The Air Canada OTS thread

[Transition9er2]

Thanks for the info!

How long does it usually take for HR to put calls out? I imagine it depends on their ability to connect with everyone, but do calls go out over a few days or is it typically a short exercise like a day or 2?

Trying to figure out where I might slot in on the list based on what some colleagues are saying.

Thanks,

T

[sdotz]

Any info out there on when next round of calls might be going out?

Thanks,

T

March 9 g/s has been called out this week. Good luck everyone.

Jazz pilots only? Or also OTS?

Couple of jazz guys I know. Don’t know any OTS guys.

[yvrflyguy]

Still lots of hiring to come, showing 937 vacancies system-wide on the equipment bid that came out yesterday

[Chips&Pops]

Still lots of hiring to come, showing 937 vacancies system-wide on the equipment bid that came out yesterday

Woah that's a lot. Good news!

[cjp]

Don't get too excited, 562 of those spots will be going to Jazz if the economy doesn't go belly up.

[FL-280]

Jazz doesnt have 582 ATPL 2000h + pilots that want to go to AC.... THIS should be a massive ots year I believe. Westjet and expats...

[cjp]

Jazz doesnt have 582 ATPL 2000h + pilots that want to go to AC.... THIS should be a massive ots year I believe. Westjet and expats...

Then this thread can finally have it's breakout year! Good luck fellow OTS'ers.

[rudder]

Not to dampen the optimism....

The most pilots hired by AC in 1 year was approximately 560. That was likely with training dept operating at capacity. Do not forget, while new-hires are in PIT training and initial type training, there are hundreds of other training events for current AC pilots either changing fleet types, or upgrading, or both.

Unless AC plans to subcontract a lot of training, 600 would seem to be the functional annual hiring limit. So 360 spots for Jazz if there are that many eligible pilots.

[Liftvsdrag]

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[controlrest]

Rudder !

Haven’t quite understood your limit analysis? Aren’t all new hirees subjected time the same training whether from the connectors or OTS ?

What’s the breakdown of these open slots in the latest bid, in broad terms of course rights ? This would tell us where the NB upgrade time is gonna sit for the next 1-2 years . All FO & RP positions are already new hiree . The WB C is of course the king of the Canadian hill .

On this note if AC has over 900 open slots; Pilots of approx 30 737 Max sitting home then surely the guys flying must be close to burnout . Did I miss something?

[altiplano]

Not to dampen the optimism....

The most pilots hired by AC in 1 year was approximately 560. That was likely with training dept operating at capacity. Do not forget, while new-hires are in PIT training and initial type training, there are hundreds of other training events for current AC pilots either changing fleet types, or upgrading, or both.

Unless AC plans to subcontract a lot of training, 600 would seem to be the functional annual hiring limit. So 360 spots for Jazz if there are that many eligible pilots.

AC has secured simulator capacity out of country. Berlin, London, Panama, Miami, Seattle, more oerhaps... They mention it in their CMSC bulletin too.

NOTE: We continue to secure global simulator time in order to meet our training demands and if you are considering a move from your current position, we will be counting on you to proceed onto your planned training course without delay in efforts to maintain the integrity of our training plan. Please be prepared for
the possibility that training may commence shortly after the close of CMSC Review 20-01 with a strong possibility that simulator training may be conducted outside Canada.

Plus their in house capacity will be up this year, A220 sim now running, plus when the 737 grounding hit last year, all new hire training on that fleet ended, that's 3 737 sims that will be cranking out courses when things start running again.

No question they're looking to fill the backlog. Will we see 5000+ pilots at AC within a year?

[Ash Ketchum]

Thanks for the info!

How long does it usually take for HR to put calls out? I imagine it depends on their ability to connect with everyone, but do calls go out over a few days or is it typically a short exercise like a day or 2?

Trying to figure out where I might slot in on the list based on what some colleagues are saying.

Thanks,

T

I'm trying to figure that out as well. My references were called a few weeks ago so was hoping for the March ground school call but looks like it won't happen. When did you do your interview?

[cjp]

Not to dampen the optimism....

The most pilots hired by AC in 1 year was approximately 560. That was likely with training dept operating at capacity. Do not forget, while new-hires are in PIT training and initial type training, there are hundreds of other training events for current AC pilots either changing fleet types, or upgrading, or both.

Unless AC plans to subcontract a lot of training, 600 would seem to be the functional annual hiring limit. So 360 spots for Jazz if there are that many eligible pilots.

Is it that bad at Jazz nowadays? Have their reserves of talent depleted that much that they can't provide 300+ pilots to AC?

Mon dieu.

[TheStig]

Rudder !

Haven’t quite understood your limit analysis? Aren’t all new hirees subjected time the same training whether from the connectors or OTS ?

What’s the breakdown of these open slots in the latest bid, in broad terms of course rights ? This would tell us where the NB upgrade time is gonna sit for the next 1-2 years . All FO & RP positions are already new hiree . The WB C is of course the king of the Canadian hill .

On this note if AC has over 900 open slots; Pilots of approx 30 737 Max sitting home then surely the guys flying must be close to burnout . Did I miss something?

I think you've got a couple different items confused. Course rights are simply a contractual matter to limit the number of courses a pilot can do. In order to be awarded a position; 1) your position need to be able to hold the position, and 2) you need to have a course right for the position. New Hires start with an Unrestricted CR (which is for any position), Wide body Captain (WC), Narrow Body Captain, (NC), Wide body FO, Narrow Body FO and RP. The contract covers several pages detailing the usage of how course rights are spent and can be recovered (example; due to a forced reduction).

