Really?! Wow... Hoping to hear from them.

thanks for all the info Atl55 -

cheers !

Has anyone heard anything new at NCA? I interviewed last year with Parc and was successful (I think!).... but not a peep since.

Thx in advance!

I would get in touch with them and ask, you should have been told by now one way or another.:confused:

Anyone from the last batch of new hires care to speak of how training has been? More interviews are happening in May and June, curious what people have thought so far.

Myself and many friends/acquaintances have gone through the screening... none have passed the medical, nobody knows why they have failed, most are young and fit.

They will not tell you unless it is life threatening, the Japanese are strict on regards to numbers, could be triglycerides, blood pressure, cholesterol, out of their green range (a range set for a fit Japanese) then you are failed, could be something as simple as getting into a diet for a few weeks to bring your numbers back to what they want them, but they just fail the medical instead.

You would think with that "wash out" rate they would run out of candidates.
Same with Korean and their 45yo FO age requirement.

Sorry to hear that. That is my biggest fear as well. I'm early 30s, very fit, active runner/gym rat, no known medical problems or medications.... But just worried they'll find something.

I wonder how many candidates fail due to white coat hypertension over the anxiety of this thing...

Is the time on type mandatory is there any wiggle room with widebody time on other types?

... someone new in a higher position trying to make a name for themselves by not approving many "round eyes" physical results.

I am in my 30's, very active with mountain biking, trail running and hiking, healthy diet, less than 20% body fat, don't smoke and have never had ANY health issues. I failed the medical in October. I've heard some are getting to redo small things that didn't meet the standard.

Of 6 guys I know that went through the process, the one that passed the medical ended up going to Atlas.:p

I know what test I didn't pass and it was because I couldn't understand what they wanted me to do, and realized half way through I was doing wrong. The young woman corrected me and continued, but I don't know if they started the test over or just continued with what I had. I've never failed this particular visual test before...:eek: That was the hardest thing in the whole medical process, trying to understand people that barely speak english

Good company and great job if you can get through the whole process. It can be done, so don't worry about failing...just do it.

I also failed the medical and am in excellent shape. It must drive HACS and PARC crazy to have so many good candidates bust the medical. They had to send me out twice, once for the interview and once for the medical - lots of money spent on plane tickets! The good thing is the flights and hotel are paid for, so you're not out that expense if you do go interview. Eventually they are going to run out of guys with 747 time to interview.

time on type is the biggest challenges for many pilots that have time in wide bodies but not in the very 747. i heard that they are very firm on time on type.

A question to pilots on this forum that have time in type on the 747, how would one go get some time on the 747? Atlas and polar and some cargo/charter outfit have those 747 here in the states, but apart from that where would one pick up those time on 747s?

Atlas, Kalitta and Southern are the only one that hire into the 744 in the U.S. I was at World for 6 years before furlough, so I know you can count them out, probably for good. You might be able to get on with Air Atlanta Icelandic with a JAA ATP and widebody time. Other than that, I don't know any other carriers that hire into it unless your typed with time.

I drives ME crazy! It's my biggest concern. I'm just not sure if it's worth blowing half of my vacation days for the year to interview for a job I may not get due to some random medical reason I'm not even privy to. I would love to get on with NCA, but I am nervous I'm going to blow this medical for no reason.

Anyone go through the May screening?

Heard the class is in Nov. so they are probably taking their time.

One class in Oct, one in Nov. They had screenings last week and more in June.

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New company doctor at NCA...
 

The latest rumor is that next month the company doctor retires. His replacement will probably be more lenient. He is the one failing a lot of applicants.

Good luck.

Any updates?
 

Hi all,
Just wondering if NCA is planning on hiring any pilots....i heard that there are many JAL pilots working at NCA....are they going back to JAL any time soon?
Btw, i am new here currently work in asia as 744 FO.

Thanks...

All the JAL pilots have returned. No hiring currently, but I did just hear a rumor of 20 possible new hires by the end of the year.

Thanks! I will keep my hopes up!

Nca
 

I just applied for b744 fo position thru parc aviation...just what the schedule is like if i were to get based in LAX. And i heard nca upgrades i house is this correct?

