First Air

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garfield
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First Air

Post by garfield »

Just seen an ad for FO's on the ATR. Haven't they did layoffs at the end of the summer?

Do they give transportation if you don't live in YOW during your days off?
How are the accomodations when you are up north?
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jspitfire
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Re: First Air

Post by jspitfire »

From what I'm told YOW is the base, so you're responsible for travel past that. I know someone commuting from BC though who's had no trouble getting there standby.

I've visited the crew house in YFB a few times, really nice new appartments. And the fridge was always fully stocked!
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NAT2
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Re: First Air

Post by NAT2 »

They have good interline, zed fares, jump seats..you are responsible to use that to find your way to Ottawa.

Can't comment on the current status of the company, but it is a good job, good airplane, enjoyable flying and great people. The new Dfo is a pretty decent and capable person. There are far worse jobs out there, I certainly do not regret my time there.
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flythatwing
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Re: First Air

Post by flythatwing »

What are upgrade times like at First Air ? do you move from right seat ATR to Left seat ATR or can you bid on the 73?
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flythatwing
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Re: First Air

Post by flythatwing »

Also. Is faxing the cover letter, resume and application form the only way to apply for this position?
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fish4life
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Re: First Air

Post by fish4life »

I only know second hand info but I think upgrade times are among the slowest in the industry due to the fact it is a good company so guys don't leave quickly.
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Donald
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Re: First Air

Post by Donald »

They've been sub-contracting out almost all their jet flying to Summit and Flair, which has resulted in reductions to their jet crews. Since most of those refused the rotating ATR position, they were laid off.

As far as upgrades go, I could see you eventually getting the left seat of the ATR, but I wouldn't plan on getting either seat of the 737 anytime soon.
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leftoftrack
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Re: First Air

Post by leftoftrack »

They also flew an airplane into the side of a hill recently. Once people forget that happened they'll be able to pick up a few more contracts
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BE82
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Re: First Air

Post by BE82 »

Pretty ignorant statement!! an accident can happen to anyone, including you and me. i don't fly for FA but i can tell you that they didn't just "Fly the plane into a hill" like you said.

you should think twice before posting comments like that
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leftoftrack
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Re: First Air

Post by leftoftrack »

BE82 wrote:Pretty ignorant statement!! an accident can happen to anyone, including you and me. i don't fly for FA but i can tell you that they didn't just "Fly the plane into a hill" like you said.

you should think twice before posting comments like that
Have you read the accident report. They did fly it into a hill, that will be your CRM case study for the next 25 years
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TeePeeCreeper
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Re: First Air

Post by TeePeeCreeper »

leftoftrack wrote:
BE82 wrote:Pretty ignorant statement!! an accident can happen to anyone, including you and me. i don't fly for FA but i can tell you that they didn't just "Fly the plane into a hill" like you said.

you should think twice before posting comments like that
Have you read the accident report. They did fly it into a hill, that will be your CRM case study for the next 25 years
Regardless, your original comment is to put it politely, underhanded to say the least.

TPC
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leftoftrack
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Re: First Air

Post by leftoftrack »

TeePeeCreeper wrote:
leftoftrack wrote:
BE82 wrote:Pretty ignorant statement!! an accident can happen to anyone, including you and me. i don't fly for FA but i can tell you that they didn't just "Fly the plane into a hill" like you said.

you should think twice before posting comments like that
Have you read the accident report. They did fly it into a hill, that will be your CRM case study for the next 25 years
Regardless, your original comment is to put it politely, underhanded to say the least.

TPC
You guys don't seem to understand the amount of work that wasn't available to them because of the accident. You also don't seem to understand the amount of growth that happened at Canadian North the upgrade times shrunk and now they have excess capacity that they have shifted to sports team charters and picking up charter work to Mexico. That accident wasn't a mechanical failure, that accident wasn't anything other than not flying an approach properly the copilot knowing what was going on and not saying go around. The captain with his head up his ass not listening to trial balloons from his copilot. As disgusting as it sounds they flew the fucking plane into the side of the fucking hill
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tbaylx
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Re: First Air

Post by tbaylx »

You guys don't seem to understand the amount of work that wasn't available to them because of the accident. You also don't seem to understand the amount of growth that happened at Canadian North the upgrade times shrunk and now they have excess capacity that they have shifted to sports team charters and picking up charter work to Mexico. That accident wasn't a mechanical failure, that accident wasn't anything other than not flying an approach properly the copilot knowing what was going on and not saying go around. The captain with his head up his ass not listening to trial balloons from his copilot. As disgusting as it sounds they flew the fucking plane into the side of the fucking hill
To be fair the F/O said go around more than a few times. As for the rest, while not all that diplomatically put, it's pretty much correct.
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BE82
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Re: First Air

Post by BE82 »

Leftoftrack,

we all know what happened and why it happened, can we just learn from it and move on? thats all i ask
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fruitloops
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Re: First Air

Post by fruitloops »

Yeah you can call the incident any way you see it that's fine but it would be better if you showed just a little compassion/respect when making statements/opinions. Just good karma and I'm sure there are board members/family here tied to the incident in one way or another. It impacted quite a few more lives than those just in the aircraft.
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olivierw
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Re: First Air

Post by olivierw »

Sorry to stir up an old thread, but I'm curious about First Air. I am debating staying at my 703/704 job for a couple more years or moving on to 705. But I like the rotational schedule too much, and I don't know if I'm ready to leave the Arctic yet.

Can anyone tell me more about the lifestyle on the ATR in CYFB? I've never been to the First Air crew house, how many people do they live with, and how does it work for food (do you get per diems, if so how much, or do you get a PO that you share with whoever is in the house), can you cook just for yourself or do you cook altogether with rest of the crew? It might seem like a pretty stupid thing to ask but I have pretty odd eating habits and when I'm on rotation it sometimes really sucks to have to share my meals with my crew.

Do they give you an allowance for Extreme Cold Weather gear, do you even need ECW gear when you are a pilot at FA?

I have a pretty good idea of what the FOs make at First Air in Yellowknife, is it similar for the YFB guys? Do you get a base pay and a daily rate or how does that work? How about over time?

Do they have a crew car in YFB? Do they have a gym pass (I don't think you can get a weekly pass in Iqaluit so it'd hurt my butt to pay the monthly price for two weeks).

How long are the rotations is it 14 days on 14 days off including travel days?

Do you fly everyday on rotation?

I hope someone will find the time to answer me, that'd be really nice.
Oli.
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olivierw
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Re: First Air

Post by olivierw »

I got PM's thanks!
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zealer
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Re: First Air

Post by zealer »

Most, if not all, of that information is available publicly via their collective bargaining agreement.
http://negotech.labour.gc.ca/eng/agreem ... 80407a.pdf

I have heard they are busy and you can expect to fly anywhere from 50-80 hours in the two week period. There is a store where you can buy food and it is charged to your account which is then paid by the company.
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