Pacific Island Air and Seaplanes

[round pounder]

Howdy

Been himming and hawing about making the move south, has anyone worked for Pacific? It's a far away gig, and it is what it is, not an upstart looking for my first gig looking for a change of pace, looking forward to hearing or shoot me a PM

Cheers

[flyinthebug]

If the guy still running it has initials DR.... RUN! Seriously, stay FAR away!!

[cdnpilot77]

May want to give this thread a read.

viewtopic.php?f=13&t=78626&hilit=Fiji

[round pounder]

That's just nasty so much for snowbirding that way

[1000 HP]

Well it might be interesting. Depends on your patience level. I'd give it a try if I were single. Might be worth some research. The above mentioned thread definitely paints a nasty picture. The DR changed to DS. Is that a typo or what? I met Dusty Rivers in 2004 in Selkirk. I still have the card. The job just didn't fit into my particular expense needs at the time.

So all the negative comments maybe could have come from less than ideal ex-employees. Maybe something good will surface? Anybody got anything positive to say?

I also noticed that PIS's (Pacific Island Seaplanes) name is changed. New owner? It would maybe be good for awhile, especially during the unemployment (-35) season that many of us float pilots go through. The pay probably is bad, but how much do you need to live on in FIJI? Worth looking into. Is Beer expensive there? Looks like 1.47 pounds GBP.

http://www.pintprice.com/region.php?/Fiji/
http://www.xe.com/ucc/convert/?Amount=1 ... GBP&To=CAD

Sounds like a beer is $2.33 converted if you buy it in Nadi. Hmmm...

So $2000 per month, less 4 beer per day ($280) = $1720 month additional expenses like clothing, shelter, etc. Really, you could work for a lot less.

Everybody has a different reason to go. Getting away from a nasty ex would be a good example. Or just a little adventure. Maybe you are sick of snow?

[Kerolung]

Thanks 1000HP

The above mentioned thread was about a different company. I'm not saying none of it's relevant, just 99% of it, so please take it for what it is, and read page two

I'm the guy leaving. It's been awesome (2 of the best years of my life), but time for a new scene for me.

Because I feel it may be coming, I will pre-answer now my reply to the pay issue by quoting pointyendforward:

Hey guys.... So I have been biting my tongue for a while on this one, in fact after everything that has been said on this topic in the past I am surprised that we are even having this debate.... Anyhue, you need to put things into perspective. $1400 USD (and this is a starting wage) is equal to a 737 FO's pay with their national carrier... So although it’s crap money back here in Canada, for Fiji it’s well above average.... In fact when I left Fiji I was making equal to a 73 skipper.... So I wasn't selling out, I was actually living in the "upper class" of Fiji and enjoying every minute of it... Also as I have stated before things at Turtle have changed a lot and there are no longer 12 hour days, in fact CAAFI has limited Turtle to 3 flights to the island a day, with a 33 minute flight time each way it does not take a rocket scientist (and I'm sure we have a couple reading this) to figure out no one is working themselves to the bone... Lastly to address giving your passport to the boss...... Well anyone who does that needs to have their head checked.... After 2.5 years in the South Pacific working for both float companies my passport never left its hiding place at my beachfront (76 paces to the local watering hole) bachelor pad.... Hopefully this clears up some of the 'rumours' floating around...

Cheers all, all the best for 2012 and please fly safe!!

PEF

While it is, as I mentioned, about an entirely different company, he paints a picture of what's what here. I'm similarly sad to be leaving

Thanks

[barefootpilot]

I think most people are confusing pacific island with turtle. Totally different operation. I spent a year there and loved it. Always dream of going back someday. You definitely make more money in canada, but it is tax free down there and the lifestyle is what it is about. Think of it this way, hot weather, white sandy beaches, flying barefoot in shorts and a Hawaiin shirt, no BUGs, no overloads, no lumber, no propane, no drums, no externals, days off, easy schedule. Most days you drop passengers, tie up plane and swim in for free breakfast at resort then grab some snorkel gear or kayak before your next pick up. Fiji has cheap beer in stubbies. Pm if ya want some other details

[cplanedriver]

I was down there flying the amphib beavers and I extended the contract, loved the work, the life and the raise in the extension...
PIS then was a good company and I enjoyed working for Dusty....go for it, find your own groove and remember there
are a lot of whiners and ax grinders on this board....
Fly safe

[wasYKnowFJ]

I used to work at PIA in Fiji as well. Great lifestyle and fun flying. Dusty is still a good friend.
Turtle Air is very different.
PIA seaplane salary is around CDN$2500/month now.
The float pilots have been there for 2 1/2 years, so that should speak for itself.
It's not for everyone, but has been a great experience for many. Enjoy.

