Where exactly are you supposed to look on a visual if not outside??

 

Fair enough... but I would rather speak to members of my family who have lived there about living expenses etc... and from what I can draw for a single person going there it isn't all bad. Sure the numbers look bigger but I suspect my lifestyle would be about the same as it is now... there are different ways to spend more or less. I appreciate your concern and advice but if I were to interview and take a job it would be on my own terms and not simply based off of what someone on the internet says.

As far as the visual approach goes.... if an electronic glideslope was available did you not follow it lieu of following a PAPI/VASI and/or eyeballs? Sure I would expect any company to teach my to fly their aircraft their way... wouldn't expect anything less.

 

I wouldn't expect anyone to be stupid enough to simply believe what they're told by a stranger on the Internet. Which is why I suggested getting in touch with current REX guys. And hey, if the figures I quoted above seem to work with what Rex are offering, go for it. All I can tell you is that I earn $45,000 more here as a 73 FO, than I did as a 7th year RJ CA in the US but end up with the same amount in my pocket at the end of the month. So, I'll I'm saying is going into it with your eyes open. We all know how miserable it can be in the right seat at a US regional and with all the furloughs that seem to be coming soon, it's going to be a lot worse.

That kind of assumption, although ultimately understandable, would be a mistake. It's a "Checking Culture" not a "Training Culture" and they'll expect you to know their regs and RT right out of the gate. At Rex you'll be operating OCTA and into a lot of uncontrolled airports, the procedures for which are very particular to Australia.

And no, no electronic glide slope, nor Chinese glide slope. Pure visual approach using PAPI's. My point, which every other former US pilot I've met down here agrees with, is that they have an uncanny knack of taking the easy and making it difficult and then taking the difficult and making it impossible. You cannot take anything simple that you do in the US and think it'll be the same here. It'll prove very frustrating. As one former USMC and UAL guy I know, who is now a CA with Voz on the 777 put it, flying domestically in Australia is a miserable experience.

 

Fair enough... thank you for your input Kenny.

 

Belliott

I get it, trust me I really do; I spent 9 years at the regionals in the US, including a furlough, so I understand the need to get the hell out. But I am Australian, lived here at various points in my life, my familly is here and I've been caught out at how radically ($$$$) it has changed over the last 10 years.

 

So you think that I would have a better QOL living in the US making 40K/year than living in SYD on 80K+/year? If I had a family to worry about I might agree but I know a lot of single CJC guys are facing downgrade/furlough... this might be a better place to spend the next couple of years than slinging the gear for a Pinnacle CA who doesn't think we should even be employed.

 

OK, given that there are a lot of Saab rated guys that are facing the unemployment line in the not so distant future, I'll put this up here, rather than PM you.

First off, let me preface the following with this...These are AU$ figures for Sydney, which is by far the most expensive city in Australia and well above NYC or any other US city.

If Rex are offering $80k/yr, then that'll work out to be around $4100 per month, after tax.

If you live on your own in a flat in Mascot, right next to the airport, I think you'd end up with about $670 at the end of the month. Closer to the city and you'll end up with less.

If you do the shared accommodation in Mascot, you're looking at about $1200 at the end of the month and that's bare bones ramen noodle type living..

Where that can disappear, is if you like going out. The cheapest place we've found for beer and pizza is around $60 for two. 1 pizza, 2 beers. You won't see much change from $100-150 for a night out, drinking with friends.

The problem is that you pay for everything here and a lot more than you would in the US, so it's a constant putting your hand in your pocket. Breakfast at hotels is never free if you want it, so you'll spend about $20-30 a day on that alone, for example.

Also, regarding your comment about Pinnacle CA's who don't think you should be there. Don't underestimate there being an element of that here. It's a huge bone of contention that companies like Rex are prepared to employ foreign pilots on contracts but won't pay more for local FO's. There isn't a pilot shortage here, just that Rex won't pay the locals more. So they end up losing guys very quickly to Virgin and Jetstar and hence the revolving door.

Here's what I'd suggest; look at the following website to get an idea about rent. They quote by the week but charge for a calender month.

www.domain.com.au

I'd also look at the following website for an idea about how expats, particularly Americans, feel about living here.

Yanks Down Under

I'm happy to answer any questions if you think of anything, you need to clarify. After all, it's a long way from home if you get here and don't like it

 

Pardon my ignorance on the subject. Is REX hiring US pilots? I flew to Sydney, and I was impressed enough with what I saw to inquire into becoming a pilot. I contacted Qantas, and surprisingly the DO called me back and explained that the Australian market was similar to the US in that there was an abundance of pilots. I researched, and found out that it is highly unlikely that any US pilot would be sponsored by an Australian airline for the proper visa etc. The US pilot would also incure the cost of obtaining the Australian ATP which is not cheep. After 2001, Ansatt went out of business, and the market became almost just like the US with an over abundance of pilots. This being said, I have long since given up an the possibility of flying in Australia. Have the circumstances changed at all? Is there now a possibility for a US pilot to be both sponsored, and rated by the Australian airline? I appreciate the info.

 

Hey Kenny, you'd know this better than me, has REX fixed their problems with the pilots?

Last I heard, which was last week, they were on rolling work stoppages due to pilot industrial action. . . and now they're hiring foreign pilots?

And have you seen the Air Nuigini offer for the NG that just came out? The VANZ guy's are all over it, as you'd imagine they would be.

 

I don't know about rated, but they have been interviewing US candidates for Saab 340 positions in St. Louis. There's a link on their site under career opportunities for USA Pilots.

USA Pilot