NetJets hiring percentage

[NJA Capt]

Most of the senior guys think that they are aviation gods, when in reallity they couldnt get hired back in the 90s when every airline was hiring.

These are the guys who got hired with a pulse...

This has to be one of the most ignorant and ill informed post I've read, even by FI standards.
Although I'm sure there are a few people like you described, you are making a very broad generalization.

I hate to break it to you but many of us weren't ga ga over the airlines. Several 121 CPs thought I was crazy when I declined their job offers in favor of Executive Jet. Yes, I was accepted at and declined airline offers in the 1990s....and I saved myself a few furloughs in the process. I do not have a questionable history that makes me "unmarketable."
I'm glad to be here and have no regrets...and I still have no desire to work for the airlines.

 

[rettofly]

Obviously you didn't.... Fool? Hmm... now we're name calling?

Let me go get a juice box and my crayons and get back with you...

I wasn't sure I properly interpreted your broad brush description, and said so.

Anyone who categorizes entire populations as you did is acting foolishly. Thus my use of the word.

BTW, you haven't availed yourself of the opportunity to clarify this and educate me.

Best wishes for success to all you "fat, lazy,etc, etc" pilots who get hired at NetJets. You will now become lean and mean "educated, team playing professionals".

My point was and is that the vast majority of pilots, regardless of where they work, are dedicated professionals.

 

[skyward80]

Besides looking at large amounts of flight time and seeing who can answer all the fluffy customer service questions, the interviewing pilots who passed the sim ride and everything else should be given one last test before getting hired.

In Columbus, take each prosepective plilot out to a plane with an enormous amount of luggage sitting next to it, the cabin being filthy, and the jepps being three revisions out of date. The test would be to see who cleans the plane the best, loads all the luggage without complaining and updates all the jepps correctly. If they do a great job and can handle doing this everyday, then they get the job.

Some pilots forget that we have to do a bit more than an airline pilot. I'm tired of guys leaving the planes in bad shape.

I've been practicing for just such an interview scenario. My secret? Playing endless Tetris games and cleaning my kitchen daily.

Skyward80

 

[RP170]

3/10 from my group in Jan.

3/10 were hired from my interview group last August as well.

 

[RNObased]

In Columbus, take each prosepective plilot out to a plane with an enormous amount of luggage sitting next to it, the cabin being filthy, and the jepps being three revisions out of date. The test would be to see who cleans the plane the best, loads all the luggage without complaining and updates all the jepps correctly. If they do a great job and can handle doing this everyday, then they get the job.

Some pilots forget that we have to do a bit more than an airline pilot. I'm tired of guys leaving the planes in bad shape.

Amen, I'm just a little sick of guys who pay someone to vacumn the back of the jet. Then when it looks bad complain, or even worse don't realize it looks bad. Don't even get me started on luggage or jepps.

 

[206amphib]

I just got the job 2 days ago. My interview group kept in touch while waiting. We sent out emails, we know of one for sure that didn't get it, and three that did which includes myself. So from what we can tell 3 out of 12 got the job. Again, I haven't heard from anyone else...so i'm guessing.

 

[imacdog]

Congrats Amphib, which fleet are you going to?

 

[tankerswede]

My interview group kept in touch as well - six of ten were hired from early Feb interviews.

 

[Mooneymite]

Number of NetJets pilots

From time to time people post info on how many pilots NetJets plans to hire. Though it doesn't forecast the future, it may be of interest to look at how the seniority list has grown in the recent past.

Just looking at the informal notes I've kept: in January 06, right after the new contract was signed, there were about 2300 pilots.

In Jan 07, there were about 2600 pilots.

In Jan 08, there were about 2730 pilots.

In two years my original seniority number has decreased 121 numbers.

Our junior captain (excepting management pilots) is about 2000, but he might be considered "out of seniority" since the "pack" seems to be making captain around 1800. Significantly, the company seems to be raising the percentage of SIC's in each fleet and comensurately lowering the percentage of captains.

The junior guy on our latest seniority list is 2782.

That is a long seniority list and one must wonder how much more it will grow and how quickly it will grow. Both of these factors are of vital interest to prospective hires.

Each year, the rumor was that NetJets planned on hiring 450 pilots. We have had some attrition, but even given that, NetJets seniority list has grown about 400 numbers in the last two years, or about 200/year.

Were I a young pilot just starting out, I would think twice about joining such a long and young seniority list due to the slow progression. However, the security and stability of NetJets is a powerful attraction for the feint of heart.

Anyone else have a different perspective?

 

[jaybird]

Were I a young pilot just starting out, I would think twice about joining such a long and young seniority list due to the slow progression. However, the security and stability of NetJets is a powerful attraction for the feint of heart.

Anyone else have a different perspective?

I rarely fly with guys under 40. I'm usually paired with guys in their 50's and 60's. I can't find the demographics charts online.

