FDX Folks in HKG
03-06-2009, 07:18 AM
#12
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Oct 2008
Posts: 148
I have no doubt that shuttle ride sucks. Hope you guys can get that fixed ASAP.
I hear a lot of guys ***** about this layover. It's not that that bad. In fact, it's actually pretty decent. I'm sure it doesn't compare favorably with Cologne, but it sure beats the hell out of Shenzhen. I'd rather lay over in CAN than Oakland, or probably Memphis for that matter.
Don't worry, you won't starve, they have a Pizza Hut and a McDonalds right by the hotel. I didn't find an outback steakhouse for you, but I'm sure there's one somewhere.
Don't worry, you won't starve, they have a Pizza Hut and a McDonalds right by the hotel. I didn't find an outback steakhouse for you, but I'm sure there's one somewhere.
03-06-2009, 09:24 AM
#14
Gets Off
Joined APC: Jan 2007
Position: Nordskog Industries Field Technician
Posts: 688
Grease, that is not how to keep HKG junior! 
You guys need to come up with a standard answer like we have in ANC:
"It's cold, it's dark, the lines suck."
Seriously though, good post man.
You guys need to come up with a standard answer like we have in ANC:
"It's cold, it's dark, the lines suck."
Seriously though, good post man.
03-06-2009, 06:28 PM
#16
New Hire
Joined APC: Dec 2008
Posts: 1
The Good
All the bars have happy hours that will prep you so you don't care about the 10$ US beers to follow.
The air quality in HK itself is very good thanks to a SE to S breeze off the ocean about 85% of the time. The HK govt monitors and publishes daily the air pollution levels in the paper.
Ya don't need a car, don't need the Harley, can't have a gun.
There are many great hikes nearby,
The flying...well ok, it used to be good pre limo to CAN
The families that live here now are great - misery loves company- just kidding we're having a great time with our new "family."
Rents are down so yes you can afford a 800sq ft 2 bedroom thats in city but not everywhere.
The schools are easier to get into - some still have waiting lists but the crash has forced many to bail.
Traveling around asia on your time off is pricey if your picky about going on Cathay.
HK is a great city to live in
The Bad
CAN has the highest rate of cancer in ALL of China (the world?)... duh! I have been there 6 times and EVERY time could smell the pollution - even inside. There are occasional articles in the HK paper about the carcinogens levels in the local vegatables and fish (mostly ok but sometimes above "acceptable levels" - huh?).
As far as a rest before the limo ride back to HK count me out - the air pollution - I'm outta there.
If you ever have to go to the hospital in CAN I hope your good at charades. If you need blood in CAN get your a_s to HK.
The Ugly
The limo ride (in China) - I have seen (too nervous to sleep) cars going the wrong way down the freeway, we pass cars and trucks on the left and the right some going 20mph when we are doing 70. Trucks, you've never seen so many, all belching out 50's style pollution, most look way overloaded, some without taillights, in any lane, the fast ones doing 40mph.
All the bars have happy hours that will prep you so you don't care about the 10$ US beers to follow.
The air quality in HK itself is very good thanks to a SE to S breeze off the ocean about 85% of the time. The HK govt monitors and publishes daily the air pollution levels in the paper.
Ya don't need a car, don't need the Harley, can't have a gun.
There are many great hikes nearby,
The flying...well ok, it used to be good pre limo to CAN
The families that live here now are great - misery loves company- just kidding we're having a great time with our new "family."
Rents are down so yes you can afford a 800sq ft 2 bedroom thats in city but not everywhere.
The schools are easier to get into - some still have waiting lists but the crash has forced many to bail.
Traveling around asia on your time off is pricey if your picky about going on Cathay.
HK is a great city to live in
The Bad
CAN has the highest rate of cancer in ALL of China (the world?)... duh! I have been there 6 times and EVERY time could smell the pollution - even inside. There are occasional articles in the HK paper about the carcinogens levels in the local vegatables and fish (mostly ok but sometimes above "acceptable levels" - huh?).
As far as a rest before the limo ride back to HK count me out - the air pollution - I'm outta there.
If you ever have to go to the hospital in CAN I hope your good at charades. If you need blood in CAN get your a_s to HK.
The Ugly
The limo ride (in China) - I have seen (too nervous to sleep) cars going the wrong way down the freeway, we pass cars and trucks on the left and the right some going 20mph when we are doing 70. Trucks, you've never seen so many, all belching out 50's style pollution, most look way overloaded, some without taillights, in any lane, the fast ones doing 40mph.
A300 Captain (For Now)
03-06-2009, 08:04 PM
#18
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Jul 2007
Posts: 117
From the LOA concerning eligibility...
