Screwed by my company!!

[flydaddy0499]

Anyone ever heard of this???

The company I was recently hired to fly for decided they need to sell our King Air and get out of aviation altogether right now. It looks as if a couple of large deals fell through and the knee-jerk reaction is "get rid of that d@mn plane!". So that means I've been laid off just before Christmas (with 3 small boys to provide for) and the plane is for sale. What they do not realize is that the plane will probably sit around for another 4-5 months or more before it's actually gone. The sad thing is these jerks will probably file for bankruptcy and start again somwhere else and do this all over again.

The good news is that I get to walk away with school paid for on two different aircraft (BE90 and C421) but who knows how long it will take to find a new gig. The other bad news is that it was my first turbine transistion and I only flew 30 hours in the a/c. Oh well, I suppose God will provide.

Nonetheless, I cannot stand these companies who do not have a solid business plan and jumping into aviation without having done their homework and suddenly being surprised by a maintenance or fuel bill.

You mean to tell me it cost how much to fly to Ft. Lauderdale? What a bunch of morons. Of course, I guess I share part of the blame for not doing my homework on these guys. I suppose I was "turbine-struck".

If anyone knows of any gigs in ATL or surrounding airports, drop me a PM please?

Thanks,

flydaddy0499

 

[semperfido]

sorry but keep putting one foot in front of the other

 

[XTW]

Welcome to the wonderful world of corporate aviation. There are stable ones out there. Good luck with the next gig.

 

[chperplt]

Good luck to you and your family!

 

[OviedoBob]

Been there, done that.

3 corporate flying jobs. All bust. I'm on my 4th airline. The other 3 either furoughed me (1) or went under (the opther 2). And the one I'm with now is not that stable.

The first corporate gig I had went exactly as in your situation. Business went sour, sell the "fleet".

2nd corporate gig the same thing. Except I knew it was coming so I bailed out a month or two before the ax fell.

Always keep your resume current, the eyes and ears up for intell!

 

[NotFurloughed]

That old gig...

My old boss used to say you aren't a real corporate pilot until you have had an aircraft sold out from under you...he said this 2 months before they sold the plane...it's happened to me twice and i'm sure there are plenty of others who feel your pain...

keep your chin up, and a positive attitude...and best of luck...

 

[User546]

Sorry to hear that FlyDaddy.

Like the others said just keep one foot in front of the other, keep a good attitude, and something else will come your way.

And times might get tough, but just take this time right now to enjoy the time you can have with your family this Christmas season.

Good luck.

 

[irapilot]

Not that it helps, (I have rode 3 outfits down myself and I know it hurts) but one guy I used to fly with found out that he was out of a job enroute from the west coast to the east coast at FL410. The principal owner got a phone call then came up and told him, "Well, when we get on the ground, that's it - plane is for sale and the flight department is folded, we will try to get you a ticket home". I told him I would have changed my destination and gone back or just landed right there and said "so long, Bub".

There is so much to operating a small company flight department that goes beyond just flying the a/c, budgets, justification, service, politics; it is not for the faint of heart for sure.

I wish you and yours all the luck in finding your way.

 

[FracCapt]

Sorry to hear it, man...but, unfortunately, it's a chance you take in the corporate world. At least with the companies with larger flight depts and the airlines you're likely to get a fair amount of notice...but the smaller ones...well, what happened to you happens all the time.

A buddy of mine was based on the east coast in a GIII. He was sent out to the west coast to pick up the owners daughter. When he got there, the owner said "actually, we sold the airplane...we have airline tickets to get you guys home". That was it. Job over. The owner told him that he lied to him about it because he figured they would have quit on the spot if he had told them and he would have had to figure another way to get the airplane to the buyer.

I know another guy that was told one morning that "this will be our last trip, then we're selling the airplane". They told him as of that evening he was out of a job. He decided not to do that last trip...and went back home.

I have not had an airplane sold out from underneath me at a corporate operator...but when flying freight I was told one night that it was the last night of my freight run, and they didn't have any other routes they could give me. That sucked.

As for jobs in the ATL area...check Flightworks. I've seen them advertising in the not too distant past. They're out of RYY I think. Good luck.

 

[kilroy]

So what would you do if you were in flight and told the flight department is shutdown and this is your last flight ????????????? I,d find the shortest airport runway the aircraft could possibly land on (because you know there would never be enough runway to take off) and park the muthaf()cker..!! Try and sell it now that you have to truck out of there.. But I'm to much of a pu$$y to do that.. Its gotta s()ck big time to have zero notice that you are now out of a job I feel for you guys . Good luck.