I work for another carrier mind you but I do know many folks working there...., they do upgrade from within and there will be some limited hiring apparently but a long time to upgrade right now since there is some stagnation.

I know someone too and its just ok. You are a contract worker for a Japanese airline. Ask the JALways guys how it worked out for them! They will always try to promote Japanese first. There are even rumors of DECs. My buddy is trying to go but hes being picky.

JAL entered in bankruptcy and not only the Jalways guys were let go but also many of the JAL mainline pilots...., Jalways gave everyone plenty of time to get other jobs and cancelled their contracts with 4 months of pay....! I would say that under the circumstances they were treated fairly.

There are many of those pilots working with AJX today and there is no ill will from any of them towards Jalways.

And about your comment of a Japanese company promoting Japanese pilots first...., regrettably you are misinformed. At NCA as well as at AJX..., all pilots are under contract (Japanese or expats) and the upgrades are by longevity.

Also their training is formed by both expats and Japanese instructors and all pilots receive evaluations from both groups of instructors.

There are just a handful of places that upgrade pilots from within in the contract world...., these two specific companies in Japan (NCA, AJX) do have a working upgrade program in place.

Not bashing Dominican. My buddy did not fair so well. He's not bitter just bad timing. He's not angry just tired is all. He keeps getting told different things and of course the contract was changed when time to sign. NCA does have some history as you know. I've been looking at Japan but the training thing would kill me. You are always a great source of info and sorry If my information is a bit different. Rumor has it that JAL may need expats again. Thanks.

Why would the long training period kill you? They pay your entire salary (no training pay) since day one and although it is indeed long....., you do get a lot of time off so it is not really that bad...., at least for me that came from timing out just about every year before coming here..., the time away from the flight deck was welcomed...., my family came and spent several months with me in a furnished apartment in a nice area of Tokio and I had plenty of time off for sightseeing...., it wasn't bad at all.

Well..., JAL and the rumors of a new "gaijin" contract....!

I've been hearing the same thing for a while now, I had a couple of cold ones with two of their pilots in HKG a few months back and they are very short on crews..., many A/C's on order lots of retirements and having the same trouble recruiting locals as ANA is having...., they see no other way around it but to look for pilots on the expat market.

Companies like Peach.., Jetstar Japan, Spring Airlines, Vanilla Air are having a very difficult time hiring as well

Thanks Dom. Its not the pay or time off, it's having to study for ten months! Even for an RJ which I am already typed in. I have previous 757/767 time as well. JAL, will have a hard time as will/do all the Asian carriers. The reason the Japanese carriers are having a bit of hard time getting really high qualified guys is because of the really excessively long training.

NCA keeps changing business ideas and my buddy is not sure what the hell is going on.

Japan is a beautiful country and the people are lovely but 9-10 months to train already qualified pilot seems to be overkill. Also, why is it always so damn windy in Japan. And of course there's Godzilla.

I'll say the same thing about the "short of crews" statement I've been saying for some time: Have a program to hire well-experienced expat FO's into a fast-track captain program.

Still plenty of 40-50 something folks here in the US that for one reason or another (911, picked the wrong airline, started late) have 10,000+ hours heavy time plus type ratings but are career FO's. They're not leaving for an FO contract but it'd be a different story if there was a quick path to a captain gig.

The fact that no one has tapped into this pool of pilots tells me they're maybe just not that hard up for people after all.....

NCA info
 

Any one care to PM me some more specifics of this contract. The one on Parc and HACS is very vague and would like a tad more info.
ie

Pay Scales
Commuting details/ allowance (if any)
Staff Travel (if any)