To be eligible for this allowance, pilots must relocate to the FDA and occupy the housing for which an allowance is being paid. Standards for determining whether a pilot has relocated his permanent residence under this paragraph shall be the same as for full relocations under Section 6 of the basic Agreement.
From Section 6....concerning full relocation
A pilot shall advise Human Resources, AOD, in writing of the
completion of his relocation. His relocation is complete when
he has established a new permanent residence for himself and,
if applicable, his spouse and/or dependent children within the
acceptable radius of his base within 18 months following his
activation date. The Company shall verify completion of a pilot’s
relocation based on objective factors.completion of his relocation. His relocation is complete when
he has established a new permanent residence for himself and,
if applicable, his spouse and/or dependent children within the
acceptable radius of his base within 18 months following his
activation date. The Company shall verify completion of a pilot’s
I am sure you probably were already aware of this, but it is worth mentioning for people if the company comes after you.
03-06-2009, 09:18 PM
#19
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Aug 2006
Position: HKG Bus Driver
Posts: 115
I'm in the left seat going south 20 degrees with the new bid. Here's a tongue-in-cheek email I sent to a more senior friend considering the move.
Man you could be the number 2 F/O, think of the QOL!! :-)
-Medical stuff, 3 FAA docs in town. Most of us use a guy in Kowloon. He does the online fill out the FAA form. He's a little pricey, my annual with EKG came to USD$175 which means your second one cost some out of pocket money.
Easiest way to do medical is get HTH to make the appointment, that way its paid for upfront. Their reimbursement process is glacial to say the least but it does work. They don't do the FAA docs though. There is a doc here in DB that now accepts HTH so she get the sniffles visits. For newly arriving captains, senior to me, I've got a great Chinese witch doctor you can visit (once).
-GT HKG-CAN sucks. It takes @ 2-2.5 hrs, they plan for 3.5 and that gets you to CAN with plenty of time to hit a sleep room for a nap if you so desire. The ride home really sucks, you get in between 11:30-1:30 then face three hours getting home. Its similar to getting into MEM and waiting for the outbound Jumpseat to your hometown then an hour's drive in your car. It does not beat a sharp stick in the eye by much. The pickup is now supposed to be door to door but that is still a work in progress. It took me an hour to get to the "central" pickup point. Also some issues with tired drivers we're dealing with. Don't think we've heard the end on this issue yet.
-Social life. Arriving senior captains are shunned. We haven't started stoning yet.
HKG is a great city to do stuff. Great transportation everywhere plus the ability to travel all over Asia/Pacific. Lots of expats so no end to opportunities.
-Chinese language. Not necessary but I love working at it. The company has reneged on the tuition assistance so its out of pocket.
-Move package. I don't really know what to tell you. We took the LOA package. If you keep a place in the States, which a lot of people do, then you can get by here in a smaller place. Many people live in Kowloon in a serviced (furnished) apartment. We brought about 750#s of stuff and bought the rest with the seed money. If you don't fail currency conversion 101 and buy an expensive Persian carpet, like I did :-( , the seed money should do the trick.
-Banking. This is a constant irritant. You'd think Fedex could get us our pay check without being docked a 1% or so service charge, but they don't seem to care. They will do the allotment for you through Citibank but get a really bad exchange rate, not worth it IMHO. I opened up an HSBC US account and have my pay check deposited there. I then opened up an HSBC account here and transfer my money between my accounts when I want. The catch, you have to be what they call a Premier Member for that to be free, otherwise about a 1% svc charge, or bad exchange rate. What a lot of guys do is get USAA or B of A , Navy Federal or someone else to transfer funds once a month for a transfer fee of USD$30-50 then file for reimbursement which the company approves. It works but some guys had headaches getting started because the high school drop out running the Bank's international department in Peoria had never done it before so therefore it could not be done.
--Credit cards. You will need to get a local one since all the US cards are charging 1-2% transaction fees on international purchases.
-Mail. As a military retiree you can get an FPO box at the Navy's operation on the waterfront here. At least until they decide they have enough FedEx guys making them work too hard. We try to bribe them with home baked cookies once in awhile to keep them happy.
FedEx will send your unimportant mail (LES, benefits info, W-2 forms) you know that junk mail you don't want from them, to the HUB. If you're lucky there won't be something important that requires immediate action. I went six weeks without going through SFS at the end of the year so my mail changed the aircraft's CG when I finally got it. They just can't do enough to support us out here. We can deliver an elephant to a pinhead in a nomads tent but they can't find their own employees. Oh yeah, you can not input an international or military address into Prism. Cutting edge technology.
-Pharmacy. So far not an issue but HTH reimbursement is a pain. You can buy most things over the counter at certain Pharmacies without those pesky little doctor notes. If not here then BKK for sure, unless its narcotic/nitro/addictive of some sort.
