Back to search
Air Belgium
Belgium | Mainline 
Add Review
Strugling for survival
1.9
Captain - Current employee
Recommended to other Pilots Positive business outlookApproval of management
Pros
The colleagues! Both cabin crew and pilots are the reason why Air Belgium still exists
Cons
Very low salary as Captain. No thrust in the managment. AB stopped flying on their own destinations from one week to another and left all the passengers in the cold. Most passengers did't receive their money back. Company is in "Chapter 11". Maintenance is only done when really needed. MEL items are extended to the maximum. The interior of the aircraft are degrading. A real shame. Management is not communicating and if they do it's only about how great they are.
Advice to management
Start treating flight crew as an asset. You have a golden crew but if you treat them badly, they will all leave! Open your eyes!
Advice to future employees
Stay away.
Contract pilots are not flying. Low salary
2.1
First Officer - Current employee
Recommended to other Pilots Positive business outlookApproval of management
Pros
The A330 NEO's are nice. Good colleagues.
Cons
As a contract pilot, you barely fly and no improvement in the future. Salary is very low. Management is promising a lot, but doing nothing to improve. The captains are the lowest payed A330 and 747 pilots on the market. A lot of people are leaving for better.
Advice to management
Do something instead of promising. Everybody is leaving but according to management, everything is fine.
Advice to future employees
If you are not desperate for a job, then stay away.
Grab your Rating and go
2.2
Captain - Former employee
Recommended to other Pilots Positive business outlookApproval of management
Pros
Great colleagues, very nice destinations (when we fly and cabin crew are not on unemployed leaves).
Cons
Don't expect anything from the management except promises that you will never get, poor roster anticipation and if you want to get anything from them be ready to "play" friends. If you want to work Ryanair style some month (for half the price) and some other month stay in front of your television doing nothing for even less. Then Fly belgian class.
Advice to management
Keep that way, I suppose fear culture works... We could give you any advice, nothing will ever happen. Business is business they say... I could personally not live knowing everybody smiles at me while they actually hate me.
Advice to future employees
If you like living not knowing what next month will be and with unstable salary and rostering sign for it. Stay away from it unless you seek a free 330 rating with some job opportunities somewhere else.
Flying Club
2.1
Captain - Current employee
Recommended to other Pilots 
Positive business outlookApproval of management
Pros
Good fleet of new A330NEO's and CEO's and 747-8F's Nice colleagues
Cons
Lowest salary on the market (much below long haul fleet of TUI and Brussels Airlines)! Very unstable roster. Management of Fear! Pilots and cabin crew are punished like little kids. Bad hotels on A330 cargo fleet. Nothing is well organised. When they change a rotation, they always forget something (advising hotel or crew transport so you arrive after a 12hrs duty and you don't have a hotel room or transport)
Advice to management
Very good advice of Richard Branson: Clients do not come first. Employees come first. If you take care of your employees, they will take care of the clients.
Advice to future employees
Stay away if you are not desperate to get an Airbus A330 rating
Keeping Up Appearances
2.1
First Officer - Current employee
Recommended to other Pilots Positive business outlookApproval of management
Pros
Nice colleagues. Nice layovers with the passengers flights. New Airbus A330-NEO's
Cons
Very low salary - much below comparable long haul operators. No improvement for the future. More than 30 pilots left (30%) due to this. Nothing is done to improve situation. Upgrade possibilities are close to zero!! Nothing is done for foreign pilots. Some have 12'000EU or more travel/hotel/b&b costs per year and nothing is refunded by Air Belgium! Management keeps denying everything. All OK for them! Crewing is a disaster!
Advice to management
Do something ASAP. You can't just bury your head in the sand. Open your eyes. Improve salary package to get closer to long haul pilots of Brussels Airlines and Tui. We earn 20-30% less! An Index correction on the salary is not a pay rise!!! This is mandatory by the Belgian government and every company is obliged to do this!
Advice to future employees
Just read all the reviews and take a decision.
Expending airlines facing challenges
4.0
Captain - Current employee
Recommended to other Pilots Positive business outlookApproval of management
Pros
Expending airlines facing big challenges, Great fleet with recent aircraft. especially on pax route, nice layover and hotels. Great OCC team always ready to help and go the extra mile.
Cons
Compensation could be revised upward, crewing department need to seriously improve (pick up on phone, reply to emails) and have a more long term vision on roster and not day to day.
Advice to management
Speed up crewing restructuration and revise roster construction.
Advice to future employees
Ab is on the good way and situation will improve
Good opportunity gone bad
2.2
First Officer - Current employee
Recommended to other Pilots Positive business outlookApproval of management
Pros
Great destinations with long layovers and nice hotels on the pax ops. Fine new planes. Friendly and nice collegues.
