Richard Yeomans

I am in Athens after a long days flying. It has been a tough day and I feel that I have had to battle against peoples negativity. I have been trying to do ad hoc surveys on what people feel about the www.flightcrewfinder.com  project and it’s mainly positive I have to say.

Some people just laugh and highlight the negative side to the business, picking holes in the plan. What we are trying to do is make something that will help the unemployed pilot and cabin crew. Something that will give everyone who signs up a chance to put their CV on the desk of the chief pilot. It’s all about making something out of nothing and it’s costing me time and money I can ill afford.

So, if you are with me go to the  www.flightcrewfinder.com  and sign up. All we need is your email address and we can keep you informed of what we are doing. Good luck everyone in these difficult times.

Well, that’s the name of my new venture.  The logo design is nearing completion and then we will start the build of the site.  I magnitude of the task ahead is daunting but I think it will be worth it in the end.  We are nearing the end in the beginning and I will post the winning design here.

Tomorrow I am going on a flying tour but, I don’t have to catch an airline as my aeroplane will be at Heathrow.  

Tomorrow night I will be in Ibiza and I will write more news of the building of a new company.

I haven’t blogged for months and I don’t know why really.  I like to think it because was busy….If I was then, I am going to have a massive amount of work over the next few months.  I am setting up a web based company called Flight Crew Finder.  It is a place where pilots and cabin crew can post their details and aircraft owners can find the crew they need. There is nothing in Europe like this and I think it can offer a real service to pilots who are struggling to find work.  I don’t really want to make a pile of money, just help my colleagues in Netjets who are looking for work on their off years.

I am going to blog as much as I can to tell the world what it is like embarking on this massive journey of building something from nothing.  To quote from A Bridge Too Far, ‘It isn’t going to be a tea party but I wouldn’t miss it for the world!’

So keep an eye on:  www.flightcrewfinder.com

Find us on Twitter: @flightcrewfind

Register your interest by sending a simple email by clicking here

Keep your eyes open!!!

I have been struggling to stay calm over the last few days. The company seems pretty busy and the daily plan keeps changing. This can lead to us preparing a flight then it gets canceled or changed. We have been flying mainly to the beaches and the passengers are usually in a holiday mood and enjoy the flights. We flew to the Greek Islands and they are beautiful but the handling we get is always so poor it takes the fun out of the stay. Unfortunately we have been so busy that we haven’t had a chance to sit on the beach and enjoy the Southern European weather. Anyway, it’s too hot and I’ll just burn anyway.

I have had some time off, about 3 weeks I think and, now I am fully refreshed and ready for work. Or so I thought until the alarm went off a 03:45 this morning. It really was a rude awakening. I managed to get an upgrade when I checked in by using a little charm. I had some breakfast in the BA lounge and read the paper. The lounge was very pleasant but it did have a feeling of a works canteen. I have some uniform issuse. Because I have lost a little weight, 10 kg, my uniform that was baggy now is hanging off me. I do feel a better but sadder. I just wish I could eat all the things I love but its just not possible. The desire to scoff chocolate and cheese (not at the same time) has pretty much gone. I have to drop another 5 kgs and then I will be at a happy weight. According to the BMI rating that will put me in the overweight bracket, at least Ill no longer be classified morbidly obese. The weight loss thing had to take place following my medical. I had a pretty high cholesterol count so, after a few life style changes I reduced it to normal level within 4 weeks. My diet is simple, you just eat things you dont like, that way you dont over-eat. There is an element of exercise involved, i just cycle as much as I can, I even bought a trailer for my bie so I can collect the shopping. I am thinking about publishing my weight loss programme, any takers? When we arrived in Madrid we went to the plane and then the flight got cancelled and we headed off to the hotel.

I’m in Paris and in the sim.  It’s pretty boring and it doesn’t give me much to talk about apart from the people I see in the bar!!  

I ran into someone I have had a falling  out with and he was not at all pleased to see me.  We fell out over a professional matter and it was about 6 months ago.  The time has soothed my bitterness and I have always found it hard to maintain a grudge.  He hasn’t and he blanked me and seemed as bitter as ever.  I would like to say that I don’t care but we all like to be liked and it is human nature for it to eat away at me.  I am getting a little paranoid I think as most people who I fly with know we have fallen out. I think he is ‘briefing’ against me.  

I met another guy in the bar and things were all very jolly until I said that I had a theory that nothing new has been invented for 100 years.  Let me explain, everything we have in our world is just a refinement of something invented 100 years ago.  As an example; a computer is just a modern type writer, an ipod is a record player, the internet is just a refined telegraph.  Anyway, my colleague in the bar didn’t enjoy my argument and got the hump with me.  

Have I lost my charm?

I had to send an email to the Operations Centre to get them to give me the briefing in the morning. I am trying not to call (saving money and jobs!). We had to fly to Rome then Paris, hopefully heading home tomorrow!

