pilot rota

i think this has been mentioned before however can't find the topic. i'm interested in a career as a pilot, however would like to know how often they work. any pilots on the forum for VS or any other airlines that could supply thier months rota. this would be greatly appreciated. thnx

10 mins at take off and 10 mins on landing approach, the rest of the time it's beer and women :D

Pilot rosters are very different according to the airline you work for. Most pilots will start out in short haul schedule or charter airlines. Dependent on the local/union agreement in force you could be working 5 days a week with two days off, many operate 6 on 3 off patterns. Once you graduate to long haul you could end up with only three or four trips a month but with several days stopovers away from home, punctuated with only 2/3 days off at home each time.

Its a lifestyle choice, but in my experience in this mad industry many seem to see the glamour side and only realise the downsides of long anti-social hours (weekends/nights/time zone shifts) once they are in the job.

All in all though its a great job to have.

Graham

Also, looking at an isolated roster isn't particularly enlightening. Certainly in the long haul sector, there is no set pattern to the work you do, although NCYFlyer is right that you can hope for 2/3 days off between trips. After some routes, there might be longer at home, eg Sydney, but you will have been working the previous 9 days.

The other thing to bear in mind is the lack of control you have over these days off: you can't count on being at any family functions, for instance!

Good luck.

Edna

More importantly, do you have a plummy British accent? If not, you have no chance! [:I]

I think the plummy accent is what they spend most of the training on, but if that doesn't work, I think they can do it surgically now: a Nigelgraft!

Originally posted by Edna Cloud
I think the plummy accent is what they spend most of the training on, but if that doesn't work, I think they can do it surgically now: a Nigelgraft!

Ha ha. Nigels are just the limit when it comes to plummy accents and they take themselves so seriously. My friends and ex-colleagues who fly for VS certainly couldn't be put in that league (except one who was born with a silver spoon in his mouth anyway!).