Same procedure as last year. Of course it makes a difference whether you`re sitting at home or in wonderful Kaunas. But the agony and frustration of being left out of pocket stays the same. Thanks J.D :mad:

Hey clunk

5/4 at home, so could be worse, but still blows

I'm doing just over 70 hours this month, only a couple of standbys at the moment. Did just over 800 hours in 12 months...

I'm thinking it varies a lot between FOs, but I seem to have been lucky thus far.

UK based.

The recent increase in stbys aside, we all work about the same hours per year.
So calculate what you can expect once the winter schedule kicks in & spread out your finances?

10.5 months to cover 700 hours per year (worst case) work out how much you should have per moth to play with and bobs your uncle?

BPK contracts are not rocket science, you know what you get per hour and you know what you can expect to work over a twelve month period.

I know this time of year is tough but it really shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone?

Agree

I have had a good year too be fair but forward planning for the winter months makes sense, wish I had done it and not been too the Ti@@y bar as much on days off :ok:

Been wondering about the hours situation too lately as there seems to be a lot of fresh faced wet behind the ears 20year old cadets in the base lately, maybe I am getting old now but they look like they should be playing in the park still rather than flying a 70ton jet! :eek:

Still only 2 standbys rostered this month so far so ill keep my head below the wall for now. :}

Hi

Couldn't agree more with the last two posts.

I did 100 hrs last month of which 60 where out of base (not that I requested it). Those that choose to blow 10000 euro gross in one month are simply naive in my opinion. Course every month isn't like this, but generally I do nearly 800 hrs a year just like every other FO in my base, and as has been mentioned above, simply divide by 12 and that's what you live off each month.

VJW

I'm on a 5/4 roster and based at my 1st choice, although I only been put here in the past few months after spending a few years elsewhere. I'm on A/L atm, best time to pick it imo ;)

I guess the Summer to Winter schedule makes a difference to the amount of SBY's but the most impacting factor would be the 200+ cadets that have come on-line for next summers deliveries. The good (even great) news is that after next summer there will only be limited newbies coming on stream due to no new a/c.... YIPEE! Then, as O'Leary would love to see, everyone will be maxed out again hitting nearly 900hrs and there will be no upgrades except for normal attrition etc.
Trust me, he hates to see pilots doing less than 18 hrs work/week!

Yeah but he aslo doesnt give a sh1t anymore as most are on brookfield so if they only do 4 days a month (I know a guy at my base who has 2 days flying in Nov) he pays them for 4 days, he has soo got brookfielders where he wants them, "stock 'em up and sure if we loike dont need dem dey can just sit around our network at their inconvenience and it costs me now't, Jaysus pure genious"

This situation just makes you puke:yuk:

Reap what you sow

:DZerotohero, off topic her but youre funny talking bout fresh wet behind ears youngsters all the time you are just 32 yourself-hahaha.

Its a fair comment, but 32 compaired to 20 years old is a bigger world away than 12 years my senior to 44, i swear some of the guys have not even started shaving yet!

Charleroi
 

Does anyone based in Charleroi as FO could advise me about the work load during winter.
I 'd like to join this base and i am wondering what i may expect.
Cheers

To reassure you guys, i know cadets joining soon, who are closer 30years old than 20...

Just curious how a 'self-employed' person can be legitimately rostered for SBY duty away from home for no pay? Is this because RYR deem you have to work a 5 day block and can have no more than 4 days off in 9? Beats every definition of self-employed I've heard of.

Thank you !

Standbys can be put to good use too, like filling in the Aer Lingus application formhttp://images.ibsrv.net/ibsrv/res/sr...ies/thumbs.gif

Anyway I'm a FO based in MAD with just over 500 on type, get one or two standbys per week and 60-65 hours per month. Needless to say I'd rather be based at home and take a few hours less per month but I don't see that happening for a while- if everhttp://images.ibsrv.net/ibsrv/res/sr...lies/sowee.gif. Oh well back to the Aer Lingus application.....

Guys chill out, its November! (who the :mad: goes on holiday in Nov??), personally I am just glad that I am not on a part time summer contract like the guys at Jet2 and Easy.

My roster for Dec is looking up already. I have 3 Canary Island trips in one week, so a month of doing bugger all and then what looks like a reasonable Dec so far.

I have the 5 BRK days off in Dec and Jan plus a month off to follow. So obviously I have saved up over the summer and autumn, hence am looking ok financially this winter. I admit it is easier for me as I don't have children or a mortgage to pay off, but I did buy an engagement ring last month! Anyways as a contractor this is the mentality you MUST have, gotta save for the low season.

As for jumping ship, well I don't think the grass is that much greener. Terms and conditions will be better for sure, but overall pay and roster? I doubt it. If I leave it will be because I want to change base. And as we know thats bloody difficult here at FR!

Best of luck to everyone this winter, but I am pretty confident November will be the worst of it.

Jim

Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA - APPLICATION FIRST OFFICERS

Rock steady 5-4 roster, 177 working days and a very decent collective agreement.

:cool:

I'm flying nearer 100 hours than 50 hours in December with EJ, so hardly part time!

REALLY sick of these stsandbys
 

It just gets worse, for next week my total flying is 2 days doing 2 sector routes and thats it for the week and my week is 9 days long. I might add the sectors in question all have an airborne time of around 45 minutes so total flight time for the week is 3 hours. How are we meant to live on that? Ive never known it quite this dreadful. Surely this is not sustainable as the company force people to leave as they effectively have no salary. This model cannot continue indefinately, certainly we'll all have to grin and bear it this winter but surely from next summer onwards its gotta change. If they keep to this model over time theyll implode. Ive always wanted to make it work at FR and have given it my best but enoughs enough, theyre really making it unworkable can they really not see this.......Please : I dont want any :mad: saying "Reap what you sow" DDA