Cons
Low pay compared to any other European long haul airline, especially for flying cargo OPS and with no outlook anywhere near the future on some kind of payscale or seniority system. Cargo ops has mostly short layovers with low standard hotels that are always in or next to the airport. Very messy and chaotic rostering department, rosters come out late or unfinished and may change all the time, with only 7 days off per month. Also differs a lot per person, sometimes people have a full roster while others have only reserve days the whole month, very unequally distributed. No support/care given to expats, even though hiring a lot of them. 0 communication given from internal site, all new information has to be found on either Facebook or Linkedin regarding anything going on in the company. Maintenance wise, everything seems to be done just on the edge and nothing more than that. Lot's of people are leaving which makes it feel like a training airline, people come for the a330 rating and go after a few months.
Advice to management
Needs a rapid and radical change.
Advice to future employees
Great for enjoying some nice long holiday layovers with the pax ops, good for getting long haul experience and an upgrade from a320 to a330. Bad for all of the other above.
Went from good to bad
1.9
First Officer - Former employee
Recommended to other Pilots Positive business outlookApproval of management
Pros
Nice fleet and layovers on the Pax fleet
Cons
Upgrades are done for people who are friends with management. Very low salary compared with other airlines. Bad roster department. Sometimes 20hrs+ positionings on Eco seat!! Very low quality hotels for the cargo fleet (the cheapest hotels they can find at the airport!). Very bad communication from managment. Company news is found on LinkedIn and Facebook. Maintenance on aircraft is stretched to the limit.
Advice to management
Treath pilots with respect! All good people are leaving the company for a reason!
Advice to future employees
The only reason to come is to get the A330 rating.
Air Belgium
2.3
Captain - Former employee
Recommended to other Pilots Positive business outlookApproval of management
Pros
Great destinations, nice airplanes, great colleagues
Cons
Airline with a big potential and people who want to see it succeed but terrible salary for Europe, no salary grid, messy rostering, wrong attitude and approach from the high management toward their pilots to keep loyalty in their rank.
Advice to management
Offer a more structured and competitive salary. See the pilot group as an asset. Seriously question yourself to see why people don't stay for the long run in the company.
Advice to future employees
Enjoy the destinations, the 330 rating and the great crew but expect AB to be a "transit" airline with these conditions
Fear culture and clientelism
1.8
Captain - Current employee
Recommended to other Pilots Positive business outlookApproval of management
Pros
Ice destinations on the pax operation.
Cons
Clientelsim: need to be friend with Flight Ops managers to have a chance of a balanced life and career opportunities. Communication to pilots: rude and unprofessional. Salary: no payscale (seniority and/or experience disregarded). HOTAC: Only airport hotels on the cargo fleet (sometimes no breakfast), positioning in economy and no Limit on the timing (trips of 24h are common).
Advice to management
Start considering pilots with (a bit) respect.
Advice to future employees
Stay away.
the future is uncertain
2.2
Captain - Former employee
Recommended to other Pilots Positive business outlookApproval of management
Pros
Nice crew and nice planes
Cons
low salary 7 days off per month very long time away from home no upgrade internally no communication lots of promises but nothing happens no payscale : in 10 years you earn the same as today
Advice to management
If you want to run an Airline you should start considering your crew as a valuable part of the team and not as overpaid princesses stop supporting the wrong people in your management doing whatever they want
Advice to future employees
expect a lot of turnover among the crews people come and leave constant training facility
Bad roster, bad salary
2.3
Captain - Current employee
Recommended to other Pilots Positive business outlookApproval of management
Pros
Nice fleet. A330 NEO and CEO's and 747-8F
Cons
Lot's of good people are leaving. Rostering department is a mess. Management keeps promising but is doing nothing. Very low salary compared with other long haul jobs in Belgium and Europe. Bad hotels on cargo fleet. No respect for pilots.
Advice to management
It's time to make big changes. Do something about the salary, working conditions and the roster.
Advice to future employees
Come only if you need a A330 rating. Otherwise, keep away.
Lowest payed A330 Captains in Europe and beyond
2.7
Captain - Current employee
Recommended to other Pilots Positive business outlookApproval of management
Pros
Nice bunch of pilots. Nice layovers
Cons
Extreme low pay for A330 longhaul pilots. Turboprop salary while flying a widebody. No change in the future. Very unstable roster. Nothing is done for foreign pilots. TRE's and TRI's giving a month of simulator are receiving less salary then a cruise relief pilot
Advice to management
Promise less. Keep the people happy with a good balanced roster and higher salary. Introduce a salary grid.
Advice to future employees
Air Belgium is a flying school. Enter with your A320 rating, get the A330 rating for free. Fly a bit and leave...
PILOT REVIEW RATING
