Cathay

cyyz · Post by **cyyz** » Mon Mar 26, 2007 6:18 pm

Is Cathay still all the good hype it once was?

Where else is a good place to go for someone who didn't get into A/C and wants to do the expat route nowadays?

xsbank · Post by **xsbank** » Mon Mar 26, 2007 6:22 pm

EK?

Look at Pprune - its the only source of what's happening.

(Pilot Officer Prune was a WW2 training aid - he was the illustration in many training manuals).

RC320 · Post by **RC320** » Mon Mar 26, 2007 7:18 pm

cyyz wrote:Is Cathay still all the good hype it once was?

Where else is a good place to go for someone who didn't get into A/C and wants to do the expat route nowadays?

as xsbank mention, Pprune is a a great forum for international stuff

My choices would be

Emirates
Etihad
Qatar
Singapore
Australian
Garuda
Malaysian

Any of those I'm sure you can't go wrong
Lots of 3rd world countries are hurting for pilots. Air China is picking up a lot of expats

MCA · Post by **MCA** » Mon Mar 26, 2007 8:45 pm

i just read in Flight International that even Singapore (cargo division) is asking for a training bond that lasts 6 years.... that's sad news, i guess...

canuckian · Post by **canuckian** » Mon Mar 26, 2007 11:14 pm

My two cents.

Be careful of what you read and do not rely on Fragrant harbour for an accurate representation of what takes place within Cathay. Although the company has some problems just like everywhere it is still a great place to work despite the bitching. The training is very hard but you can be looking at the command of a wide body aircraft within 9 years from second officer while enjoying the spoils along the way!!!

Try and get hold of some people that work there and get the skinny from them.

All the best!

ALT SEL · Post by **ALT SEL** » Tue Mar 27, 2007 3:33 am

I had an interview there yesterday. In my opinion I this its still a great place to work. Good pay and great benefits, of course you must be willing to pack up and move to Hong Kong.

SQ · Post by SQ » Tue Mar 27, 2007 3:15 pm

ALT SEL wrote: of course you must be willing to pack up and move to Hong Kong.

somebody knows how is it living in HKG ?

Boeing Driver · Post by **Boeing Driver** » Tue Mar 27, 2007 4:11 pm

As someone mentioned, be careful with regards to reading the comments on pprune. They are sometimes very depressing. Just keep in mind that the grass always seems greener on the other side. With the right experience, you can be hired at CX without moving to HK by working on the freighter fleet. Anyway, it is a good job with great benefits. I enjoy it. As a Canadian, there are not too many opportunities to fly a 747, but CX has given me just that.

Cheers!

Ricky Bobby · Post by **Ricky Bobby** » Tue Mar 27, 2007 10:50 pm

Are there any Canadians/Americans on the hiring panel or in the training department?

Cheers

Boeing Driver · Post by **Boeing Driver** » Tue Mar 27, 2007 11:30 pm

I don't believe there are any in the hiring department, but there is at least one Canadian sim instructor and a few checkers aswell.

cyyz · Post by **cyyz** » Thu Mar 29, 2007 5:58 pm

canuckian wrote: Although the company has some problems just like everywhere it is still a great place to work despite the bitching...

command of a wide body aircraft within 9 years from second officer while enjoying the spoils along the way!!!!

Just what I wanted to hear, read somewhere that it was 15 years to reach Left Seat.

Also read somewhere that the "benefits" had been reduced, housing allowance, kids education, etc...

Good to hear that it's still a good company.. Thanks for the replies.

xsbank · Post by **xsbank** » Thu Mar 29, 2007 10:43 pm

Housing allowance in Hong Kong is $48,000 HK per month, depending on your position. Lowest is $24,000, rent or buy...work it out.

Medical could be a problem if you got really sick and need long-term medical help.

Know dick about school allowance.

They just ordered a sh*t-load of 777s.

qth · Post by **qth** » Fri Mar 30, 2007 1:26 am

As said before their is a lot of info on prune. Unfortunatly it has turned into a bashing of the company by a few disgruntled people so it is hard to get a true idea of what things are like.

From my limited time there it is a good gig. Not the be all end all of jobs but a lot better than what Jazz was offering up after almost 7 years. 1st year Second Officer pay is just over 32 000 hkd/ month, housing allowance is 14 000 hkd/month paid as cash or up to 24 000 hkd/month paid directly towards the lease. this increases after 2 years to what xsbank stated. Medical is paid for by the company but long term illness will leave you out of pocket a large sum of money. Education allowance is 50% of tuition for pre school and then up to 90% of the english school foundation tuition. My son is in pre school and I am out of pocket 1900 hkd/ month. Cathay pay an amount equal to 15.5% of your salary into a provident fund, you will also get a 13th month salary paid in December as well as profit share if any.

They go a little over the top when it comes to training constantly adding hoops to jump through to reach the next level. Mostly good quality trainers but as with most places a few bad apples who have done a number on some people's career progression. You will spend approx. 3 years as an S/O then another 5-6 years as a first officer before getting your command.

Overall a good stable job, lots of time off as a Second Officer, pay is decent and benifits are good with the exception of staff travel. Negatives are the pollution in Hong Kong is bad, you are working for a chinese company where the profit is never high enough which results in a lot of downward pressure on the conditions of service. The union has no clout so if you come up against the wrong side of managment you will have no one to protect you.

At the end of the day the best thing to do is talk to people who work there, go through the interview process and make an informed decision on what is best for you.

YVR Dude · Post by **YVR Dude** » Sat Mar 31, 2007 7:41 pm

Thanks for an informative post, QTH!

Cathay

Cathay

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