-Internet, as you may know email travels over the internet ;-). The only thing more of than typhoons, cobras, mosquitos, and rice are iphones. Buy Apple stock they are cutting a deal with China Unicom. We slingbox and skype away our free time, no problem.
I think you guys will like it here, staying home, sitting reserve.
Man you could be the number 2 F/O, think of the QOL!! :-)
-Medical stuff, 3 FAA docs in town. Most of us use a guy in Kowloon. He does the online fill out the FAA form. He's a little pricey, my annual with EKG came to USD$175 which means your second one cost some out of pocket money.
Easiest way to do medical is get HTH to make the appointment, that way its paid for upfront. Their reimbursement process is glacial to say the least but it does work. They don't do the FAA docs though. There is a doc here in DB that now accepts HTH so she get the sniffles visits. For newly arriving captains, senior to me, I've got a great Chinese witch doctor you can visit (once).
-GT HKG-CAN sucks. It takes @ 2-2.5 hrs, they plan for 3.5 and that gets you to CAN with plenty of time to hit a sleep room for a nap if you so desire. The ride home really sucks, you get in between 11:30-1:30 then face three hours getting home. Its similar to getting into MEM and waiting for the outbound Jumpseat to your hometown then an hour's drive in your car. It does not beat a sharp stick in the eye by much. The pickup is now supposed to be door to door but that is still a work in progress. It took me an hour to get to the "central" pickup point. Also some issues with tired drivers we're dealing with. Don't think we've heard the end on this issue yet.
-Social life. Arriving senior captains are shunned. We haven't started stoning yet.
HKG is a great city to do stuff. Great transportation everywhere plus the ability to travel all over Asia/Pacific. Lots of expats so no end to opportunities.
-Chinese language. Not necessary but I love working at it. The company has reneged on the tuition assistance so its out of pocket.
-Move package. I don't really know what to tell you. We took the LOA package. If you keep a place in the States, which a lot of people do, then you can get by here in a smaller place. Many people live in Kowloon in a serviced (furnished) apartment. We brought about 750#s of stuff and bought the rest with the seed money. If you don't fail currency conversion 101 and buy an expensive Persian carpet, like I did :-( , the seed money should do the trick.
-Banking. This is a constant irritant. You'd think Fedex could get us our pay check without being docked a 1% or so service charge, but they don't seem to care. They will do the allotment for you through Citibank but get a really bad exchange rate, not worth it IMHO. I opened up an HSBC US account and have my pay check deposited there. I then opened up an HSBC account here and transfer my money between my accounts when I want. The catch, you have to be what they call a Premier Member for that to be free, otherwise about a 1% svc charge, or bad exchange rate. What a lot of guys do is get USAA or B of A , Navy Federal or someone else to transfer funds once a month for a transfer fee of USD$30-50 then file for reimbursement which the company approves. It works but some guys had headaches getting started because the high school drop out running the Bank's international department in Peoria had never done it before so therefore it could not be done.
--Credit cards. You will need to get a local one since all the US cards are charging 1-2% transaction fees on international purchases.
-Mail. As a military retiree you can get an FPO box at the Navy's operation on the waterfront here. At least until they decide they have enough FedEx guys making them work too hard. We try to bribe them with home baked cookies once in awhile to keep them happy.
FedEx will send your unimportant mail (LES, benefits info, W-2 forms) you know that junk mail you don't want from them, to the HUB. If you're lucky there won't be something important that requires immediate action. I went six weeks without going through SFS at the end of the year so my mail changed the aircraft's CG when I finally got it. They just can't do enough to support us out here. We can deliver an elephant to a pinhead in a nomads tent but they can't find their own employees. Oh yeah, you can not input an international or military address into Prism. Cutting edge technology.
-Pharmacy. So far not an issue but HTH reimbursement is a pain. You can buy most things over the counter at certain Pharmacies without those pesky little doctor notes. If not here then BKK for sure, unless its narcotic/nitro/addictive of some sort.
-Internet, as you may know email travels over the internet ;-). The only thing more of than typhoons, cobras, mosquitos, and rice are iphones. Buy Apple stock they are cutting a deal with China Unicom. We slingbox and skype away our free time, no problem.
I think you guys will like it here, staying home, sitting reserve.
03-06-2009, 09:22 PM
#20
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Sep 2005
Posts: 1,125
How long have you been there and what paper are you reading? Those articles are always saying how AWFUL the air is. Hong Kong has some of the most awful air pollution I've ever seen. It is the only place I've flown into that you fly into a complete pollution inversion at 10000 feet. You can smell it as you descend through it.
Now don't get me wrong, HK does have its no pollution, absolutely gorgeous days, but especially in winter, the air quality sucks!
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