Over the next four years AirTanker Services Ltd will continue to expand its team of air crew, engineers and ground operatives, says Lindsay Harbottle, Corporate Communications Officer for AirTanker Services Ltd.
Based at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire the ‘special purpose company’ has a vision to be recognized as the best service provider to the RAF, and requires high quality people to meet its aims. Questions and discussions on the
Cabin Crew forum have shown that our members are interested in hearing the latest from AirTanker, so below are details from Lindsay on the company’s future recruitment plans, which we hope you find useful.
What is AirTanker?
AirTanker is a special purpose vehicle company, set-up to provide the Ministry of Defence (MoD) with an air to air re-fuelling and air transport capability. To facilitate this, AirTanker provides the entire service, in an ‘airline’ fashion, including the flight operations, ground operations, fleet engineering, training, infrastructure and a fleet of 14, specially modified, A300-200 aircraft. For more information on fleet composition and the service delivery, please see
www.AirTanker.co.uk.
The first aircraft is now in service with the RAF, operating from our base at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire.
When is the next wave of recruitment for cabin crew jobs for AirTanker?
AirTanker is coming to the end of the first recruitment campaign for cabin crew. We anticipate filling around 30 roles in this tranche, with the next wave of recruitment linking to the arrival of our first civilian registered aircraft towards the end of this year. We have been very pleased with the response to our initial adverts and we have attracted high quality applicants eager to join this ambitious and exciting programme!
How many jobs will there be this year, and how many next year?
We will send out offers to approximately 30 cabin crew in the next month, followed by another 20 or so in the following quarter. Recruitment will continue in the future, and we will always be interested in hearing from people who can demonstrate the right skills and experience to enable us to develop a talent pipeline as our company grows.
What skills, qualifications and characteristics are you looking for in cabin crew applicants?
We are looking for a range of experience, from those who have never flown before, to those that have thousands of hours. For instance, our Pursers need to have recent and significant experience in a Purser role to be considered for a position. However, we are also keen to develop our staff and we will promote from within the team. We are equally likely to appoint individuals who have no cabin crew experience, but who demonstrate the right behaviours, passion, motivation, and have relevant experience in a customer facing environment.
How many aircraft are planned in total and what is the timeframe for introducing them?
The overall fleet will consist of 14 specially converted A330-200 aircraft, known as Voyager by the RAF, at our Full Service Delivery date in 2016. Trying to avoid too much detail, nine of these aircraft will make up the core fleet for the RAF and the additional five will be available to the RAF when they require extra capability. When not being flown by the RAF, AirTanker will look to lease these aircraft for third party revenue.
It is important to point out here that one of the core fleet will always remain on the Civilian Aircraft Register, while the other eight will be on the Military Register. Our civilian cabin crew will be flying on the civilian one and, potentially, the additional five aircraft outside of the RAF core fleet.
How long is the training and where does it take place?
On average, the training will take six weeks to complete. Training will take place at RAF Brize Norton with specialist input from other commercial airlines and therefore we will take advantage of the wealth of experience already in the industry.
Where will flights typically be going?
Anticipated routes include the Falklands, Ascension Island and Cyprus, but this will be dependent on RAF requirements. AirTanker operates a service for the RAF to provide air to air re-fuelling and air transport capability to wherever they may be required. This means destinations will depend on the Ministry of Defence’s requirements and could therefore be quite diverse. Although our civilian cabin crew will not be flying into high threat environments, this role will provide them with an opportunity to support the British MoD away from the front line.
What is different about working on an AirTanker (Voyager aircraft), compared to a commercial aircraft?
Unlike a ‘normal’ airline, AirTanker is providing a military operation. Our cabin crew will still focus on passenger safety and comfort; however, these passengers will not be on the way to a business meeting or holiday, but rather on their way to defend UK interests, take part in military training or to provide humanitarian support.
For more information on fleet composition and the service delivery, please see
www.AirTanker.co.uk.
For details of career opportunities please visit
www.airtanker.co.uk/jobs
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