privacy.
You are quite correct when you talk of some needing to shed some stress that resulted from the shooting. They need to do that in a healthy way and not by peering inside a brown bottle. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is real and can result from being involved in an ambush and shootout just as occurred the other day. Professional counseling is what works for preventing the onset of PTSD.
No amount of counseling will help the stress that comes from continuing to work in a place that way deep down you really do not want to be at....the cure for that is to find a place where you are comfortable and happy being at.
Rest as defned by the CAA and FAA....and even Bristow Ops Manual rules...do not include the consumption of alcohol.
I would think rest would be better described as good food, physical exercise, and a good book or movie on the television vice consuming a lot of drink....to the point the customer would be concerned about a pilot's fitness to fly the next day.
Living cheek on jowl with the customer always presents its problems and the current situation is nothing new beyond the additional burden of stress and risk you are having to endure.
Everyone of you are there by choice....not one of you have been press ganged or ordered there by your government in defense of the realm.
Perhaps you guys need to pull up your big boy breeches and get on with the job and accept the conditions you have to accept if you are going to do the job.
You are in it for the money....take the King's Shilling and get to work.
The question I continue to pose to you.....are you being paid commensurate to your risk? Does not sound like it to me.
As to the two wounded guys.....I have all the sympathy and concern for them as you do. Read back over the dozens of posts I have made criticizing the lack of adequate security, pointing out the shortcomings of the security setup, and stating there has been a lack of concern by your management.
No one likes to hear the news that people have been hurt in any way while working in Nigeria.
Prior to this last shooting, I was told you folks out there were quite happy taking the risks and knew the risks but were willing to stay there and work.
Well.....you have taken two more casualties to Nigerian violence. The company is now taking measures to improve your safety by limiting your exposure to the risk of ambush while en-route to your workplace.
Every security measure comes at a price....usually that means a loss of freedom or a loss of privacy. If you are going to work in a dangerous place then you have to be prepared to lose some of your freedom and privacy.
You are quite correct when you talk of some needing to shed some stress that resulted from the shooting. They need to do that in a healthy way and not by peering inside a brown bottle. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is real and can result from being involved in an ambush and shootout just as occurred the other day. Professional counseling is what works for preventing the onset of PTSD.
No amount of counseling will help the stress that comes from continuing to work in a place that way deep down you really do not want to be at....the cure for that is to find a place where you are comfortable and happy being at.
Join Date: Feb 2004
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I'm posting below a quote from another website from someone who was on the other bus in the convoy which was attacked last week. It seems appalling that Exxon Mobil did not pass on the intelligence of an attack to the other contractors 
. NEO is this true
SASless,
Maybe you were just in it for the money, but there are still people out here who can remember what life was like and want some enjoyment as well as money. As for everyone being here by choice, you know very well that it's not necessarily so. Many times the choices we have are strictly limited and whilst nobody has been press-ganged into it any more than anyone is press-ganged into the military any more, sometimes it's the only choice we have if we're trying to get back on our feet after a huge financial adversity. Don't even start by saying that's also the fault of the individual - one of my friends is here because he lost all his money and his house paying very expensive medical bills to American hospitals and doctors and hospitals as his wife was dying and after his medical insurance ran out.
talklimited,
The rumor I heard is that Aero have told CHC 12 expat pilots must be laid off from Nigeria and that some people are being told not to return from leave for the present. This is supposed to be because Caverton took the LNG contract from them, meaning that one AW139 is now surplus and Bristow have won the Agbami contract and now their S92 has arrived, 2 CHC 76s will be taken off contract in the next few weeks. Sadly, more bad news for Aero who, if more rumors are to be believed, now owe CHC more than US$ 120 million
. NEO is this true
I was in the convoy that morning and have a couple of facts to add to your very valid issues:
1. ExxonMobil went to Security State Red the week prior to the attack as they had intelligence that an attack on a convoy was being planned. As far as I am aware this was not transmitted to any contractors nor any measures taken to counter the threat. We only found out the day after.
2. The ExxonMobil security advisor was called immediately after the attack (when speeding down the road to QIT) and requested to ensure the gate security and clinic were alerted prior to the Bristow bus arrival. They had to argue at the gate and wait 10 minutes for a nurse and ambulance driver to show up at the clinic. No alert and no doctor !!
So complacency was indeed the order of the day. People got killed/hurt to effect any sort of change. I left Eket as soon as I could and am now considering (with my family) whether to return. Not just to a well protected locked prison but also to an oil company who employ such incompetent people and ignore their own inadequacies. With this kind of "need to know" mentality something else will happen if not another convoy attack.
1. ExxonMobil went to Security State Red the week prior to the attack as they had intelligence that an attack on a convoy was being planned. As far as I am aware this was not transmitted to any contractors nor any measures taken to counter the threat. We only found out the day after.
2. The ExxonMobil security advisor was called immediately after the attack (when speeding down the road to QIT) and requested to ensure the gate security and clinic were alerted prior to the Bristow bus arrival. They had to argue at the gate and wait 10 minutes for a nurse and ambulance driver to show up at the clinic. No alert and no doctor !!
