passed interview and waiting
 

Passed a s/o interview almost year and a half ago. We were told possible start April 2009, then maybe late 2009, then early 2010 at the latest and now.... Who the fk knows! Very little communication from HR. The worst part of all of this is I'm not applying for other jobs just because of Cathay and a possibility of a start date. In the mean time they are interviewing and hiring cadets, for half the price ofcourse. Well good luck fellas, but all of this ''nosepulling'' by a 5 star airline is ridiculous and childish at best.:ouch:

may I just ask if you are a DESO or a DEFO?

I would guess DESO as said he passed the SO interview.

Know how you feel mate, Im in the same boat. Interview mid '08 and heard the same updates as you. Rumor was that the training plan would be out by now and that we would have an update.

Just like you I have passed on other opportunities because Cathay was always meant to be just around the corner. Starting to think I should just pay the money for a rating somewhere.

Worst thing in my thoughts at the moment is whether DEFO will start up again after I get a start. Guys are potentially going to come in as DEFO with less experience than I have.

Anyone have the number for that truck driving school? Truckmaster I think it was...

yeah, DESO interview mid 08, then scheduled for final interview + sim in HK a month or two later, which was put on hold the day before 'due to the financial crisis'..... :hmm:

I took up another offer elsewhere and am glad I did. Anyone's guess as to when the recruiting process will kick off again, and for who.

Good thing I have a steady tprop job in Europe. I was very close to quitting just a few months before a (proposed, as told during interview) start date. I wanted to take a nice 2 month holiday before going off to Australia for initial training. Luckily I didn't jump the gun but I didn't expect this from an airline like Cathay. :ugh:

my mistake!

thanks

"Anyone's guess as to when the recruiting process will kick off again, and for who."

Well here are my thoughts. From the outside this is what I think is going on. HR haven't updated us on the recruitment picture yet because they don't know themselves. I think that the longer the downturn, the worse it is for us DESOs in the pool. However after the Christmas and New Year period I think CX will be in a better position to judge where they are at.

If things start to pick up in the New Year then i think those of us in the DESO pool will start to hear from HR and perhaps get a few offers of DESO courses, this is simply because it takes at least 18 to 24 months to send a cadet applicant from 0 to hero being ready to fly the line. If the downturn continues and there is no recover or indication of a recovery in the New Year I think all of us in the Pool can say goodbye to the dream or whatever you want to call it. Again just my opinion.

As far as turning down jobs waiting for CX I would be very careful as CX may never call, someone once told me that in aviation you should always keep your bags packed and be ready to move. I thought that was the best advice I had heard about this job. Good luck to everyone and I hope we all land stable employment that we can enjoy and not worry about making ends meet.

In the same boat as you... my main concern is the cadet program; I honestly don't see why there will EVER be a need for us DESOs if they can find guys who will do the same job, but without the (expensive) housing benefits. It's no small commitment to be willing to move across the world to work for a company, we've all done a lot to prepare and it would be a shame for it to all fall through after over a year in limbo. I suppose we will see - hopefully in the next couple months..

The word out is that there will be between 0 to 20 SO upgrades to JFO for the whole of 2010. That doesn't open a lot of positions for new SOs to join. Also, there is the real possibility that the CAD will approve long haul flights with three crew instead of the current four very soon, which will obvioulsy also reduce the crewing requirements. Add to that the recently changed retirement age (increased by ten years from 55 to 65) and the prospects of upgrades and hiring look slim. I don't mean to discourage anyone but this is the current situation.

Hey bud, not sure where you have been over the past year but there has been a global financial crisis. What do you expect... continue DESO/DEFO recruitment and then make people redundant? It's no one else's fault except yours for the position that you are in. You hadn't been offered a start date or signed anything confirming your start date so the ball is not in your court... sorry!!

Stay positive dude... agree with your concerns and many believe that CX won't get the pilots (demand and quality) they are after under the new proposed plans. Housing is, if not the only reason why people come to CX. DESO's will be eventually back... but it may take time.

**For those that are concerned, latest info from the 6th floor is that there will not be any recruitment for DESO's in 2010. A steady flow of cadets will continue though.

and DEFO's?