 

[bart]

Georgia Jet is looking for BeechJet FOs (LZU), and Flightworks needs Citation pilots (RYY). Good luck.

 

[Publishers]

Companies do not go around trying to get into difficulties so they can shut the flight department down and fire the pilots.
On the other hand, these are the areas first hit in the downturn.

 

[Sctt@NJA]

Ah yes Publishers you have made it all so clear now.

 

[Lequip]

Anyone ever heard of this???


Nonetheless, I cannot stand these companies who do not have a solid business plan and jumping into aviation without having done their homework and suddenly being surprised by a maintenance or fuel bill.


flydaddy0499

You mean the same way that you did your homework on this company before you took the job? Welcome to corporate aviation! Next time pick a better company.

 

[Sctt@NJA]

I don't like bashing management and companies that provide us with jobs. But there is a double standard applied to the employer employee relationship.

Most of the cases shared on this thread involved employeers lying to the pilots and giving zero or almost zero notice about being out of a job.

These are the same people who expect to be given two weeks notice if a pilot wants to leave??????

I have always believed that there are two ways to leave a job. One is two weeks notice as a courtesy to a good employer. The other way is zero notice... the equivalent of firing them the way they would you if they didn't want you around anymore.

 

[Corona]

I don't like bashing management and companies that provide us with jobs. But there is a double standard applied to the employer employee relationship.

Most of the cases shared on this thread involved employeers lying to the pilots and giving zero or almost zero notice about being out of a job.

These are the same people who expect to be given two weeks notice if a pilot wants to leave??????

I have always believed that there are two ways to leave a job. One is two weeks notice as a courtesy to a good employer. The other way is zero notice... the equivalent of firing them the way they would you if they didn't want you around anymore.

I'll give you a hearty "AMEN" to your last sentence.

Once, while working for a management company, I had three airplanes sold from under me in 4 months. I got transferred to other (crappier) jobs, but it was still a royal pain. Especially since the company pissed off the owners of the first a/c.

Hmm...three airplanes in 4 months?... You don't suppose it coulda been me, do ya? Maybe I should treat the TDZ more like a goal and less like a target...

C

 

[Daveman]

Most of the cases shared on this thread involved employeers lying to the pilots and giving zero or almost zero notice about being out of a job.
These are the same people who expect to be given two weeks notice if a pilot wants to leave??????
.

Couldn't agree more with this statement. Corporations that operate a flight department, in almost all cases, can certainly afford the pilots some severance package.
Our company in the early '70s, so I'm told, kept the pilots on the payroll long after the equipment was sold. We'll see if/when the time comes.
Well flydaddy, good luck in your search. Pretty crumby to be let go this time of year when traditionally, hiring is very slow.

 

[flydaddy0499]

I underatnd that companies have bad times, flight depts get sold, mergered out of existence, tragedies strike us unaware. I just got caught up with the promise of flying turbine equipment without doing my homework on my employers. Everyone know how difficult it is to get a turbine transition outside of 121 or 135 flying. It's darn near impossible. Honestly, these folks should have started with Baron 58 and worked their way up but I came to party too late to make an honest assessment.

But, these particular guys were running a shady business scheme ( I won't say what it is) and ended up getting caught by a few people. The bottom line is this: these folks, along with a lot of other companies were running a very tight margin with very little in liquid assets. Someone forgot to do their homework actual operating costs and other associated costs and got caught with their pants down.

I am tired of CEO's that own an aircraft or two just to keep up with their buddies or to flaunt a false identity of stability and liquidity at the expense of us pilots and our families. On the one hand they tell their buddies about not being able to do without the flight dept and then treat the flight dept like trash when it comes time to tough times.

I have given every employer (with one exception) a 30 day notice if I was to resign for greener pastures. I have not always received fair treatment in return but I believe it's important to be consistent no matter what. That's called ethics; a way of life often missing when it comes to aviation and certain employers.

I'll bet that C90B will do someone south of the border a world of good if everyone's going to play dirty. But nooooo, we must be good little pilots every time we get it up the b-hole with no vaseline.

What about that short strip idea???

 

[FL000]

Sorry about your dilemma. The first things to go when the money stops flowing are airplanes and advertising. I've been in both fields.

 

[aeronautic1]

I can sum it up in one word:

Sell real estate