UK job chances for a German ?
 

Hello all,

I am currently employed as F/O B737NG with a German airline (about 1000 hrs on type). As my current company seems to be in trouble (guess which one...) and my girlfriend lives in Scotland, I have started to think about changing my employer rather earlier than later.
My questions now:
Is there anyone in this forum who can tell me about the problems I might encounter as German wanting to work for a UK employer ? (working permit, insurance issues etc.)
As my favourite base would then be EDI and I'd preferably stay on the 737, the only operators I came up with are Globespan and Ryanair (starting Sept 08 acc. to ppjn.com).
What is known about their recruitment situation ? Are they a good choice as employer ?
What about other airlines with EDI bases (Easy, FlyBE etc...) ?
Thank you for your honest advice and answers in advance.

Regards from Germany
Georg

'They took our jubbbbbs'

Jet 2 - 737's with potentially EDI base and have taken pilots on recently. No NG's though.

Hi,

I knew at least two Germans at XL flying the 737 one of whom was ex Air Berlin.

Have personally had a bad experience with Fly Globespan but others seem happy enough with it. And there are certainly plenty of Germans at Ryanair (I know that as a wave left Germania at the end of 2006!)

Don't think you will have any problems with the authorities - I made the trip in reverse and fly happily in Germany on a UK JAA licence.

For what it's worth, IMHO if you are making the move for personal reasons then all well and good, but I would be wary of moving for economic reasons. I suspect that AB have deeper pockets that Globespan and certainly XL. As for Ryan, who knows?

The UK economy is beginning what could be a steep downturn, after years of outperforming Germany. That said I'm also looking to leave Germania and considering a move back to the UK, so maybe we will bump into each other at an interview!

Good luck,

KT :)

Hi Georg,

There are lot's of Gerrmans alreay working for a number of Airlines such as Ryanair, easJet, etc. based in the U.K.

Don't worry about work permit, insurance etc. It is the EU. These are just paperwork exercises and will not be a problem.

I suggest a search on this webite regarding the employers you want to know about. Don't expect too many answers here if most of the inormation you are looking for is already in other threads.

I do think you might need to be a bit flexible with your choice of base, though.

Have you thought about NetJets? They are not currently hiring but probably will by the end of the year.

There are quite a few Germans flying on a UK contract (as me), wether in the UK or on the continent.
As someone mentioned before, a lot of information about airlines, you may wish to join, in PPRUNE.
However be aware, UK is pretty expensive to live. I f you have some stuff behind in Germany to pay for (mortrgae i.e.), the British pound is pretty weak against the EURO. Believe me, that is no fun!!
Make sure, you know what is going own with pension! The British state pension is not to compare with our German system.
Checkout even health insurance.
From my point of view, most German pilots on a UK contract (paid in GBP) would prefer a German contract.
But in young years other points are more valuable!:)

Chances of work in Scotland are high with GSM. We have many pilots from Europe. Try emailing [email protected] (737 fleet manager).

PM me if you need more

Regards

LJ

Afternoon gezonkt,

At least 20 germans working for Thomsonfly - mostly 737 but with some 757/767 - plus irish, icelandic, french, dutch, belgian, ukrainian, swedish, danish - apologies to any I've left out! No EDI base but some who live there commute to NCL.

Good luck.

If you're interested, PM me and I'll try and find some personal email addresses for you to talk to your countrymen

good experience but try and talk your girlfriend into moving to Germany
long term its better

Even more interesting: what are the Scottish girls like?

Fat, rude and drink till they spew on themselves but other than that, they're fantastic :}

Hi Georg! One thing to think about - you will probably need to convert your LBA German licence to a JAA UK one. Have you got long range on your licence? Otherwise it's there are plenty of Germans working over in Britain, you speak good English and you're willing to relocate why wouldn't anyone want to employ you?

Good luck.

Thank you for all your answers so far, I think the one or other will help me with my thinking and decision process.
Regarding my licence:
I did my training in Switzerland and got my licence there acc. JAR-FCL rules (long range should be included as far as I know) and transferred it to Germany when I started with my current employer, so it shouldn't be too hard to transfer it again.

And I'm sorry to tell you that my girlfriend is a German who decided to live in Scotland. Therefore I have no closer experience with Scottish girls so far. ;)

Regards
Georg