What Rudder was highlighting is the limit on simulator availability around the globe. Air Canada routinely runs Pilot Indoctrination Courses (aka PIT) with classes of 40 and has run 2 a month, but there is a bottleneck with respect to simulator space. As Altiplano pointed out the 2 MAX simulators mostly sat idle in 2019 and AC has added the A220 simulator as well. Depending on when the MAX re-enters service, the airline could quite possibly hire 700 pilots in 2020. Reading through the WJ threads it looks like they're planning on significant hiring as well. It's going to be a good year to have a fresh ATPL.

[Liftvsdrag]

I’ve been waiting since July, cancelled my honeymoon in order to go to the interview. Still no call from AC and I can’t make any plans as I don’t know if I will get a call soon or not. Since there is no pool anymore I have no way to know if the interview went well or not. It looks like AC is mostly hiring jet 705 pilots. I have 5000+ hours, jet time and flew all over the globe but unfortunately the jet time wasn't 705 so I doubt it is valued much. Anybody from the inside would know if it looks like I'm in or not? Or if I should expect to wait for another while? I heard that if you don't hear anything within 4 months you're in...but I also heard guys getting PFOed around that time as well so who really knows...?! References were called a couple days after the interview. The limbo is getting rough and I don't want to take another job to maybe then leave for AC (I don't want to waste any companies time and money).

[controlrest]

Hello !

Maybe I did not phrase my query clearly .

Does the posting of over 900 slots in the recent Bid mean that there are that many unmanned Pilot positions across all fleets & ranks at AC ? Or that many new hirees required till the time factored in the plan which could be 12-24 months . The time it would take to hire & train the last of the 900 Pilots .

The last bid had about 800, and in 2018 it was 500 . The no of vacancies has been going up despite a lot of hiring ? How come ?

If someone can shed light on the breakdown of these vacancies ? Capt / FO - WB/ NB


Thanks

[Daniel Cooper]

I recall during PIT that people with jet time below a certain weight were considered to have zero jet time for training purposes. I don't remember what that weight was though. You didn't need to cancel your honeymoon. HR is quite flexible in setting an interview date that works for you.

[yvrflyguy]

Hello !

Maybe I did not phrase my query clearly .

Does the posting of over 900 slots in the recent Bid mean that there are that many unmanned Pilot positions across all fleets & ranks at AC ? Or that many new hirees required till the time factored in the plan which could be 12-24 months . The time it would take to hire & train the last of the 900 Pilots .

The last bid had about 800, and in 2018 it was 500 . The no of vacancies has been going up despite a lot of hiring ? How come ?

If someone can shed light on the breakdown of these vacancies ? Capt / FO - WB/ NB


Thanks

19 WB C
40 NB C
188 WB F
Rest are NB F and RP spots

Most of those positions are in YYZ

[danield]

Hello !

Maybe I did not phrase my query clearly .

Does the posting of over 900 slots in the recent Bid mean that there are that many unmanned Pilot positions across all fleets & ranks at AC ? Or that many new hirees required till the time factored in the plan which could be 12-24 months . The time it would take to hire & train the last of the 900 Pilots .

The last bid had about 800, and in 2018 it was 500 . The no of vacancies has been going up despite a lot of hiring ? How come ?

If someone can shed light on the breakdown of these vacancies ? Capt / FO - WB/ NB


Thanks

Based on commercial flying plan up to February 2021 meaning as of that date all 936 positions need to be filled. Historically AC has gotten away with operating lean at a 200 to 300 pilot deficit relying on guys picking up overtime and higher DBMs to fulfill the demand. So expect anywhere between 600-700 pilots to be hired by Feb 2021. I recall hearing the training departments copacity annually is in that ballpark. That being said, with the 737s grounded, and flights to mainland China cancelled we very well can see a number closer to 300-500 pilots this year depending on how much clarity and predictability they may gain over the course of the year.

[TSAM]

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[iflyroads]

but this is AC recruiting and they literally just draw names out of their ass. I'm not on the inside but based on prev exp and many friends and others.

I resent this, we choose people for ground schools depending on our current needs atm. There is a method to the madness (mostly)

[98 Corolla]

There's two kinds of people that get PFO'd from jobs. Those that accept it as a "not now" and work to improve their application through continued education, work experience, and interview performance, etc. Then there's people that don't accept it and instead mentally cope with the results by telling themselves (and others) that the company is bad. I always wonder when I hear people like this, if the company's so bad why were you applying for a job there in the first place?

[Daniel Cooper]

If you read between the lines of iflyroads post you see what most have already realized. They are looking for OTS people with heavy jet experience. There's 188 openings for WB FO on the latest bid and they want experienced people to fill them. If you don't have that experience or are not in a position to get it in the near future I would be applying at Jazz as that is now your best bet to get hired due to contractual obligations. People are upset because it's not fair. You used to be able to get hired OTS out of a B1900 or Metro. But for now anyways it looks like those days are over unless Jazz runs out of pilots.

[co-joe]

937 spots and they're hiring what, 10 per course?

[altiplano]

937 spots and they're hiring what, 10 per course?

40 every 3 weeks is the rough target I've heard, but even then might have to go every couple weeks or up the course size if they want to get all 900, I bet they come up a couple hundred short on that though.