 

[Twotter76]

From the age charts posted on the union website the average age at the company seems to be about 45. I understand if you are looking at the top 50% that number is closer to 40. There is a link to the charts from the message board - look for a thread titled seniority information - online. Not sure why you cant get to them from the ibt site.

 

[realityman]

FlyAuburn and all other hopefulls, dont be fooled, this is a great company and job, but we have our problems too. If you come from an airline background, the first thing that you will notice is we have no crew rooms or crew room friendships. Most of the senior guys think that they are aviation gods, when in reallity they couldnt get hired back in the 90s when every airline was hiring. They will tell you that the airlines sucked, but these are the guys that had to... 1)pay for training , 2)move to Columbus, 3) file their own flight plans, 4) get wake up phone calls at all hours of the night to ASAP somewhere. Or go to a regional or major and have a fixed schedule with none of this other bullsh!t.

These are the guys who got hired with a pulse, now that the union has made this a respectable job, the company can be more selective as to who they hire.

Dont get me wrong, this is a great place to be, but dont kid yourself, we do have our share of problems.

Good luck to all.

Wow! As arrogant a post as I've seen in a long time! Just FYI, I was hired back in '97 (just hit 11 years here). Yeah, I paid for my own training. So what? This place beat the heck out of where I was working, and I didn't have ANY apps in at the airlines at the time (nothing disqualifiying in my past, except maybe I only have an Associates degree. Just never had big-plane-itus)
I also didn't move to CMH. I commuted from CLE, and thought every minute of the two-hour drive was worth it compared to my last job. Again, not sure why being based at the only base Netjets had at the time is negative thing in your opinion.
Yes, we filed our own flight plans. Still not seeing any relevance towards what kind of quality pilots we were taking on back then. It was a fledgling company and we didn't have real dispatchers. No crime in that.
Yes, our old duty and rest rules allowed for early wake-up calls from the company, provided it didn't interrupt our necessary 10 hours of rest. Prospective rest in 91K fixed that, not some hot new breed of pilot you think NJA is hiring with our better contract.
And I certainly DO NOT consider myself an aviation god by any stretch of the imagination. In fact, part of the introductory briefing that I give to anyone I'm paired with whom I haven't flown with before is to remind them that I'm human, make mistakes, and would like to go home alive just as much as he would, so please don't hesitate to point out anything that doesn't look right. And I've found the vast majority of the senior guys to have the same attitude.

By the way, when you say 'the union' made this a respectable job, you're right. Just don't forget that the 'union' is the pilots that work here. The senior guys you seem to disdain so much have contributed quite a bit to making this the job it is now, whether you want to aknowledge it or not.

It's obvious, ski, you carry around quite a large chip on your shoulder about the senior pilots here. Did it ever occur to you that whether you're aware of it or not, this chip may be very visible to the senior folks you fly with, thus helping to create a defensive atmosphere which reinforces your opinion of the senior pilots? I'm no psychologist, but you might be your own worst enemy in this case.

 

[av8tor4239]

Were I a young pilot just starting out, I would think twice about joining such a long and young seniority list due to the slow progression. However, the security and stability of NetJets is a powerful attraction for the feint of heart.

Anyone else have a different perspective?

I would rather be an SIC at NJA than a widebody captain at any Major, cargo, traditional, national, regional.... and I am!

 

[kman]

I would rather be an SIC at NJA than a widebody captain at any Major, cargo, traditional, national, regional.... and I am!

Lets examine this.
SIC NJA
50-70k, cleaning and stocking, long upgrade, great benefits and 401k, no better than 7n7 with no flexibility(tour swap really doesn't count), crew food, dealing with briefing and catering, clearance, having very little seniority, nice Vacation, cramped cockpit, higher workload.

CA widebody (UPS, FEDEX, AA etc)
150-200k plus Lots of seniority, flexibility of trading, dropping, knowing what ur doing when ur doing it, no 10 turns, low workload, long overnights, good schedules, ok benefits, more days off per month, pension for the above airlines(might go away, might not), being the captain,(almost at any good company, it is always better the the ca, than the fo, u set the pace and the fo has to adjust to u), being able to work less if that is what u choose.

Hey I trade my NJ SIC position to any Widebody CA at any Legacy or UPS, or Fedex. I dont think i will get any offers anytime soon.

 

[206amphib]

Congrats Amphib, which fleet are you going to?

Im not sure...do they have us pick in class or before when they call to confirm the class? They say they're looking at the excel and the X....

 

[Guitar Guy]

Im not sure...do they have us pick in class or before when they call to confirm the class? They say they're looking at the excel and the X....

Normally when they call to offer the job, they'll also give you the fleets that you have to choose from. That's how it was done when I was hired in 2004. From what I understand from a recent new-hire, it still works that way.

And the fleets that they "are looking at" during your interview may or may not be the fleets you get to choose from when you're offered a job. Sort of a your-mileage-may-vary situation.

Good luck to you.

 

[kman]

Anybody want to trade nja sic for a widebody captain? Anybody?