The flight to Rome was uneventful and we sat in the sun for an hour waiting for the passengers. Just before we were due to leave, Operations called and said we had a 2:45 slot delay due to problems in Swiss airspace. We had a busy 30 mins trying to re-route but we had to file at a lower level. The new flight plan meant that we now had minimum fuel. Then the galley power failed for no reason. I guessed it was a stray electron so I had to shut down and restart the plane. Great, problem solved and then the passengers arrived. The were totally oblivious to the dramas of the last 45 mins and we smoothly rolled of the stand like a swan. I guess thats what we get paid for.

We were collected from the hotel at 2 oclock (a little later than we should) and we were driven through the suburbs towards the airport. I was worried as we didnt have any passports or the crew permit. The handling agent had taken the permit away to get it extended 2 days before and we were, in effect, illegal immigrants.

It was strange seeing the UK high street stores in Jeddah, there was Marks and Spencer, Debenhams as well as smaller stores like Next and ELC. I guess thats globalization for you. I saw the two extremes, total poverty and massive wealth side by side. There were Aston Martins driving next to tatty Tata cars with no air conditioning in the 40 degree plus temperatures. It is only by the luck of birth I was born into an English family and I didnt find myself cleaning cars in the desert.

We climbed aboard and started the APU to try to cool down the cabin. It was very hot in the plane and I was soon sweating just sitting in the cockpit. The plane was loaded to its maximum take off weight and when the passengers arrived we closed up and set off for Kiev. The passengers were pleased of our little bit of Portugal and soon were enjoying a glass of cold white wine. I have to say I didnt really miss drinking and I did feel better for it when I woke in the morning. Maybe I’ll have a few more dry days!

The flight back to Kiev was good but long. It was nice seeing the sun set over the Saudi desert. When we arrived in Kiev we cleaned and headed to the hotel. I was glad of being back in Europe, the weather suits me more and even Kiev felt like home.

I have been on stand by in the Hotel for the last 2 days and I must admit I am enjoying relaxing a little.  The only problem is I’m not getting enough sleep, I seem to be staying up quite late and then I have to get up for breakfast. The hotel is very nice and the food is great.  Last night we had a the best seafood buffet I have ever seen.  Everything served last night had to be shipped in from all around the world and it was all so fresh, it seemed a little wrong.

The weather is as you would expect, hot and sunny, reaching about 35 degrees at the hottest time of the day.  We went for a walk to look at the shops, there was nothing I really wanted to buy.  Lisa the flight attendant, had to dress up as you can see in the photo.  I did find it hard not to laugh. 

I was struck by the alien culture, it is just so very different to anything I have come across before.  There just are so few women about, it really is unusual to see them in the street and hardly any of them work. Women are not allowed to drive and there are some complex rules about going out unattended that I have yet to grasp. I was expecting the infrastructure in Jeddah to be better than it is.  Many of the buildings are in disrepair and there is poverty in the streets.  Mostly the poor seem to be non Saudi nationals but it wasn’t what I was expecting.  I have met a few Saudis in the hotel and they seem very warm and welcoming and they all seem to speak good English.  I felt safe walking the streets and that is more than you can say for Luton!

The alarm went off at 3:30 and soon after I was in the car heading to Heathrow.  About 10 minutes after leaving the road was closed for tree cutting at 4 o’clock in the morning.  The tree cutters were stealth woodmen as there was no one in sight.  The diversion cost me about 20 minutes and that would mean I would have to rush to catch my airline.

The airline took me to Frankfurt then I had to catch a connecting flight to Kiev.  As I wandered through Frankfurt airport I was struck by the vast array of emotions; I saw people crying with joy of being reunited and others with tears of sadness.  For me, airports are now empty places full of people.  I think the excitement of air travel has gone.

When I arrived in Kiev the airport was totally packed, there was a flight just arriving from New York.  Every time I fly into Kiev there always seems to be a Delta Airlines plane parked up!  Is there really such a big market to connect the two cities?

As soon as we were at our plane we went through our pre-flight routine, loading catering and fuel for the flight to Jeddah.  I had just completed my duties and was going to sit down with a cup of tea when the bags arrived closely followed by the passengers.  Before too long we were on our way and the flight attendant was very busy with the 8 passengers.  We too were busy planning our route across airspace I am less familiar with.  I always take my time and mark the route on a chart, check the frequencies and border crossing points.  I don’t want to get into trouble in the Middle East.

We had a pretty uneventful flight and we had time to enjoy a meal as we watched the sun set over the desert.  An hour before we landed we had to lock up  all the alcohol and this was inspected by customs on landing.   The flight attendant had to find the abaya (a big black dressing gown) and put it on.  I must admit I found it hard to not smile.  Once the plane was packed up we sat around waiting for our visa to be processed, this took about 45 minutes. 

We were driven to the hotel and I before long I was at the check in desk.  The hotel was in total chaos and people were shouting and getting cross with the receptionist.  It soon became apparent that the hotel was full and they had no intention of giving us rooms for the night.  I called our travel department and they had a valid booking reference number.  The Hotel had just over sold the rooms and there were no rooms for us.  They managed to get 3 rooms at a pretty poor hotel just down the road and I jumped at the chance of a bed for the night.