Speed

Some info from current or past contract pilots about Japan would be greatly appreciated!

1. Is a work permit required when you fly for operators that are based in Japan (ie: ANA/JAL/etc)?

2. Can you obtain the right to reside in Japan?

3. If you do not have the right to reside, can you still rent or lease housing?

4. How much support do the better contractors give you when starting a new contract job? Do they give advice or help on taxes, housing, commuting, language/cultural issues, etc?

KoruPilot

Work permit/residence will be taken care of if they hire you. AJX at least helps with commuters by placing leave days into your roster during the month. Many agencies give you the money and tell you that you are on your own for the taxes.

Check the other threads as there is a fair bit of info on this site from the recent past.

EK Birdcage

Koru, are you at KAL??

I am starting at AJV in May, and would appreciate any insight you have.. I will be commuting from the US.. Keeping my fingers crossed for the ORD base!!

Thanks
EKBC

Speed

EKB, could you get the right to reside in Japan if you wanted to?

EK Birdcage

My understanding is that it is based on the specific contract.. I know the 737 guys at ANA are based there, so I assume they have to have the right to live there.. My contract position is a commuting one, and does not allow me to live there.. I have no desire to live there fulltime, so this suits me..

I am by no means an expert.. My first experience with a Japanese carrier..

Hope it helps.. There is a fair amount of chatter on prune in the Asia thread about a lot of this too...

EKBC

KoruPilot

I'm with Air New Zealand actually, but many of our guys have gone to Japan on LWOP. At the moment we are heavy on B767 FO's and skippers so the company is dealing directly with ANA. I have had a few conversations with AJX, NCA and JALways guys while on layover in Narita, so i have a limited knowlege. Our guys at Air NZ managed to get crewing at AJX to place leave days into their roster each month, so they would end up on a 6 on six off 10 on 8 off schedule, which worked pretty well. Presently we do ten to twelve day tours with Air NZ anyway, so it wasn't much of a stretch as far as the commute. The guys on the 747's with NCA commuted from SFO or Holland. As far as the lads I spoke with in Narita, they commuted from all over the place, from as close as Bangkok to as far as S Africa. All were pretty happy except for the JALways guys on the WASINC contract, who were not. They pretty much agreed that HACS was the best with PARC a close second.

Sounds like fun mate. Good luck with it.

EK Birdcage

Thanks man.. and Thanks for all the good info you have put on here.. Certainly helps guys like me that are sort of fumbling blind with this.. I am looking forward to starting..

Word around here has it that you guys are going to do some sort of similar deal with us (Emirates) and 777 guys.. Maybe even some kind of code share.. Interesting times...

Wave at me on Wed, as I have an AKL turn on a -300..

Cheers,

BC

fogrunner

So, Ek. You get Fed-up of the desert or just miss home?

Frozen Ronin

Ok, for us little guys on the Dash, anyone have contacts with pilots in the ANA Q400 contract? I've talked with the contractor (good pitch), but I wonder what the downside is. It's supposed to be based in Osaka, and the housing/commuting allowance seems shy for that area? I'd love to know for sure. It's all new to me as well, although I'm really looking forward to giving it a whirl.

Thanks~

EK Birdcage

Fog: A bit of both.. More miss the US, and this is a better opportunity for me.. Not for everyone.. I have enjoyed my time at EK...

Ronin: Sorry man, I know absolutely nothing about the -8 contract, other then the plane seems cool!! I will ask around and see if I can learn something..

Cheers,

BC