Philippines
 

Anyone out there care to comment on life as a pilot in the the Philippines. What are the requirements, prospects, etc.

Primary requirement is to be a Filipino.
There have occasionally been contracts there for expats, but only until a Filipino is trained up to qualify for that position.

Life there was beeeauuutiful - and the flying better.
The night life isn't all bad, either :E

Good Luck to you, if you can successfully score a job there for a few months (or longer).

Goodluck, I've been trying there for a couple of years and no job offer that I can really stomach. Just to give you an idea, an F.O. for the one and only major airline there is making $700 a month flying 747 and A340 aircraft. And one company (corporate express) flying caravans as Fedex feeder offered me a job for $900/month. I told them that I'm not going to fly a single engine cessna over the ocean for that amount of money.
If you want my advice, buy a couple of C150s and start your own flight school there, that's what I'm going to do very soon and I'm looking for a partner/flight instructor.
;) Interested?

Depends on what kind of flying you want to do, eeking out a living
as a pilot is more glamour than reward in the Philippines, you look good, at the end of the day, you won't be laughing all the way to the bank no matter what you fly or for whom.

Loss of license insurance is something you hear about but don't find it with the majors. Retirement pay is something you think you'll get if you ever make it past the age of 55 with the amount of flying they make you do. Bottom line? Flying is for the birds, not for people.

thanks for the comments, I'm just researching right now and plan to travel there this summer

Flying here is great fun...you'll be well respected, pilot camaraderie is exceptional, and right now the demand for Pilots is at an all-time high. From what i've been hearing..1000 hour pilots with CPL/ IR's and no attitude problems are quickly snagged by PAL for Airbus s/o positions. 2000 hour guys are grabbed by Cebu Pacific/ Air Phil for DC-9/737-200 fo seats.

Just don't expect salaries to support a hedonistic lifestyle though. As Medwin said, $900 monthly for caravan captains doesn't sound so appetizing . Jet jockeys aren't too far ahead of that figure either..so unless you have a successful business on the side, that Subaru Impreza WRX or Mitsu Lancer EVO 9 is really just a dream..

........Oh I forgot to mention also, poor pay, bad morale, everyone leaving, no proffesional attitude towards the line guys, bad rosters, 100 hours/month, ....it just gets better, no appreciable change in the last 10 years.....bad..bad..bad. makes you wonder why a major of this size doesn't do anything to stem the flow of people exiting besides sticking you with overpriced contracts and veiled threats. oh well..........:yuk:

hi semper fi.
I assume you must be flying for Philippine Airlines, you sound a little disillusioned with it all. What is your background are you a national? are there any expats flying where you are? if things are really so bad why do you stay. Do your friends at other airlines in the Philippines agree with your assessment and why is it like you discribe?

Skydrfter....

Be it ever so humble, there is no place like home........:O