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Air Atlanta Icelandic
Iceland | Charter / Leisure 
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Stay Away!
1.2
Captain - Current employee
Recommended to other Pilots Positive business outlookApproval of management
Pros
Possibility to renew your licence for free and find a better airline or get wide body experience. Nothing else.
Cons
Possibility of being involve in a major accident or incident due to a lack of training, SOP's and standardisation. Ilegal contractor agreement, you pay taxes if you want or if your country of residence caught you, no social security paid at all, so if you get hospitalised while at home, you will have to pay by yourself. Of course, no loss of licence insurance. Unfair roster, no respect of FTL at all.
Advice to management
Nothing to say as managers are not able to take any advice.
Advice to future employees
Stay away, you will not learn anything good.
The inconsistent Airline
1.6
Captain - Current employee
Recommended to other Pilots Positive business outlookApproval of management
Pros
Undoubtedly flying the 747-400 and upgrade opportunities(still, 7/8) years depending on experience, might be the only pros.
Cons
For the last 2 years, what can be said based on observation and analysis of behavior? - Absolute disregard and despise from Management. - Low salary for long-haul (payed in USD) the majority of the crews, use Euros as their main currency. - 85$( USD) per diems, which is way below industry's current standards. - FTL is disrespected in every possible way - Iillegitimate contractor agreement in Dubai - No Pension plan - No loss of license Insurance - No Basic salary (you get payed, when and IF you work) - Medium range accommodation - Travel department with a sense of humor (but not funny at all) regarding positionings. - Aircraft maintenance degrading compared to the past years. - Operations department managed by "friends", and totally unaware of the current challenges and requirements of international aviation.
Advice to management
Please notice you are on a down spiral. Instead of gambling with the employees, maybe having a fixed work force, with proper labor conditions and a legal contract, would be in your benefit in the long run. Is a continuous training scheme, the true purpose of any business, with all the costs and hassle involved?
Advice to future employees
Don't become a future employee, unless you find yourself in a position of severe unemployment. It will all seem fine, until the "pushing" and "pulling" starts from Ops, crewing, travel, ect. And it will start soon enough. You will find yourself depressed and angry and prone to make mistakes, which will then give them a reason to make you accountable for. It is an overall unfortunate situation. Don't believe you will be the exception to the rule. Think that, everyone did that at some point. They now "offer" the TR. It's not really an offer. The new salary package is as bad as it could be. You will need 4 to 5 years to get an increase of 30$ in your salary. And once the last stage is reached, there will be no increase FOREVER! No yearly increase, no inflation adjustment. And of course, once the need is not there, you will be sent home on "UNPAID leave", but still stuck to the Airline, due to that Type Rating bond you SIGNED. BE CAREFUL.
STAY AWAY!
1.7
Captain - Former employee
Recommended to other Pilots Positive business outlookApproval of management
Pros
The "Pros" are one and only one. To fly the iconic 747! That's it. As pilots, we subject ourselves to incredibly stupid and unfair conditions, because we follow our hearts and childhood dreams.
Cons
- No respect from Management. - Descrimination between Icelandics and Contractors - Fake "self-employed" contract. You work full time for AAI! - No benefits, no pension scheme, no salary increase. (New package is even worse than the previous system. Made to ilude new pilots in thinking the money is acceptable. Long time company pilots have now worse conditions) - Training is a badly told joke. A high number of pilots have no experience whatsoever, aside of long haul or a short burst of medium haul before the 747. Level of demand is based on what the "Line Trainer's opinions" and not the actual boeing procedures. (Which they are convinced by other pilots, that they actually follow). Totally a Feudal aviation system where opinions on how to perform, pass from pilot to pilot with no technical background. Company couldn't care less, since most pilots will stay between 6 months to 1 year and then leave. Line trainings ongoing for 12 months a year. - Safety decreasing due to lack of appropriate trainings and "thick ears" of the Operations Department. - Lacking updated XXI century procedures. Operational management according to what is familiar from the Classic Versions of the 747. Basic Airplane system management not implemented, callous disregarded, FMAs not announced. Situational awareness at its worst. - Positioning flights below 8h are all economy. After a long duty, taking in account timezones, this is inadmissible. - Duty times disrespected and declared as "we didn't notice it", or, shifted blame! 30% of the pilots ( Icelandic FIA) possess the tools to improve life for everyone (including themselves), but refuse to do it! -
Advice to management
No advice is necessary. Management knows exactly what they are doing. Classic behavior from a spoiled and greedy business culture. They know how to reverse this process and could have the best airline operating in Europe. But, that would be a matter of self pride, which is inexistent. AAI could be a Cargolux with a better roster pattern. But it is not and it will never be more than "that thing we're Junior pilots come to collect some hours and leave!"
