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Just got back from my FedEx interview and figured the hordes
would be interested. Interview was finished last Thursday and already some of my reference numbers have been called for character references (that's even before the checks cleared to the guys I listed). Anyway, here it is.
The Results of Rosie's Excellent Memphis Adventure OR Rosie's Bogus Ream Job
First the news from FedEx: they're planning on starting up general hiring again this June 1st so everyone get your paperwork together. Items they asked for:
- FAA licenses to include your ATP certificate or current written, Radiotelephone Operator Permit, and FE written results and certificate
- Current FAA first class medical
- Flight records, log books, computer printout for military flight time. I keep my logbook on Excel and made some printouts for them. They seemed generally pleased.
- Current resume (2 copies)
- DD214 if already discharged
- College transcript or copy of degree
- Check stubs or W-2 forms from current employer for at least five years
- If there are any dates of unemployment, provide explanation
- Any other information pertinent to your situation.
Paperwork they sent to me via FedEx that required filling out and handing in upon arrival on first day:
- Application (on which they asked about college credit hours, speeding tickets and dates, employer information (standard sort of nitpicky things that show up on most apps - if you've filled out UPAS or United, it's about the same stuff)
- Employer reference forms (on which you are required to put a current and past employer address and phone number)
- National Drivers License Registry records request form. This one's a particular nuisance because it requires notarization. On the plus side, there's a little business desk in the Memphis airport that has a notary in it (terminal B) so you can bang it out upon arrival. There's also a barber in the airport that can clean up some of your scraggly neck hairs before the
interview.
- Some other stuff that wasn't particularly picky.
Where to stay/how to travel: Unlike the pax carriers, the trash haulers don't pay for tix and they usually give you about a one week notice before interviewing so prepare to get bent over for ticket prices. Try Northwest first, they seem to have a pretty big operation there. I stayed at the Four Points hotel for about $63/night. Decent place, they give you free transpo to and from FedEx so it's possible to stay there without needing a rental car
(of course you miss out on that wonderful "only in Memphis" opportunity to experience carjacking up close and personal).
The Sequence of Events (summer ops, non beetle spraying procedures) - business attire required for all
- Sim first day at 1500 - met as a group with an MD-11 captain who took our paperwork and briefed us up on DC-10 instrumentation and basic instrument stuff. Only one sim for the group of us, each profile took about 35 minutes.
- The profile: he gives you a couple of minutes to get ITZ (in the zone), then he starts giving you headings to turn to, altitudes to climb/descend to, vert speed rates (only 1000 up or down), speeds to accel/slow to (250 or 200 only). I tried slewing my salmon bug to the target airspeed so as to give me the fast/slow indicator in the ADI and was told to put it back at 180 KCAS. Nice way to single yourself out as a smart ass KC-10 guy by the way. Ah, what the hell, I passed.
- The clincher of the sim: the dude tells me to proceed direct the MEM vortac (already dialed up) when I'm doing 250 KCAS, then at about 7 DME tells me to hold west on the 270 radial, standard pattern, passing the navaid descend from 5K to 4K (not allowed to slew alt advisory either by the by). I kicked my 286 brain into gear and scrambled to establish SA. Pretty much was on the border
of the 70 degree rule but turned to the nonmaneuvering side. Didn't rip my throttles back to idle (so as to slow to 200 as per the FARs) until I had come up with a solution to the holding, could have bought me some time to gnat's ass a solution if I had been a little more heads up.
