Philippine’s Low-cost carriers’ face pilot drain

Poaching of pilots will continue because of the explosive growth of low-cost carriers (LCCs), according to Capt. Jim Sydiongco, officer in charge of the Flight Safety Inspectorate Service (FSIS) and check pilot of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (Caap).
He said the woes that Philippine Airlines (PAL) is experiencing would be hard to address at the moment, unless the flag carrier is able to match the salary offered by foreign airlines.
Sydiongco, formerly a PAL captain, said the growth of the low-cost air carriers will continue in the years to come, and the Philippines should prepare for the expected high demand for pilots, cabin crew, mechanics, fitters, avionics technicians and people filling related jobs.
He said there are about 1,000 pilots of captain rank in the Philippines and many of them have attained 1,200 hours of flying, which he called “poachable.”
Currently, PAL has adjusted its local and international flight schedules following the departure of 25 pilots last week, who were reportedly hired by Hong Kong Airlines Ltd., and Vietnam Airlines.
Entry-level salaries in foreign airlines for newly hired A320 pilots start at $10,000, and may go up to as much as $17,000 a month—with tax of 15 percent, according to news reports. On the other hand, PAL pays about $7,000 a month that is taxed 32 percent, according to PAL president Jaime Bautista.
Reports indicated that about 25 more pilots of PAL have filed their resignation papers and are just waiting for the 180-day notice to expire, according to aviation sources.
Currently, there are three LCCs operating in the country: PAL, CEB and Spirit of Manila which flies twice weekly to Taiwan.
05/08/10 Recto L. Mercene/Business Mirror