So complacency was indeed the order of the day. People got killed/hurt to effect any sort of change. I left Eket as soon as I could and am now considering (with my family) whether to return. Not just to a well protected locked prison but also to an oil company who employ such incompetent people and ignore their own inadequacies. With this kind of "need to know" mentality something else will happen if not another convoy attack.
Maybe you were just in it for the money, but there are still people out here who can remember what life was like and want some enjoyment as well as money. As for everyone being here by choice, you know very well that it's not necessarily so. Many times the choices we have are strictly limited and whilst nobody has been press-ganged into it any more than anyone is press-ganged into the military any more, sometimes it's the only choice we have if we're trying to get back on our feet after a huge financial adversity. Don't even start by saying that's also the fault of the individual - one of my friends is here because he lost all his money and his house paying very expensive medical bills to American hospitals and doctors and hospitals as his wife was dying and after his medical insurance ran out.
talklimited,
The rumor I heard is that Aero have told CHC 12 expat pilots must be laid off from Nigeria and that some people are being told not to return from leave for the present. This is supposed to be because Caverton took the LNG contract from them, meaning that one AW139 is now surplus and Bristow have won the Agbami contract and now their S92 has arrived, 2 CHC 76s will be taken off contract in the next few weeks. Sadly, more bad news for Aero who, if more rumors are to be believed, now owe CHC more than US$ 120 million
there are still people out here who can remember what life was like and want some enjoyment as well as money.
Having some money and enjoyment out of life is what we all seek.
How does one accomplish that by being in Eket currently? Surely, it is not the lifestyle one experiences in Eket that constitutes the enjoyment you mention?
I can remember when Nigeria was not a "bad" place to be...work wise or to live in...but that is not the case now I would think.
Enjoyment.....in Nigeria as compared to say Thailand, Ghana, Aberdeen, Lousiana....well skip Louisana perhaps?
Join Date: Sep 2001
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SASless,
I guess you've been away for too long to remember that for many of us there's still pleasure to be had in the flying, of which there's plenty at Eket, and the company of a great bunch of guys after work
Meanwhile as there's so much bad news on here lately, here are a couple of photos of Bristow's new babies arriving at Lagos. I'm sure the crew will post some pictures of the ferry from Aberdeen once they've finished sorting out their paperwork.
The S92:
The S76C+, a 'round gauge' still in Norsk colours and on Norwegian registration. It will be going straight into a D check:
I guess you've been away for too long to remember that for many of us there's still pleasure to be had in the flying, of which there's plenty at Eket, and the company of a great bunch of guys after work
Meanwhile as there's so much bad news on here lately, here are a couple of photos of Bristow's new babies arriving at Lagos. I'm sure the crew will post some pictures of the ferry from Aberdeen once they've finished sorting out their paperwork.
The S92:
The S76C+, a 'round gauge' still in Norsk colours and on Norwegian registration. It will be going straight into a D check:
Sogs,
Your are so right....how could I forget the sheer ecstasy of bouncing around the Ubit field....or orbiting overhead the Idoho while four other aircraft led the way onto the deck? Beats anything else by a mile!
Your are so right....how could I forget the sheer ecstasy of bouncing around the Ubit field....or orbiting overhead the Idoho while four other aircraft led the way onto the deck? Beats anything else by a mile!
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SASless,
You let your hatred and bitterness of anything Bristow to come through on most of your posts and it gets pretty boring after a while. It's obvious you haven't been to Nigeria in many years, though you're just as obviously still well-informed as to what's happening here - not difficult with the internet. You've obviously been around for a long time, so why not make some positive comments once in a while and remember that Bristow may not be the best, but they're probably a lot better than Aero at the moment and there are a lot of Aero guys who'd be more than happy to be working for Bristow and orbiting the Idoho right now as our own company seems hell-bent on self-destruction
soggy,
That S92 really does look the business and the cabin looks as if it will make the passengers pretty happy. Does it have a baggage compartment big enough to hold the bags for 19 or is it going to be a problem with baggage bulking it out as with all the other types here (including the EC225 from what I'm told)? Is the bicycle because the cabin is so long
?
B412,
Did you fly the S92 out here? What's it really like to fly? Is it smooth with that active vibration damping? Can it really maintain 150 knots out here with a full load? I look forward to more photos of the ferry flight. You're very lucky (and I'm turning green
).
You let your hatred and bitterness of anything Bristow to come through on most of your posts and it gets pretty boring after a while. It's obvious you haven't been to Nigeria in many years, though you're just as obviously still well-informed as to what's happening here - not difficult with the internet. You've obviously been around for a long time, so why not make some positive comments once in a while and remember that Bristow may not be the best, but they're probably a lot better than Aero at the moment and there are a lot of Aero guys who'd be more than happy to be working for Bristow and orbiting the Idoho right now as our own company seems hell-bent on self-destruction
soggy,
That S92 really does look the business and the cabin looks as if it will make the passengers pretty happy. Does it have a baggage compartment big enough to hold the bags for 19 or is it going to be a problem with baggage bulking it out as with all the other types here (including the EC225 from what I'm told)? Is the bicycle because the cabin is so long
?B412,
Did you fly the S92 out here? What's it really like to fly? Is it smooth with that active vibration damping? Can it really maintain 150 knots out here with a full load? I look forward to more photos of the ferry flight. You're very lucky (and I'm turning green
).