Also would anyone care to comment on CBA negotiations and what the pilot group wants in the new contract? I would assume retirement would be up there on that list.

 

Sounds very much like you're saying something along the lines of "tell me why I should work at Omni. Give me one good reason."

What could you learn to live with? What could you overlook in order to settle, and allow Omni to be graced by your presence?

I suspect that Omni has plenty of applicants beating down the door (someone mentioned two showed out of something like a class of eight, recently?), despite any shift in the industry leading the less than. honorable to accept a class and then welch out on it when a shinier penny comes along.

Others seem to have provided plenty of reasons; good pay, easy work, few hours, good time at home, based from your house, good company, variety, go see the world, yada, yada. I've been at several employers who said outright in initial: if you want to be here, we welcome you with open arms. If you dont, then go; we don't want anyone here who doesn't really want to be here. I doubt Omni is any different. I see several posters have called it the best-kept secret.

Every operator has it's good and bad, shine and warts. One might have great maintenance, another poor. One might have great communication, another the worst. I suspect that Omni, like nearly any other operator, there are both highs and lows. It sounds like you're asking which lows you might over look and still take the job. My experience with numerous operators over the years has been that it doesn't take long for the honeymoon to end and the realities to be visible; all the cracks, wear points, and the daily grit: it is a job, after all. One pilot's ceiling is another's floor, and all that. What bothers you may attract the next guy; what drives him nuts may be your cup of tea. Any operator will be great at some area, and less desirable at another.

Omni seems to be a fairly even-keeled place with a lot of seniority list that has been with them for a long time, and enough newer employees to show growth, if not in terms of aircraft, perhaps in work, income, demand, whatever. Others can provide their specifics.

Years ago, a quick search of Kalitta would show an engine falling off in Lake Michigan, gear parts in Scotland, multiple engines flaming out in Colombia, a runway overrun and destroyed airplane in Brussels, etc. National has their moment in Afghanistan. Western Global numerous air turnbacks, large percentages of their fleet AOG on any given day, and so on. Omni, a gear collapse, something here, something there. Omni has also been doing a lot of DoD flights for a lot of years; there's a client that uses them heavily and continues to use them all over the globe, and to me, that speaks volumes about how they're viewed by an organization that regularly evaluates them. I've parked next to Omni airplanes all over the planet, for a long time. They've become a constant presence, many places I've been. They're not a large company, but they have longevity, and it would appear that their clients are satisfied. I believe that's worth taking note.

Someone said a three year upgrade, but it's worth noting that with Covid, Omni (like many operators) reduced their hiring, resulting in a period of a year or two gap...what happens when upgrades hit that gap...perhaps someone can jump in on that. Do the upgrade times drop to a year or two as applicants bridge it from one hire date to the next, a year or two later? Maybe. Even three years is good. Some have opined that home basing is worth it's weight in gold, others that it doesn't matter. I'd submit that having been home based, it's worth a lot to me, and I suspect to most of those at Omni.

Sixteen or seventeen days on the road is standard fare for most of the ACMI and charter operators working internationally. It's not that long to be gone from home, especially if you consider taking two weeks off without interruption. Compare that to commuting with three days off in between trips elsewhere, and two of those three spent getting to and from the job. Personally, I'd much rather have someone buy me a ticket to work, stay there for a couple of weeks, get a ticket home, and have my own time off. I've had a lot of years with ten months on the road, which is to say, get out of bed one day, and don't return to it until ten months later. From my perspective, a couple of weeks on the road is nothing. Nothing at all, especially when the time at home is uninterrupted. Perspective.

If I have to look at a job and ask what I have to overlook in order to settle for taking the job, I look for a different job. Someone described Omni as the Island of Misfit Toys. I'd say that description is apt for a number of the charter and ACMI operators out there; aircraft from a variety of operators, pilots from every walk of life. Military, corporate, regional, charter, whatever. Lots of experience levels and backgrounds. Sounds like something for everyone, but also that the job may not be for everyone. That might be anyone out there. I suspect you'd never be a cookie cutter there. I suspect you'd find it's a place where those around you care more about whether they can get along with you for a week together, than where you've been or what you've done, and I suspect that like many places, most of the pilots will bend over backward to help you, and a few won't. For a best kept secret, they seem fairly open-book. You pays your fare, you takes your chances. I don't hear a lot of complaining about the place. Probably a good thing.

 

Just sounds to good to be true. I’m all onboard. Just wondering if there is something that I’m overlooking.

 

Congrats! How long before you start class?

 

I don't have a class date yet. They wanted to put me in June, but I'm not available until I go on terminal leave in a couple of months.

 

Omni is a good place, certainly improvements to be made in some contract areas, but definitely a good place as JB stated.

 

Might be worth noting this past year we've had 2 pilots that came back after going to a legacy and deciding the grass wasn't greener. Both were formerly captains at Omni if I'm not mistaken. Unfortunately the retirement here isn't on level or even close to the majors.

 

You’re probably not over looking it….But: No 16% DC like the majors. No profit sharing. No living in base and getting super senior on junior equipment and being home 26 days a month. Etc. In my opinion, if you live somewhere not conductive to a major….then the financial tradeoffs are really the only obstacle. In that case….the ease of getting to work and the reduced stress of not having to comply with a commuting clause may be worth it for you. I don’t work for Omni…but another home based operator. I like it real hard while seemingly everyone around me bails to live the double-breasted, flat hat dream. If you’re trying to talk yourself out of your goal of working for brand x……you might want to reconsider.

 

Is the training good?? I’ve heard they have a high-success rate but also had a recent failure- most likely the person didn’t put in the effort?? I don’t know, of course.

For those already there.. how do you keep iPhones, etc charged while on the road, internationally? Is there a universal adapter for plugs??
Does t-mobile automatically work worldwide or would I have to get a special plan, if hired there?

 

My own biased personal opinion is We have some of the best instructors in the industry from what I've seen and been exposed to. They want you to succeed, and they are great at altering their teaching technique to meet the needs and understanding of the individual student. Class sizes are typically smaller, so you get more direct personal attention. Having opened our own training center has been a great plus at having more control over the entire training process. We still use outside facilities when needed. It's a 121 program not an AQP program. That probably will not change. the six month cycle forces guys into the books at least twice per year. We aren't a cargo hauler flying 80 hours a month with 1/2 of it being your own stick time. You'll fly 25-55 hours a month on average which includes IRO duty. You'll likely get one leg and one landing per month and 2-3 other IRO flights. Some months are busier, some less. One of our biggest issues is just keeping guys landing current. It's not unusual to end up going to training to reset landings.

You can always plug it into the cockpit iphone charger. Most guys have a travel kit that does multi country adapters. T-Mobile seems to be the most popular, and it's worked everywhere I've gone. I carry one of these for power adapters.

International Travel Adapter Power Plug Wall Charger Converter with 4 USB Port