Two weeks ago I flew with one of the Captains who is also one the interviewers for the S/Os (both Cadet as well as International). We had a conversation regarding the Company's requirements for future pilots as we are delivering additional aircraft.

He told me that for 2010, the Company is looking for 160-180 S/Os that most will be placed onto the B777. He explained that the ones that didn't pass their interviews were mainly because they did not do 'their homework' in learning about the Company, its history, the types of planes flown, route structure and basic aeronautical knowledge. For prospective S/Os, you don't need to be able to explain Reynolds Number but a basic knowledge of aviation should be required if One wants to become a CX airline pilot - a difference between those that want to fly because of passion, and those that decided to apply because they couldn't think of anything else to do (you'd be surprised how may are that way).

As far as DEFOs, he explained that there are no more DEFOs. The Company's plans are to hire DESOs and promote them as they accumulate seniority as well as passing the appropriate internal 'hoop jumps'. Mind you, this is NOW - and as the aviation industry is always dynamic, this is ALWAYS 'subject to operational control', meaning, it can change again next week.

Good luck to All that apply :)

Thanks HA. That sounds a little promising. Lets hope he and recruitment are on the same page!

Sioux

The increase in retirement age to 65 along with the CPP scheme being opened worldwide had been a very very shrewd move by CX management and looks very good for a Vision 2020 plan.

Firstly, the retirement age increase means DEFO will not exist for a very very long time. It may never return unless passenger numbers and demand increase 10 fold which is impossible. So as a rough guide, DEFO will never happen again and does not need to happen. There is just no demand to attract DEFOs.

Secondly, the amount of cadets coming through the CPP who do not have housing allowance is another very big cost saver. 4 CP groups will graduate in 2010 with the first 2 having at least a 8-12 month wait before being called up by CX. So the demand for SOs actually begins late 2010 to early 2011. By 2011, you will have 6 groups of CP Cadets graduating.

So my best guess is the DESO pool will be cancelled as well for the foreseeable furture. A very very smart move has been made by CX. Whilst the majority of us aren't happy about these measures coming into play all over the shop, you sure need to give credit where credit's due. And maybe, just maybe measures like this may save the jobs of current pilots here-many of whom cant see past their own noses.

160-180 is 10% of our pilots! So CX needing this amount (SOs only-just for the 77W!) in 2010 is obviously wrong.

Given the global financial crisis and the decline in demand, I understand why graduating cadets and DESOs are put on hold. However, I don't believe that the DESO program will ever be eliminated - yes, it may be postponed due to the economy, but it will not be eliminated because of the cadet program.

Yes, CX has opened up the Cadet Program internationally and plan to take in more cadets, but the truth is, the cadet program will never be able to accommodate enough cadets to replace the DESOs altogether.

Sure, things may change...but at the moment, with just one flight school in Australia, it is unlikely that the cadet program will meet all the needs of CX.

I'm not sure. If you have an average of 6 X 16 graduating per year, then you are supplying almost 100 cadets per year and we definately do not have 100 upgrades per year from SO-JFO. And SO upgrades as we know depend on what is happening down the line.

Nope. My "forseeable future" is 5 -8 years and I'm happy to be corrected and I'd love someone to dig out this post within the next 8 years and be able to say I was wrong.

Well accepting applications is very different to one of the guys/gals on the 6th processing them. And you are right, the pool is full and having the potential to work for CX means many more will continue to swim rather than get out - at least for a good 2 years until they find a good enough reason to get out.

Definately applicants should continue to update their hours - regularly!!- but expect nothing back so you wont be dissapointed. A pool is exactly what it is - a place to just pluck the fish when you're hungry. Sure it will always be there.

Well, true that they are looking for 16 x 6 per year...but I don't think they will be able to find this many suitable cadets...unless they change something about their selection process/standard.

They have. They went international due to there not being enough suitable candidates at home.

And there are more than enough takers. Ex-FI with 800 hours is on one of the CP courses. Personally thats probably one aspect of the scheme/industry I wouldn't want to boast about. I think it is a real shame that a fATPL FI needs to start again just to get in the industry but CX will mopping up this calibre of pilots for a good few more years.

A lot of international cadets who apply already have many hours towards a PPL or are already on the CPL part. Obviously a big difference compared to when we recruited HK only.