 

[skiandsurf]

Wow! By the way, when you say 'the union' made this a respectable job, you're right. Just don't forget that the 'union' is the pilots that work here. The senior guys you seem to disdain so much have contributed quite a bit to making this the job it is now, whether you want to aknowledge it or not.

It's obvious, ski, you carry around quite a large chip on your shoulder about the senior pilots here. Did it ever occur to you that whether you're aware of it or not, this chip may be very visible to the senior folks you fly with, thus helping to create a defensive atmosphere which reinforces your opinion of the senior pilots? I'm no psychologist, but you might be your own worst enemy in this case.

It is my belief that the POSTA was done by some senior pilots, then the CBA 05 and the IBB was done by a more junior pilot group. Again, it is my belief that the more senior pilots are the NO votes on both contracts. During IBB, most of the guys bitching on the union message boards were the senior guys.

(for the uninformed....POSTA was going to pay captains $65,000....then CBA 05 was well into the $100,000s).

As far as me getting along with my fellow crewmembers.....I am easy going. I could care a less. I have more time in the flare than most captains have in the air. I have been there, done that. Now its all about days off, and getting paid. I really havent had a problem with any of the guys that I fly with....well maybe one. But I have talked to a few idiots in the FBOs (maybe you know a Falcon Capt thats based in PHX) and read some stuff on the message boards that puts off a negative tone. Maybe I shouldnt have said "most", but instead, "a few". ....unfortunately, its the few bad guys that we remember. Not all the great guys.

Again, NJs is a great company. Only wish that I was hired sooner.

As far as hiring.....
interviewing 4-5 days a week.
10/day.
hiring about 33% of interviewed.
getting 150 apps/week.
700 apps on file.
hiring 450 in '08.

phone interview.
technical interview.
customer service interview.
sim.....(might be going away).

Good luck.

 

[realityman]

"(maybe you know a Falcon Capt thats based in PHX) "

Uh, yeah, I know of him. Okay, I stand corrected. There are a few guys that can give us a bad name. The guy you're talking about works really hard at it.

It was interesting in the weeks leading up to the IBB vote because it seemed like many of the 'no' votes would be coming from guys in the 6-8 year range.

I know of most of the loud-mouths on the union message board, and most of them do not fall into the most senior pilot category. A few, but it seems to be that really vocal 6-8 year range that yell the loudest.

As someone who has been through several contracts here, I think it wasn't senior guys resting on our laurels back in the day that was the real problem. We simply lacked effective leadership, or even a good understanding of what a unified group could do. At the time, we had less than 300 pilots. And not many of us had good solid union experience (EJA was my first union job). 300 disorganized pilots with weak leadership didn't represent much of a threat to EJA management.
As we gained numbers, we also gained people with experience in unions. Their is a lot of criticism of the Fab 5 (deservedly so), but they were, in fact, a better and more effective group than what we had before. So while far FAR from perfect, we were already at least trying to move in the right direction and effect some change for the better.
So the rolling ball was started by those who are senior here. It may have been rolling very slowly at first, and I give much credit to all the folks hired in the past 10 years for really giving that ball of change a massive push, but don't write off the senior folks just because we were hired before the change started. That's all.

 

[av8tor4239]

Lets examine this.

CA widebody (UPS, FEDEX, AA etc)
150-200k plus Lots of seniority, flexibility of trading, dropping, knowing what ur doing when ur doing it, no 10 turns, low workload, long overnights, good schedules, ok benefits, more days off per month, pension for the above airlines(might go away, might not), being the captain,(almost at any good company, it is always better the the ca, than the fo, u set the pace and the fo has to adjust to u), being able to work less if that is what u choose.

Hey I trade my NJ SIC position to any Widebody CA at any Legacy or UPS, or Fedex. I dont think i will get any offers anytime soon.

The only response I have for you is BORING BORING BORING.

I have done the airline thing.... Talk about rot.. Lets talk about FedEx in particular since I have imediate family flying for them.

YOu will not make 150-200k a year until year 10+ as an FO.. on top of that you will be based in HONG KONG where the cost of living makes Manhatten look like Bucksnort, TN. (really exist too). YOu will Die the day you turn 62 becuase you have been flying HAZMAT from the CDC in Atlanta, and Chemical and nuclear weapons for the governmet for 20+ years.. not to mention all of it on the back side of the clock. You are garenteed to get divorced or have your wife/girlfriend/partner leave you or attempt to murder you http://www.aetv.com/city_confidential/city_episode_guide.jsp?episode=135846

No 10 hour turns huh... ask some of the 727 guys sitting sideways about the am hub turns to BFE texas and Montana..

Good Schedules.. that is freaking funny, maybe for the top 5% but since age 65 passed 30 year guys are still MOVING BACKWARDS ON THIS SO CALLED "LOTS OF SENORITY"

Everyone has a different view.. having worked for 2 121 carriers I can honestly say that knowing where you are sleeping on a nightly basis is minor. Being treated well by the company is worth its weight in gold.