THAI Experiencing Pilot Defections

[Guest fountainhall]

The not-so friendly skies!

 

Did you know that a TG pilot earns on average Bt. 68,000 per month? Can that figure really be accurate? Apparently so. And it has lead to a large number of pilots leaving their jobs for work with foreign airlines, especially the upstarts in the Gulf, where the salary for a Senior First Officer who has just qualified for full pilot status is around Bt. 400,000 per month – tax free.

 

In the last year, 30 TG pilots have departed for the more lucrative contracts elsewhere. As the Middle-Eastern Airlines continue their massive expansions, more pilots are likely to follow suit. Emirates presently has 144 aircraft with 194 on order. Etihad has 57 with 102 ordered.

 

"This is an offer you can't refuse," remarked Asdavut Watanangura, THAI executive vice-president for operations. For THAI, the solution may require the recruitment of foreign cockpit personnel, something other airlines in the region have routinely put into practice. Both the major players Singapore and Cathay Pacific have a considerable number of non-Singapore and non-Hong Kong pilots. But these airlines pay their cockpit crews handsomely.

 

In the meantime, TG is working on a package of measures to increase salaries by 35% and raising retirement age from 60 to 65. Although TG can offer lifetime contracts, I can see many more of the existing pilots being lured overseas by packages that, whilst short-term, will earn them enough to build major nest-eggs for the future. And for the life of me I cannot see many overseas pilots being attracted by a salary that amounts to not much more than US$3,000 per month - before tax!

 

http://m.bangkokpost.com/business/232521

[TotallyOz]

I was watching an interview with Sully, the guy who landed the plane in the Hudson last year. He said he would not recommend the job to his kids as the airlines keep cutting the salary and the stress level keeps going higher. I think he said that there were many pilots now that have to hold 2nd jobs to be a pilot. That is nuts. If I were a pilot, I'd also go where the money is.

[Guest]

I would go where the money is, but not to some of the airlines with dodgy safety records.

They all need to speak English, so they might as well go where the money is.

Many of the INTERNATIONAL Asian airlines charge the same fares as those from high labour cost countries, so they should be able to pay competitive salaries.

I've flown on several Asian airlines with experienced western pilots, so presumably the pay is competitive. Either that or the pilot enjoys living in Asia.

[Guest fountainhall]

I've flown on several Asian airlines with experienced western pilots, so presumably the pay is competitive.

The pay is certainly competitive in certain countries. Airlines like Cathay Pacific and Singapore had no choice but to hire foreign pilots because they had so few of their own. Cathay only started training local pilots about 15 years ago and still depends on a lot of overseas crew. One of my business colleagues is married to an Australian pilot who moved to Hong Kong 15 years ago. He loves it, says the pay is better than in Australia and he was able to move up to 747s faster.

 

I always thought most TG pilots came from the air force. I wonder if they have a training programme for local Thai pilots? If not, then I don't see how they can expand without hiring foreign pilots. That will inevitably mean two hugely different salary levels. And that will be a breeding ground for a lot of resentment, I reckon.

 

Come to think of it, I'm staggered that any airline pays a 747 or 777 pilot flying international routes only Bt. 68,000 a month!

[lexusgs]

The pay is certainly competitive in certain countries. Airlines like Cathay Pacific and Singapore had no choice but to hire foreign pilots because they had so few of their own. Cathay only started training local pilots about 15 years ago and still depends on a lot of overseas crew. One of my business colleagues is married to an Australian pilot who moved to Hong Kong 15 years ago. He loves it, says the pay is better than in Australia and he was able to move up to 747s faster.

 

I always thought most TG pilots came from the air force. I wonder if they have a training programme for local Thai pilots? If not, then I don't see how they can expand without hiring foreign pilots. That will inevitably mean two hugely different salary levels. And that will be a breeding ground for a lot of resentment, I reckon.

 

Come to think of it, I'm staggered that any airline pays a 747 or 777 pilot flying international routes only Bt. 68,000 a month!

 

 

FH,

 

A380 pilots with Emirates currently earn 100,000 AED (dirhams)per month in Dubai. That's currently 800,000 baht. In addition they are provided a villa to the value of 300,000 AED pa. Just thought you might like to know as a comparison.

[Guest fountainhall]

Being a pilot is like being a doctor or a nurse. It's a truly international profession and you can move relatively quickly to wherever you get the best pay and benefits packages. Since the major Gulf Airlines must all be in competition with one another, I'd be pretty sure the terms and conditions for pilots will be roughly the same.

 

With all the Gulf airlines together having almost certainly more than 300 new long haul aircraft on order, let's do some simple math. If each aircraft averages, say, at least a couple of take-offs and landings each day, with long-hauls requiring two sets of pilots on board, and with pilots being rostered 'on' once every four days on average (this is a pure guess!), then that means a requirement for near enough 10,000+ new pilots. If I was running THAI in a few years time, I sure would be worried that my pilots were making less than 15% of their counterparts in the Gulf!