- Day 2 - show up at the metal detectors at 8:00, met Beverly Hyter from hiring (real nice, easy going). She gave us the nickel tour, then on to testing
- First test is that ass kicker with the questions about electricity, other weird stuff (25 minutes)
- Second test: math test (4 min)
- Third test: math test w/ATC traffic tape playing (you are to disregard) (4 min)
- vocabulary test (something like 7 minutes)
- Fourth test: math test w/ATC traffic - you're supposed to listen up (4 min)
- Fifth test: test on what was playing on ATC tape. There's about 7 different airplanes they're talking to, some in the air, some on the ground. Mostly
Break for lunch, then afternoon urinalysis, and two part interviews
- Part I: standard sit down interview with two dudes from management. They were relaxed, tried to get me to relax but regardless, they blasted me with some pretty hard-hitting questions. I answered them all pretty well and got some pretty good feedback from the dudes at the end but I must have been
in there for an hour. Here's some of the Qs:
- - tell us about yourself, stuff that doesn't show up on the resume
- - what's the dumbest thing you've ever done in an airplane
- - what's the value of a 4 year degree for our pilots - some would say it makes for some very underutilized resources prone to become disgruntled from pure boredom
- - there's a lot of hiring going on right now, who else have you interviewed with. How would you feel about flying with one of the "real airlines" and what would be the advantage of flying with them?
- - what's a decision you've made in the past that you would have made differently, one that you really regretted
- - when would you go speak with a union rep when you have a problem, what's your feeling on union representation (note to all: these dudes were pilots but they were on the management side I think. They seemed acutely interested on how you felt about the union issues which is sticky considering you want to steer the interview away from discussions of money.) Bottom line, I
attacked all union questions with the tack of "FedEx is somewhat new to all of these types of union/management frictions given its historically small size and harmonious relations which are easier to keep with a small size. Any problems are a result of some inevitable, but certainly not limiting, growing pains." They smiled at that.
- - if union/contract disputes ever started to infect the flight deck environment, how would you handle it
- - how have you dealt with race relations/EEOC concerns in the course of your job
- - have you ever taken yourself out of flying/opted off the flying schedule for any reason?
- - have you ever had to talk to another flyer about concerns that you had about his flying?
- - when it came time to ask questions at the end, I hit them with three:
- -- what can I expect my progression to be in the company - years to Capt, etc.
- -- how much of our future growth predictions ride on events in Asia and given its bumpy nature right now, how much turbulence will that cause us as pilots
- -- When FedEx has expanded in the past, it's had problems by absorbing other pilot forces into its ranks. As FedEx prepares for another round of growth, what lessons has it learned and how well is it prepared to apply those lessons? (They really dug this one)
- Part II - ORM portion of interview - you alone with three other company dudes, mockup of a cockpit, 16K of fuel, 7 minute time limit. Dudes act as F/O, S/O, and dispatch
- Situation: from DFW to LBB, snow on rwy at LBB, only half cleared, equipment is broken, weather is clear, crosswinds gusting up to limit for worst RCR, one reverser is sticky and slower to deploy than others, stopping distance is within the plowed portion of the runway
- - Not all of the above info is immediately provided, some you've got to dig out
- S/O doesn't want to press on to LBB because he's apprehensive from previously similar circumstances, F/O says it wouldn't hurt to just go to AMA and sit it out until things get more comfortable
- About this point I'm thinking to myself, "This sucks"
- I opted to press on to LBB as the timer was clicking down and made lame attempt to explain it in the remaining 20 seconds
- After scenario, they go out of room and tell you to write down what you think you did right and what you did wrong
- I put up some BS on the board, the biggest thing that I debriefed myself on me just saying we're going to LBB, I would have changed it to something more open ended like "we're going on to LBB for now, S/O keep working with
dispatch and if there is anything else in the world we can hang our hats on for a divert, anything like an increase in crosswind or anything, let us know and we'll make the call based upon that info."
- Also, I thought the F/O input pretty much excluded any consideration of revenue generating payload, but thought it would be too rude to just say, "Ah, right, dumbass" so instead I met it with basic silence. Got debriefed to say in the future, "I hear what you're saying but I don't have time to work with that suggestion right now." That sounds much better than the dumbass
option.
- If I tubed this interview, it's either for the ORM stuff or because of testing. Overall, I think it went pretty well. There's no right or wrong answers to any of these scenarios, they're mostly looking to see how you come up with decisions, whether you're a tyrant on the flight deck, whether you can
come up with a decision, and whether you can communicate with other dudes.
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