Advice to future employees
Don't become a future employee! Search for dignity in your line of work. Become better than the people who fell for this. Learn with others mistakes and aim higher. These types of airlines are destroying aviation and filling only greedy pockets. I am sorry to say that, after so many years, seeing pilots moral at its lowest, people (pilots) struggling to find a bank to be able to buy a home, is just embarrassing and humiliating. The toxicity of this environment will drag you down and will.make you reconsider being a pilot. Don't want your dreams. Don't fall for a gold plated TRAP, like Air atlanta!
Definitely NOT a nice workplace!
1.4
First Officer - Former employee
Recommended to other Pilots Positive business outlookApproval of management
Pros
Once pilots realize what a inhuman workplace they have gotten themselves into they run away again as soon as they can, so turnover is extremely high. F/Os who manage to stick around until they reach the legal hourly requirements will be upgraded unless they really screw up drastically during the assessment. They have been upgrading those who started as cruise relief pilot a few years ago, making them the least experienced widebody captains on the planet with barely 200 landings on anything bigger than a four seater. If a 747 captaincy is what you are looking for, this is by far the fastest you will be able to get one!
Cons
Management is not even considering raising the daily rate by at least the inflation rate like most other companies have done after covid. The "salary" has not been increased for many years and is now the LOWEST among all 747/777 operators. However, 777 pilots who just joined the company get a higher daily rate than 747 pilots who have been in the company for much longer because the "market value" of a 777 rating is higher and they can barely find 777 pilots on the market anymore who are stupid enough to accept their T/Cs.
Advice to management
Any management displaying this kind of disregard for employees and basic rules of how to run a company decently will not listen to any advice, so I won't even bother to suggest what would be needed to make this a tolerable workplace.
Advice to future employees
A word of advice if you consider to apply: You will be given a "contractor" status. The company will not pay you a regular monthly salary. They will leave you at home on "unpaid leave" as soon as business is slow and they don't need you. As a contractor you will not make any money unless you are on duty, so when you are on unpaid leave (or sick or unable to work for other reasons) you will not earn A DIME! You will NOT get a loan from any bank with such a contract, and that is a serious issue! You will also be responsible for your own health insurance and your social security payments in your country of residence. In most EU countries this kind of contract will not be accepted by any social insurance agency because the employer does not pay anything. You will have to pay taxes, health insurance and social security payments if you want to retire on a pension some day. If you deduct these payments from your daily rate you will most likely earn more money driving a truck or working on a conveyor belt, and I mean this SERIOUSLY!
Nice workplace
4.1
First Officer - Current employee
Recommended to other Pilots Positive business outlookApproval of management
Pros
Flexible work patterns, future fleet development look positive with the B777 introduction, good hotel standard, short upgrade time, good training, a lot of interesting destinations, great colleagues.
Cons
Unstable rosters, lack of fixed routes, no travel benefits.
Advice to management
Increase pay, offer more fixed roster patterns, ensure equality in work distribution.
Advice to future employees
It's an ACMI operator so the schedule is unstable by nature, don't think it's like flying for a national carrier, flexibility is the name of the game and as long as you realise that, this is a nice place to work. Sign up for a fixed roster pattern if offered, it's the best way to get stability in work and income.
However cool it may seem flying a 747 - DON'T fall into this trap!
2.0
First Officer - Current employee
Recommended to other Pilots Positive business outlookApproval of management
Pros
the opportunity to get heavy jet experience
Cons
Bogus self-employment, typically combined with management by fear of losing your job. No stable income, no stable rosters, no loyalty towards/among personnel. Second rank treatment by the Icelandic Union Pilots. Toxic and disrespectful
Advice to management
Treat your contractor-pilots with respect / dignity and stop exploiting them just because you think/know you can. Treat them equal to the union pilots.
Advice to future employees
Stay away.
Stay away
2.0
Captain - Former employee
Recommended to other Pilots Positive business outlookApproval of management
Pros
Due to extremely high turnover upgrades usually happen fairly close to pilots reaching the minimum hourly requirements.
Cons
No job guarantee, no financial security, extremely low pay, old and rapidly ageing fleet, no seniority, permanent discrimination, extremely low morale, very toxic work environment.
Advice to management
No use for any advice. They know exactly what they are doing and will not change the situation until they will be forced to do so by legal requirements (which will not happen anytime soon due to the special status of Iceland)
Advice to future employees
Simply stay away, this is absolutely no career choice for the long term!
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