[Rudder Bug]

round pounder

I was there in 2000-2001 and extended the 6 month commitment too. Stayed a year. I liked Dusty, his family and the whole staff. Had a couple fights with the dispatcher but that could have been avoided if I had been Jehova Witness.

The pay was good, even top scale for the country, a nice bungalow and a car were provided. Every weekend off most of the times.

As said above, free tropical breakfast and scuba diving in the resorts was quite frequent. An occasional lunch in Vatulele - daily flight as well.

It has nothing to do with the straight float operation "next door". Not even close.

Dusty will take you to the chinese restaurant (an excellent one) every Sunday.

By then, he was happy to pay your airfare for a 6 month commitment. If Iremember right, I was earning around $900FJ/week. I bought my food but it was pretty cheap. Mangos, bananas and avocado were growing in my backyard.

The sea is like a big north Ontario lake 300 days a year BUT...can get really nasty at times.

If I was you I would give it a try, seriously.

RB

[freezerburn31]

Does anyone know the min hours they look for? I would love to go there or someplace similar for the adventure once I build my hours up in a year or two.

[Rudder Bug]

Does anyone know the min hours they look for? I would love to go there or someplace similar for the adventure once I build my hours up in a year or two.

I can't tell you but one thing I know for sure is they highly consider Wet Coast drivers. Swell is the issue for the average lake and river pilot.

RB

[1000 HP]

The minimums are pretty low. Check the job posting it was listing on there as an addition

[Meatservo]

round pounder

I was there in 2000-2001 and extended the 6 month commitment too. Stayed a year. I liked Dusty, his family and the whole staff. Had a couple fights with the dispatcher but that could have been avoided if I had been Jehova Witness.

The pay was good, even top scale for the country, a nice bungalow and a car were provided. Every weekend off most of the times.

As said above, free tropical breakfast and scuba diving in the resorts was quite frequent. An occasional lunch in Vatulele - daily flight as well.

It has nothing to do with the straight float operation "next door". Not even close.

Dusty will take you to the chinese restaurant (an excellent one) every Sunday.

By then, he was happy to pay your airfare for a 6 month commitment. If Iremember right, I was earning around $900FJ/week. I bought my food but it was pretty cheap. Mangos, bananas and avocado were growing in my backyard.

The sea is like a big north Ontario lake 300 days a year BUT...can get really nasty at times.

If I was you I would give it a try, seriously.

RB

OK, sorry to bust into this conversation but if "rudder bug" is telling the truth then you gotta go there. Just for some background, I could have qualified for this job 20 years ago, and this description makes me want to apply for it right now. Maybe he's blowing sunshine up your ass, but you know, you can make $100,000 a year in Canada and still find yourself driving a used car, living in a crummy house in a cold city, and looking for good deals on toilet paper and warm clothes at the co-op. Go ahead and live in a bungalo, swim in a warm sea, eat papayas and avacados, f**k island girls and fly a floatplane. Even if you don't take any money home at the end of it all, it won't kill you.

[Rudder Bug]

Yes indeed Meat;

I might be blowing sunshine up his ass but it's nothing compared to what Dusty's gonna blow up his ass!


Dusty is quite a character and a down to earth man. I'll always remember him at the chinese restaurant with is bula shirt, shorts and cowboy boots, you read well, his cowboy boots!

After all, he's a rancher from Alberta.

[expatFloater]

I'm working overseas in a nice tropical country (not Fiji). Weather is great, people are great, plane is brand new (c208). I have an awsome apartment with stunning view of the pool and recreation area. I have a driver that picks me up and takes me back and forth the the airport every day. I was offered a maid to clean my appartment but that seemed a bit weired so I turned it down. It's very cheap to live here. A decent meal in a mid range restraunt can be had for $2 to $3 dollars. The people are warm and friendly and they really like expats. It's basically paradise.

When negotiating wage all these factors were presented to me. I none the less asked for Canadian equivelent in wages pluss all expenses to get to and from my home country. It took them 3 months to agree but eventually they came through.

When I go back to Canada I'll have a decent amount of cash in my bank account and I will still live like a king here.

Dusty is a good guy and Fiji is a great place and sure the local F/Os and Captains at the airlines make equivelent wages to what Dusty if offering but there is a reason why Dusty won't hire any of them. You has a float driver have a very specific skill set and it's worth something. You can chose to ask for fair market value or you can give those skills away for third world wages. It's your choice.

Speeking of choices resumes come to me every day. And any that say they will work cheap get thrown in the garbadge. I have no intention of hiring someone who is going to come and undercut my wage.