Also a roster would be nice to see as well

Cheers

Actually all the Western copilots are very experienced. The top 14 copilots have been at NCA for over 9 years and have been waiting their turn. Most have flown captain at previous airlines, so it is not an experience issue. All of the other 30, hired over the past 3 years, had the 400 type rating with international widebody experience when they were hired. The company is shrinking and trying to get rid of the 400's and keep the 8 -8F's. If you look at Kalitta's last 2 -400's, they are NCA airplanes with tail numbers ending in KZ. The attrition rate is very high with Captain's and Copilots leaving. If you go to NCA you will be at the bottom of the list and they say they will guarantee 2 upgrades a year. So you can do the math on the upgrade opportunities. You also will go to year 1 Captain pay on the longevity scale. So current 10 year pay copilots will go to year 1 Captain pay which is not much of a diference in pay. You also will be hired on a "B" scale. If you are an American you will be on less because you will only get paid a $400 commuting allowance while everyone else gets $1300 - $1450. Depending where you live you will have to reach into your pocket to commute. There are no Jumpseats or ZED fares. It really gets expensive when you get your schedule on the 24th and you have to buy a ticket to commute on your day off, on the last day of the month because you fly on the first.
It use to be the best contract, but it is not anymore. The company just keeps taking but not giving anything back. There are many more issues, but these are just a few.

Interesting......thanks for the info.

"It's not what it used to be"....... a familiar refrain.

I'll add some info and clarifications...
Don Julio is 100% correct.

The long training time in Japan is completely what you make of it. I spent eight months there and completely loved it, with occasional bouts of being homesick. Largely however, it was a unique an enjoyable experience that I took advantage of.

The Dominican is usually spot on it has lots of great insight, however there are a few pieces of wrong information in this thread. NCA absolutely will and does hire Japanese DECs, and hire copilots that will upgrade out of seniority above western pilots. Japanese pilots come first, period.

19/20 of the Japanese pilots I have flown with have been great. There is an obvious language barrier, but they are usually very pleasant and friendly.

Expect to be a copilot for a very long time. I would anticipate at least 10 years. It is decent pay at the start, but it stagnates and you will never received a decent raise, now will your schedule ever get any better.

I enjoy the job, however it definitely seems to be degrading quickly.

Also, another correction.

We do not get 100% pay during training. You will receive training pay which is 75% of base pay. You will, however, receive cash per diem, which is very significant.

Hi folks,

I'm interested in NCA as well. I've received all documentation from PARC and apparently is ok but roster looks hard.

Anyone can tell me, more or less, how the roster usually is? I have requested AMS base just if somebody else has this base too.

And also, could you please throw some light on the fact of spending 6-8 months in Tokyo for the training course. According to the info is to convert license into JACB but whatever you can say is appreciated.

Thank you!

Start Up Cargo AVIADVICE
 

Any one familiar with this company they are hiring crew for -200 classic based in Estonia?

Guys are probably averaging 10-14 days off a month, but these numbers are shrinking as more pilots leave. Depending on which base you are in you will be commuting on your days off. AMS you will start your trip early so you will have to commute in the day before but you can commute home on your last day. The problem with AMS is there are only 3 flights a week so you may have to hang around a few days in NRT to deadhead back to AMS. The schedules are hard because there is no fatigue manage program so 2 pilots can fly up to 12 hours and 3 pilots up to 15 hours. You can arrive from AMS - MXP- NRT in the morning with a 3 man crew then the next day do a day trip to PVG followed by a night trip the following night to HKG and back. Or you could do a 3-man LAX - SFO-NRT arrive in the morning then do a 2 man NRT-LAX the next morning usually with a Captain deadheading in the back. The problem is they build all the scheduled by hand with pencil and paper and they keep rotating crew schedulers from different departments. So last week they were in sales now they are building your schedule. There is a big learning curve and the pilots pay the price for it.

The 6-8 months in Japan is as Potato Chip said what you make of it. It is not a crazy 8 months of studying it is a marathon not a sprint. You will have plenty of wasted time just hanging around the hotel. Some people work out, some people go out drinking and chase women and other people just sit and the room and surf the internet. The best way to get through it is to do all of the above. There is usually someone around to do something just to take your mind off the training. Once you are finished with the JCAB check ride then the training is very relaxed. The Japanese instructors are friendly and nice but they do expect you to study, that is one reason they give you so much time off in Japan. If you read the Air Japan thread there are many similarities.

How does the screening process goes? Standard interview, sim, medical exam? Any details?