Hey Atlas pilots

[barbarian4]

Had a couple of questions for all the Giant folks out there:

1) How are the schedules? How many days in a trip and how many days off typically?

2) What are your thoughts about the company's prospects as it emerges from CH 11?

Any info is greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

[GCD]

At Atlas, you can expect to be gone for 18 days out of the month, extendable to 21. I normally bid 18 straight, with 12 off in a row, but it doesn't always work out.

If you get hired, you will be based in London STN. You will not be a contractor, but an Atlas ALPA employee. However, you will be required to relocate or commute to London. I don't know how long it will be before one is able to bid out of STN, but I would say about three years, or more.

I was displaced to STN in the base shakeup. I'm nine numbers away from holding JFK, but I'm on the hook with the Army for the next three years. Hopefully, there will be a lot of upward movement in the next three years before I come back.

 

[ETOPS-787]

GCD

Hey buddy;

I heard that Atlas is hiring.....

What happened to the 75 furloughed pilots? are they back to the line.

Please tell us more.

Thx

 

[GCD]

All furloughs are back, except those bypassing the recall. There are so many retirements ahead, and so many of us on military leave, that there will be 55 hired between now and October. Prospects are very good for the company.

It's not work that everyone is cut out to do. Long trips and long stays away from home and family. The Classic fleet does a lot of charter and military contract, which means scheduling changes are the norm. On some of the military trips, the scheduled duty day is just short of the 20 hour maximum, and sometimes goes over.

The catering is excellent. So good that some guys have become fat. We call it "body by Atlas."

Heavy time is nearly a must to get hired. There are a lot of applicants from the furloughed major ranks. A lot of them shy away, though, with the prospectus of the long trips and time away.

What else you want to know?

 

[ETOPS-787]

GCD

Thanks for the info. I was hired by Atlas on Dec 2000 and replaced in the 74-400 pool. Received the CD's and started studying. My March class was canceled and never got a call.

I called HR many times but no success....they did not even return my calls.
Don't know if i'd ever get a call......is that normal?

I am very disoppointed with atlas....

 

[SUPREME NTM]

I was called for an interview but I am still debating it.
It looks like the pay is decent (70 $ / hr). But the company is still Chap 11.
The chief pilot told me they were looking to hire 100 pilots til the end of the year..
I have a few question for those in the know..GCD, for example

-Are we responsible for our accomodation while in STN and for the commute too ?
-How many nights can we plan to be in STN for ?
-Any reserve days ?
-Realistic pay including per diem ?
-Any travel benefits on other airlines besides Jumpseat ?
-Schedules. GCD, you said 18 on/12 off doesn't always work out. What else do you get ?


Thanks in advance..

Later,

 

[AlbieF15]

Buddy of mine worked at Atlas prior to FedEx...here's his synopsis of the interview:

So....are you FLEXIBLE?

No, really...are you FLEXIBLE?

Please tell us your thoughts on FLEXIBILITY!

 

[typhoonpilot]

A well known IAC member and sometimes United Airlines Captain once said that in aviation FLEXIBILITY is too rigid, you need to be FLUID. That would probably be the better answer in the Atlas interview.

Typhoonpilot

 

[Dizel8]

Is upgrade time less, if one is willing to stay in STN, or does it make no difference.

Does the company provide accomodations and give a pay override due to higer COL in England?

 

[GCD]

Come on guys. Do you think I own a crystal ball? Who knows what upgrade time will be. We just realigned the bases.

There's no COLA for STN. There's a one time move allowance, or you can take a monthly commuting allowance, that really doesn't amount to much. I think it's around $800 a month.

The min 12 days off can happen anywhere in the month, depending on the bid. As I said, I TRY to put 12 off in a row, but it doesn't always happen. There's no guarantee you'll get 12 off in a row when you are STN based. I know one STN commuter guy who didn't get home for four months.

As far as flexible? If you are the type of person who has to have the same scheduled coffee and poop every day, don't come to Atlas. If you don't like Crew Sched calling you to change your trip at the end of a leg, don't come to Atlas. If you don't know how to pack a bag for a month, don't come to Atlas. If you can't handle a 20 - 24 hour duty day, don't come to Atlas.

 

[barbarian4]

First, thanks for all the responses, much appreciated.

Do things change at all schedule-wise once you can bid back to the states? Also, I understood there was a LOA to the current contract that provided a travel bank to pilots based in STN, is that right?

 

[GCD]

The bidding system is the same everywhere, regardless of base.

As far as a travel bank, read paragraph two above.

 

[Ghetto Buck]

Well the real Question is:
With the Pound being $0.85 cents more than the US dollar, how can you be expected to live on new hire salary of $3550. per month with no perdien ( STN being your home base) and no COLA and have to find your own diggs, apartments in STN are NOT CHEAP! and public Trans in not quite like it is here in the States and expensive!
2: having to commute (jump seat) to and from STN can be rough.
Since this is all new i'm not quite sure that they ( the company )has worked out the travel details.
3: unlike Cathay where one would be employed in HK and be base here in the states, ATLAS air would have to apply for and obtain special concessions from thr Home Office in London for you to get the neccessary approval to "Live " there.... Having lived in all of europe including england and worked for a "British multi National" i know first hand it can be a "ROYAL PAIN"..
Atlas is a good company...

....The choice is yours....

 

[SUPREME NTM]

GCD, Thanks for the replies.

I think I will stay put and leave the interview slot to someone else.

Enjoy STN !!!

Later,

 

[flx757]

I did a 6 month contract (not for Atlas) at LGW flying 757s for a company over there. I was responsible for my own housing. We worked 2 weeks on, 2 weeks off. During my 2 weeks on over there, I would fly 10 of the 14 days. Out and backs from Gatwick to one of the holiday destinations down south. Usually, about a 10.5 hour duty day. I just rented a flat in Horley (the first stop south on the train from Gatwick) for 175 quid a week. I kept it even during my weeks off so I could leave some stuff there. The company (here in the states) bought me tickets back and forth, since on my weeks off, I worked on writing the sim curriculum to bring the training in-house, and to develop a joint training program for the FAA/CAA so we wouldn't have to run two complete initials twice a year, every year. Plus, I was paid very well. 75k by the US company, 7500 quid a month on the contract in the UK, plus a completion bonus at the end of the contract. On top of that, I was paid $550/day on my days off back in the states working on the training program. All in all, it worked out to about $165k for the year. Out of that, I had to spend the 175 pounds a week on the flat, plus meals in the UK, although we were fed quite well on the planes. So, it wasn't a bad gig, the work relatively easy, and the companies treated me very well.

Even so, the commute back and forth every two weeks....even without having to worry about jumpseating, since I had a ticket, was a killer, and I would never want to do anything like that again, REGARDLESS of the money. Not even for TWICE what I was making. It makes a young man old in a hurry.

(I know this really has nothing to do with Atlas or this thread...just relating my experiences commuting back and forth to London.... )

 

[limodriver1]

how to apply

how to apply for Atlas!

What is their requirements!