Anyone privy to Joli Corporation in Moscow Russia?

[capnflyright]

Does anyone have the "lowdown" on Joli Corporation in Moscow Russia? They have a hawker 700 (N registered). Has anyone lived in Moscow or flown a contract in this part of the World? Thanks for any info.

 

[KeroseneSnorter]

Haven't done Moscow but I have flown the CIS states a bunch (Kazachstan, etc sp?). The old Soviet Union that I have seen is pretty depressed. Huge difference in the haves and have nots. Lots of western business owners over there now, Mostly Brits, but a few Canadians and U.S. folks.

If you are paid on a U.S. type pay scale you could live very well, if on a local payscale you will be a poor SOB. Talked to a few professionals over there from time to time, a Doctor gets about $300 a month and a nurse gets about $150 to $200.

Food and most of the essentials are dirt cheap by U.S. standards. Cars are about the same as here for western models, the russian junk is much less though.

Mafia is everywhere from what I was told by the locals, into most business activity in some form or another, as well as prostitution etc. At least in the CIS states. It is an almost 90% guarantee that any girl that approaches you in a night club or bar is "working". In my experience normally the only ones we ran across that were not for hire were the Brits, etc.

Living quarters for the most part is old soviet style block houses, however I do not have any numbers on cost.

Most people are friendly though and we never felt un safe as long as normal precautions were taken.

Hope this helps a bit.

P.S. Pack a Parka!! It is a cold SOB there in the winter!!!!

 

[KeroseneSnorter]

Also the russian ATC system pretty much bites. You really gotta watch yourself over there. Substandard equipment in many places as well as challenging terrain, weather, non standard approachs (some real strange ones there) and altimeter procedure differences from the rest of the world coupled with lackadasical controllers can hurt you quick if you are not 100%. This is the only place that we went (747 freight) that really upped the stress level of the crew, even the guys that had been flying the whale in there for 10+ years always felt the pressure when the weather sucked, which was most of the time.

There is a reason that they rate next to last on the safety scale. I think only Africa has a worse aviation safety record.

 

[falconpilot]

I flew there a couple of months ago, St. Petersburg and Moscow. It wasn't all that great... QFE instead of QNH, everythings is metric yada yada yada... ATC sucks, no visual approaches were given to us. You get vectored all over the place behind all the russian airlines. And Moscow is the most expensive city in the world.. LITERALLY... You don't want to live there... Not even for a month... Trust me..

 

[AerroMatt]

I would... if only it weren't so friggin' cold in the winter!

Parts of Russia are beautiful during the other seasons though. Lots of Kulture too.

 

[Globalflyer]

Previous posts are pretty much spot on for most points. I lived in the CIS for several months a couple years ago. Incomes are not quite as good as advertised. Knew of a Doctor that was making $150/month at a private clinic, which generally paid better than public clinics. Medical care is barely acceptable and the equipment used is antiquated. Cost of living is out of site. Food is cheap, but housing for something comparable to western standards is $2-3K per month or more. You can find plenty of examples online. Google "apartments in Moscow". In Moscow, traffic is a nightmare. Services at the airports are on Moscow time, which is whenever they feel like pumping fuel or deicing, etc. If you can accept that Russian culture is process oriented and not goal oriented like in the west, you'll do fine. Otherwise, it will drive you nuts. For most people in the region, life is not easy. Consequently you don't see a lot of smiling faces, at least not unless you're handing out dollar bills which are preferred to Rubles. Lastly, having flown for a Russian owner, understand that you're looked as nothing more than a driver. Think about it; if doctors aren't held in high esteem, why should pilots be? The saving grace to the whole deal is the money is generally very good. But you'll be on call 24/7 with little prospect of going home unless your deal has that figured in at the start. For most situations, your housing should be provided. Specify "western standards" in yor contract. Also, you should get a per diem for meals whether you're flying or not. $75/day will generally cover all situations as you can live in country very cheaply and use the excess to cover the meal costs in Europe that can be out of sight (like a $25 pizza). If you go, good luck. Just be careful.

 

[AerroMatt]

I've never lived in Russia, just visited it. What I most remember of Moscow was how the traffic scared the bejezus out of me when I took a cab. NYC traffic is a country lane compared to how they drive there!

 

[spitfire1940]

I lived in Russia 5+ years including 2 in Moscow. Russia is the kind of place where you really need to have friends to make it work, maybe more so than other places. This especially applies to connections for apartments, health care, your visa and, God forbid, trouble with law enforcement.

What the other guys said about money is true. Moscow is one of the most expensive cities on the planet, equal to Tokyo last time I checked. There are lots of Russians with lots of money (although they're a relatively small portion of the population) and they (along with rich expats) have driven prices for real estate, apartment rentals an many services through the roof.

Having said that, you can enjoy a fairly good life style if you know people, which is easier if you speak Russian, and if you can stay as much as possible in the "local" economy (shopping at markets, bizarres, etc.).

Russians are a lot of fun once you get to know them and the country is absolutely crammed with gorgeous women. Moscow and St. Pete are beautiful and offer lots of stuff you wouldn't expect. Moscow is hands-down the best city I've ever lived in for mountain biking, strange as that sounds.

The thing that got to me about living there is that you really have no rights at all in that country. Not even Russians have rights, but with Mr. Putin and his ilk in power, you never know what's going to happen. The cops there can be a major problem too, especially if you don't speak the language. I've never flown there, so I can't shed any light on that, but from my other experiences travelling all over the former USSR, the comments about shoddy ATC and bizarre procedures don't surprise me one bit.

You might also want to check out who's doing the maintenance at this company you're interested in.

Good luck.