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Originally Posted by 1201alarm
Find that way too negative and judgemental. I started on an 150 seat narrowbody in my twenties, upgraded to CPT and trainer relatively quickly (both after less than 10 years) and I still tremendously enjoy flying around Europe. So far I have flown to all the major airports in Europe (MAD, FRA, MUC, LHR, ZRH, AMS, CDG, FCO), I have flown to all the typical charter destinations (canaries, the greek islands, PMI, IBZ, corsica, sardinia, ...), all that mixed with lots of smaller european cities (ALC, FAO, NCE, BUD, WAW, these are just examples, there are a three digit figure of them), and besides all that I flew as far as the canaries, north africa, egypt, israel, russia, iceland etc.
It was pretty much everything within 5h of flight time of central europe and with 1700m of concrete. It is a tremendous variety in flying challenges and it all comes with hardly any night flights, no jetlag and no flat-sitting of your backside for hours over an ocean.
I might want at one point to go longhaul, but if not, no regrets either.
If I go longhaul, I'd prefer a medium size widebody which has a more divers route network. The thought of going to the same 8 destinations for 20 years sounds scarily boring to me. But each to their own.
It was pretty much everything within 5h of flight time of central europe and with 1700m of concrete. It is a tremendous variety in flying challenges and it all comes with hardly any night flights, no jetlag and no flat-sitting of your backside for hours over an ocean.
I might want at one point to go longhaul, but if not, no regrets either.
If I go longhaul, I'd prefer a medium size widebody which has a more divers route network. The thought of going to the same 8 destinations for 20 years sounds scarily boring to me. But each to their own.
I have spent 5 years blasting around Europe and 99 times out of 100 it’s pretty easy.
The thought of flying around Europe for 30+ more years would be soul destroying.
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Originally Posted by AIMINGHIGH123
So you barely scratched the surface then.
I have spent 5 years blasting around Europe and 99 times out of 100 it’s pretty easy.
The thought of flying around Europe for 30+ more years would be soul destroying.
I have spent 5 years blasting around Europe and 99 times out of 100 it’s pretty easy.
The thought of flying around Europe for 30+ more years would be soul destroying.
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Originally Posted by speed13ird
Jet2's avoidance of bad press this year has been because they don't have a LGW base.
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It seems I aroused some souls... 
Just wanted to make a counter point by stating what European flying can offer if you are in the right company, and I define "the right company" not with the money earned. Money was always fair, not huge, but not little either, just fair.
Don't know what you meant by scratching the surface, and what you consider easy or not.
Well, I enjoy dealing with the daily mishaps, challenges and opportunities of optimization in shorthaul ops.
I try to coordinate my turnaround so I can get offblock 3 min earlier. I enjoy asking for a visual and cutoff 5 min of flight time. I enjoy calling ops control to switch aircraft for some good reason when ops control had a bad chaotic day and lost oversight. I enjoy calling the ramp agent on the company frequency and organise a quick transfer in his little van to a passengers connecting flight, if it is the pasengers last chance to reach destination on that day and we are behind schedule. I like to go into the italian terminal during turnaround and buy cornetti con crema for the whole crew. I calculate a takeoff performance full length and another for the intersection when sensible and when I see on taxiout that the intersection gives me an immediate departure I will let the controller know that we can accept the intersection.
I could go on and on and on with such examples, some might find that "astronaut" or "smmuggy" but I just enjoy making a difference, it gives me satisfaction and helps my company to continue to pay a fair salary.
If you don't enjoy that, may be you became a pilot for the wrong motives? Piloting is not heroic anymore, neither extremely well paid, but you are a manager of an expensive machine in a very complex environment. If you don't enjoy that, well, don't know then. Sounds sad to me. And I don't mean to offend anyone here.
Just wanted to make a counter point by stating what European flying can offer if you are in the right company, and I define "the right company" not with the money earned. Money was always fair, not huge, but not little either, just fair.
Originally Posted by AIMINGHIGH123
So you barely scratched the surface then.