[Swagman]

G'day, I joined Pacific Island Air/Seaplanes in 2006 and was there for a total of 17 months initially flying the BN2s but thanks to Dusty and a brave chief Pilot ended up with a rating in the Beaver. It was a great crew both the Fijians and the expats. Dusty is a man of his word, anything he said he would do for you - he did. But then if you wanted to sell yourself short he would let you! After all his in business and if he can save a few dollars why not? The BN2 wage was not great and although the float pilot wage would never set you up that well for retirement back home it did allow for an excellent life style as a single person in Fiji...I can't comment on what it would be like for a family man.

One thing I would advise - plan on spending a few thousand on a car when you get there... just do it! You will most likely be spending $F5k on something you would pay $500 for back home but build a bridge and get over it. Then you can start enjoying the freedom on your days off and ease of getting to work right from the beginning. If your from Oz or NZ and come up with the bright idea of importing a car from back home DON'T!! you've been warned the Fiji bureacracy will win

Flying and living in Fiji may not be for everyone, for many there will be a culture shock, you may know right from the beginning its not for you and just see out your 6 or 12 months... some have come and gone in a matter of days. But if you do last and find it getting to you after a year or so hit Dusty up for some extra time off and a trip back home, it might just give you time to reflect on what a good gig it is and see you do another year...Wish I had taken my own advice on this one.

[zeppelin]

I did it ,in 90,91,92 and again for the 95-96 winter,but for the other outfit,back when it was good..I can't think of anything ,but good memories and happy times with great people,that I still hang out with...I allready had a few years of island living at that point,so there was no culture shock...the money,,well,good for where you are..My wife worked also,so we sent $10,000 a year back to Canada,where as in Canada ,I made more but could'nt save a penny.I spent weekends at fancy resorts,for free,went sailing for free,thanks Bob,went diving for free,my wife ran the dive shop,and went places like NZ,or Canada on holidays ..for free...so it's not just the salary you get...it's what you make of it..I still have the same lifestyle today,only on another island...you soon learn to adapt to island time..and if you don't,then you should go back home..cause it's not for everyone...
But at least give it a try,cause,you've got the rest of your life where you can pay high taxes,huge heating bills,outrageuos cell phone bills,and fight traffic on the way to the airport to fly a dash 8,and so on and so on......have some fun..now...don't worry about all the synics on here...

[flyinthebug]

Well it seems to me that Dusty may have changed his ways since I last dealt with him (1998)? Good for him if this is the case and Fiji itself is a beautiful Island with everything mentioned above and then some. I didnt like that they still cane the kids in school down there, but that simply meant I wasnt dragging my family down with me. When I knew Dusty, he was very defiant and had his AOC suspended a couple times for maint issues. He offered me the CP position and I declined based on what I knew from past employees at that time. He was also trying to open a float base in Tonga back then and I had no desire to go there. Im sincerely pleased to hear that he has changed his ways and is now running a well maintained fleet and treating pilots with some respect.

Someone mentioned hes a cowboy from Alberta? I agree hes a cowboy but he always told me he was from YWG? Either way, you wont get rich down there but you will love the island. My concerns are obviously old and addressed now (lacking maintenance etc) and people seem to have good things to say about Dusty. He is a character that is one thing we can all agree on.

The swells do get rather huge in that part of the world, and yes he does lean towards guys with west coast experience.

Good luck to whoever gets the spot.
Fly safe.

[brno375]

I can't comment on the company but it has been for sale for a while. As for Fiji, I loved it there: great people and great beer (Fiji Bitter). Just remember that when asked if it's your first time visiting, always say no. The merchants can be a pain.

[Rudder Bug]

I can't comment on the company but it has been for sale for a while. As for Fiji, I loved it there: great people and great beer (Fiji Bitter). Just remember that when asked if it's your first time visiting, always say no. The merchants can be a pain.

That's very true, lol!

Getting sick of being asked where I come from, what I'm doing there and if I'm married over and over, I began to tell them I was a local having been there for ten years. From that they left me alone and I could walk in downtown Nadi without being bothered anymore.

Fijians are know for being the friendliest citizens of the planet. I believe it is true. I still miss some great friends out there.

Are you changing your mind Roundpounder?

If it wasn't that far away, I would certainly return for a couple weeks.

Ni sa bula vinaka.

[round pounder]

Sounds like a great place, but theres a mortgage waiting back here so no beaver looks like survey and with my luck it will be labrador.

[Rudder Bug]

Sounds like a great place, but theres a mortgage waiting back here so no beaver looks like survey and with my luck it will be labrador.

That's another option, perhaps a smarter choice in your position. I've been there too and enjoyed it very much. Will you be in Happy Valley?

Newfies and Labradorians are the second friendliest citizens of this world after the Fijians.

Enjoy and fly safe.

[Meatservo]

Fijians are know for being the friendliest citizens of the planet. I believe it is true. I still miss some great friends out there.

That's probably because they cane them while they're in school. The kids where I live in Canada are for the most part rotten little bastards and could probably benefit socially from a good caning every now and then.