This gets asked every so often and while it may seem like a great idea, there are a few points that are often missed.
First, while Australia and NZ may occupy a land mass that's comparable to the US, there's only around 25 million people in total. The whole market has shown time and time again, that it can only really support 2 major carriers and a handful of regionals in Australia, while NZ can only support one major airline and associated regionals. Hence, there are only a limited number of pilots that will be required by the airlines. That's one of the reasons you'll find Aussies and Kiwis flying all over the rest of the world.
Secondly, it is not a cheap place to live. Taxes are high, far higher than the US and the cost of living has gone through the roof over the last 10 years.
Thirdly, while you don't need to be a citizen, you do need the right to live and work there. Just, I might add, the same as you need here. QF do though, have a requirement that you have been educated in Australia or at the very least have a High School and University education that is comparable to Australian qualifications.
Lastly, Qf is not one of the greatest jobs out there. A few years ago QF management took a leaf out of the Tilton playbook of "how to screw your employees" and formed Jetstar. It was supposed to be a low cost venture a la United and Ted. Only problem was, the QF guys were too arrogant or too stupid to realise it was a perfect recipe for a whipsaw. Guess what's happened? Jetstar is expanding and getting the majority if not all the new 787's on order, expanding into QF markets both domestically and internationally and QF is shrinking. A mate of mine at Jetstar mentioned a month ago, that QF was offering slots at Jetstar, to a bunch of the most junior guys at Qantas.
The grass isn't always greener on the other side, although the beer is better.
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