Originally Posted by
CarolinaJet
Thx for the feed back
I was at the info session and they made it seem like EK was going to double in size over the next five to ten years. If the 350 is replacing some or all of the 330 and 340 aircraft then I guess this is not the case. Can you tell me (best guess) the growth forecast for EK. I am not as young as these other guuys and I need to get all the info I can,
Thx
I basically advise guys coming to EK today to make the decision based on a 7 to 10 year upgrade time frame. Currently pilots are upgrading at 4-5 years depending on which fleet they are on. That is for pilots who were hired 4-5 years ago. It is actually forecast to go down slightly over the next year. Growth and hiring numbers actually change every week. It could be that someone hired today does upgrade in 5 years, but I wouldn't make the decision based on that because you'd only be setting yourself up for possible disapppointment.
Attrition is the big wild card. It currently runs at 3% or less, but it could go higher. As I often say here, 10-15 years is kind of a limit on the expat life. The urge to go home increases more and more as you get to that time of service. Of the 2800 pilots at EK, less than 500 have hit the 10 year mark so you've got a lot of guys who will be hitting that point in the next few years. Most are already looking for ways to get home more.
Then there are the DECs that were hired starting 7 years ago. Many were in their early to mid-fifties. They'll be retiring over the next 10 years as well.
Typhoonpilot