DEC in Asia / China
 

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You'll find it very hard in Vietnam to have a decent standard of living and pay the school fees for 2 kids, on an A320 captain salary, at any of the 3 main airlines. I did it for the first seven years I was here, during which time the school fees have nearly doubled, with no pay rise from the company. I finally yielded to the inevitable last year and sent the family home, and went onto a part time commuting contract.

Here's the fee page for the main British school in Ho Chi Minh, you're looking at near $50,000 worth of fees per annum for the two kids, once your little one starts. https://img.nordangliaeducation.com/...-2018-2019.pdf

Hi Mr. Hamster,



From how you sound in your post it seems to me that you haven't been thinking about this long, otherwise most of your questions would have been answered already, i.e. "direct with airline or contract", "how are the medicals", "staff travel", "career progression", etc... Nothing wrong with that, at all. It is just that moving to Asia is about more than the salary or quality of schools, is about being in a place where, maybe, you just don't count as an individual or a professional. It is about living in your bubble, half of it by your own choice, the other half because you are not really wanted out of it.

I'm not trying to discourage you, but to make you realize that checking the T&C's doesn't even cover 10% of what the change is going to be, and you sound a bit oblivious about what will really involve moving here. I'm entering my 15th year living in South East Asia with my family, and I have seen many fine professionals giving up on this region after only a couple of years, and that was while being in higher payed positions than me or other long time stayers, so it is not all about the money.

Be ready not to be considered as part of the team, while being expected to accept it with a smile because "you have to understand that you are not one of us". Be ready to be lied, gaslighted, manipulated, being told half truths, all this being part of the normal routine of social relations here. Be ready to be attacked just for displaying an opinion different from that of the attacker, be ready to survive in a world where losing face is just not an option, no matter what the implications. Be ready to share your everyday activities and routines with people who don't know anything other than "the survival of the fittest". Be ready, in short, to leave not your own country, but the very set or rules that have governed your life for the last 35 years, down to the core.

If you plan to come here for just a couple of years then use all the money available to enjoy those years as a kind of tourist, "scratching" the surface of this part of the world. There is plenty to enjoy and you'll remember it as quite an experience. However, if you plan to stay longer, start by questioning how much of yourself you are willing to let go or transform so you can fit in this society. Sounds very philosophical, but the truth is that, despite the behaviours described above, I have met expats living here for way longer than me, many of them very wise people. If I had to describe them in a few words I'd say that they are people who, from the first moment, didn't judge this place, just accepted it as it came to them. Some of them live like locals and some others drive fancy cars, but all of them are defined by that same quality.

If you need more info, or another "coming of age" speech send me a PM.

Iggy,
That is a perfect explanation/description of being an expat in Asia. Well done!!

Jeez it's just a job. If you are a complete aerosexual who spends all his working life obsessing over ops manuals, comparing standards in your new job to your old job, and spends his days off hanging out with pilots drinking with pilots bitching about pilot stuff, then these kind of third world contract jobs will drive you up the wall very quick.

If you recognize it for what it is, aim to be the best and safest captain you can be in your own aircraft and don't care about what "they" do, make a conscious effort to NOT bring work home with you, don't touch management or instructing jobs with a 40 foot pole, cultivate a circle of non-pilot friends, enjoy the benefits of expat life in your new country, while also getting back to your home country as often as possible, you'll stay grounded.

It won't change you "down to the core" unless you let it.

Very well stated, and very true.

Be careful what you wish for.

Never give up a stable job in your home country to become an Expat.

( Worked 8 years in Asia )

"Just being back from a nice holiday in Thailand, and having spend a month in Vietnam some years ago as well I am very interested to turn my life around and move to Asia."

Here lies the big difference: being somewhere on holiday goes nowhere near where your problems might be... It might be funny that the taxi driver or waiter misunderstands every word you say, but it wears you down quite quickly once you realise that there is no way back, you do not have a job back home... I was in Vietnam for a bit more than 3 years. I enjoyed every minute of my time there, had no problems with ops or the colleagues. I still miss it 5 years on, but I would not go back from my current job. I am happy I went, as the experience cleared the "bigger shiny jet the better" and "I have to join a flag carrier" syndrome out of my system. If you can go on unpaid leave for at least a year, you might want to try nevertheless. Do not go for less than a year as for a few month, due to the new circumstances, even the dark side of the Moon might seem better than where you are now.

Iggy is a wise man, listen to what he has to say!

Exactly my experience.