Benchmark Could Have Global Implications

Even thought the first Airbus A380 has yet to be delivered, the debate has begun on the pay for the pilots of the double-decker super jumbo jet that can carry up to 853 passengers.

A Singapore arbitration court ruled Friday that pilots who fly the A380 should be paid more than those flying conventional jumbo jets.

The Industrial Arbitration Court judgment settled a pay dispute between Singapore Airlines (SIA), the launch customer for the double-decker A380, and its pilots, reported the Agence France-Presse (AFP).

The three-member panel, composed a representative each from the airline and the pilots, as well as a judge, ruled the minimum salary for A380 captains on the world's biggest passenger plane, will be US $458 a month more than that for captains on the Boeing 747-400 (744) conventional jumbo jet.

"The minimum salary point for captains on the Airbus 380 salary range will be US $458 more than the minimum salary point for the B-744 salary range," said the panel. The basic pay for a B-744 captain is US $6,547 a month, Singapore Airlines told the hearing.

In its ruling, the court said the maximum salary for A380 captains will remain at US $10,802, the B-744 maximum.

The court also said the minimum for first officers on the super jumbo will be US $295 more than on the 747-400.

SIA wanted to mark the A380 pilots' pay to that of the wage scale for the Boeing B777, where a captain earns a starting monthly salary of US $6,088.

During the hearing, an SIA official claimed physical differences between the A380 and the Boeing 777-300 and 747-400 would have little impact on piloting because of similarities between the systems' technologies, cockpit layout, and instrumentation.

While the A380 is heavier than other Airbus and Boeing jets, the weight difference is managed by a high level of automation and other aerospace technologies, official said.

Air Line Pilots Association Singapore (ALPA-S) President Captain P. James countered that flying different aircraft is "not as easy as changing cars."

In its decision, the court said that "a pilot has very heavy responsibilities for the safety of passengers, crew, cargo and the aircraft" regardless of the ease or difficulty of flying the plane.

Both sides welcomed the decision and acknowledged they were breaking new ground.

"We recognize there is no market data for the 380," James, told reporters.

He said the amount of the salary award was "fine" even though it was below the US $655 dollars sought by the union.
"It's at least more than half-way of what we wanted," James said.

"The A380 is a new aircraft," said Singapore Airlines' spokesman Stephen Forshaw. "There's very little by way of an international benchmark to measure things."

Tom Ballantyne, of Orient Aviation, told AFP that A380 pilots from each country will have to set their pay scales individually, but the Singapore case could be used as a reference point.

"A union making a claim for new rates may bring that into the argument," Ballantyne said.

SIA, one of the most profitable carriers in the business, is scheduled to receive the first of its A380s in October.

FMI: www.singaporeair.com, www.alpas.org, www.iac.gov.sg