I have spent 5 years blasting around Europe and 99 times out of 100 it’s pretty easy.
The thought of flying around Europe for 30+ more years would be soul destroying.
I have spent 5 years blasting around Europe and 99 times out of 100 it’s pretty easy.
The thought of flying around Europe for 30+ more years would be soul destroying.
Well, I enjoy dealing with the daily mishaps, challenges and opportunities of optimization in shorthaul ops.
I try to coordinate my turnaround so I can get offblock 3 min earlier. I enjoy asking for a visual and cutoff 5 min of flight time. I enjoy calling ops control to switch aircraft for some good reason when ops control had a bad chaotic day and lost oversight. I enjoy calling the ramp agent on the company frequency and organise a quick transfer in his little van to a passengers connecting flight, if it is the pasengers last chance to reach destination on that day and we are behind schedule. I like to go into the italian terminal during turnaround and buy cornetti con crema for the whole crew. I calculate a takeoff performance full length and another for the intersection when sensible and when I see on taxiout that the intersection gives me an immediate departure I will let the controller know that we can accept the intersection.
I could go on and on and on with such examples, some might find that "astronaut" or "smmuggy" but I just enjoy making a difference, it gives me satisfaction and helps my company to continue to pay a fair salary.
If you don't enjoy that, may be you became a pilot for the wrong motives? Piloting is not heroic anymore, neither extremely well paid, but you are a manager of an expensive machine in a very complex environment. If you don't enjoy that, well, don't know then. Sounds sad to me. And I don't mean to offend anyone here.
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Originally Posted by Whitemonk Returns
5 years, wow, so which company are you Chief Pilot for at the moment?
This isn’t talking about going into management or training.
Talking about SH flying. Specifically flying in Europe, yes it’s busy in places but it is fairly easy. We don’t get hurricanes, tornados, monsoons. ATC is generally very good, few places can be difficult. Yes you can make it more challenging, depending on what your airline allows, raw data ILS, NDB, VOR etc you’re still only getting experience within 5-6hrs from Central Europe. The best captains I have learnt from are guys/gals that have flown in other parts of the world.
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Has anyone else applied with an EASA license?
I have applied for a UK CAA license but still waiting for it 2 months later. I included this in my application, I hope it will be accepted, anyone able to advise?
I have applied for a UK CAA license but still waiting for it 2 months later. I included this in my application, I hope it will be accepted, anyone able to advise?
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All quiet.
I've heard that there have been over 7000 applications. +4000 have EASA licences. These numbers will include various experience and levels of currency.
I've heard that there have been over 7000 applications. +4000 have EASA licences. These numbers will include various experience and levels of currency.
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Have you also heard that the contract offered, including to the 102 that were laid off, but would be invited back, is only part year? However, no reduction in yearly hours limit…. Not quite as good as it seems.
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Originally Posted by PAPI-74
All quiet.
I've heard that there have been over 7000 applications. +4000 have EASA licences. These numbers will include various experience and levels of currency.
I've heard that there have been over 7000 applications. +4000 have EASA licences. These numbers will include various experience and levels of currency.
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Again, this is word of mouth, but 70% for the first year (full time Summer, 50% Winter) and 100% year 2.
There is a good chance recruitment will be onto the 737 (bonded) then in the queue for Airbus. Without confirmation from J2, all this is speculation.
There is a good chance recruitment will be onto the 737 (bonded) then in the queue for Airbus. Without confirmation from J2, all this is speculation.
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Originally Posted by PAPI-74
Again, this is word of mouth, but 70% for the first year (full time Summer, 50% Winter) and 100% year 2.
There is a good chance recruitment will be onto the 737 (bonded) then in the queue for Airbus. Without confirmation from J2, all this is speculation.
There is a good chance recruitment will be onto the 737 (bonded) then in the queue for Airbus. Without confirmation from J2, all this is speculation.
Also worth mentioning re the comment above with no reduction in yearly hours for 70%....
This isn't RYR, there isn't a pilot in the history of Jet2 who has ever come close to 900 hours in a calender year, id wager a fair wad of cash that the number of guys who have flown over 750 is in single digits.
I know some recruitment has started as I heard some interviews were happening last week
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Originally Posted by AIMINGHIGH123
Probably is the right forum as it’s of interest to people applying for jobs, although tbh I expect most out of work pilots would sign a contract with the devil at the moment, especially if they’re not type rated.
Before I start I will just say that 1. Jet2 have a social media policy which says that employees shouldn’t mention that they work there on social media and 2. I’m a member of BALPA. That’s important because this story in the independent had almost certainly come from BALPA. For those that don’t know BALPA only have recognition at J2 because they went to ACAS when the company refused to recognise them. There has been a continual battle since as the company will only negotiate on the absolute minimum things which they have to, and refuse to enter into discussions about rostering. This stance seems to be to the advantage of the pilots in some ways, as the company generally gives fairly generous pay increases very early in the negotiating process so that BALPA can’t claim to have negotiated it.
The rostering /fatigue issues are a different subject and my experience will be different to others and will depend on seat and base. But my experience this summer is that, if I worked for them, apart from a period of disruption for a few weeks in May / June is that it’s no better or worse than any of the six other airlines I’ve worked for. If I have concerns about discretion I can call crewing and refuse to work into it which I have done, and had no comeback. I’ve submitted a future fatigue report once this summer and my roster was changed as a result and the only communication was the roster change and an email from crewing saying that they agreed with my concerns. We had an email from BALPA a couple of days ago saying that some of the problems had been caused by inexperienced crewing officers, and I suspect that is true, a few times I’ve spoken to them and had to quote the rules of the crewing agreement, but I’ve done that and spoken to crewing supervisors and problems ha e been sorted. Just like other places I’ve worked.
At some point someone is going to come on here and go on about me drinking “the company cool aid”. As a general principle I would like to see more cooperation with the union, but bearing in mind what this thread is about I’m prepared to put up with it this summer because of the unusual world events of the last two years.
and the bad news for some people reading this is that crew gossip says there were 4000 applications for approximately 100 DEP positions, so it looks like plenty of other people will put up with it too.
Before I start I will just say that 1. Jet2 have a social media policy which says that employees shouldn’t mention that they work there on social media and 2. I’m a member of BALPA. That’s important because this story in the independent had almost certainly come from BALPA. For those that don’t know BALPA only have recognition at J2 because they went to ACAS when the company refused to recognise them. There has been a continual battle since as the company will only negotiate on the absolute minimum things which they have to, and refuse to enter into discussions about rostering. This stance seems to be to the advantage of the pilots in some ways, as the company generally gives fairly generous pay increases very early in the negotiating process so that BALPA can’t claim to have negotiated it.
The rostering /fatigue issues are a different subject and my experience will be different to others and will depend on seat and base. But my experience this summer is that, if I worked for them, apart from a period of disruption for a few weeks in May / June is that it’s no better or worse than any of the six other airlines I’ve worked for. If I have concerns about discretion I can call crewing and refuse to work into it which I have done, and had no comeback. I’ve submitted a future fatigue report once this summer and my roster was changed as a result and the only communication was the roster change and an email from crewing saying that they agreed with my concerns. We had an email from BALPA a couple of days ago saying that some of the problems had been caused by inexperienced crewing officers, and I suspect that is true, a few times I’ve spoken to them and had to quote the rules of the crewing agreement, but I’ve done that and spoken to crewing supervisors and problems ha e been sorted. Just like other places I’ve worked.
At some point someone is going to come on here and go on about me drinking “the company cool aid”. As a general principle I would like to see more cooperation with the union, but bearing in mind what this thread is about I’m prepared to put up with it this summer because of the unusual world events of the last two years.
and the bad news for some people reading this is that crew gossip says there were 4000 applications for approximately 100 DEP positions, so it looks like plenty of other people will put up with it too.
