The Malaysian Insight

THEIR love of flying has not dimmed even if the Covid-19 pandemic has grounded them and worse, caused them to lose their jobs.

Former pilot Tommy Tham Swee Lin and former flight attendant Chew Khon Lu landed their first jobs in the aviation industry and were content to stay there until the worldwide health crisis forced them to seek their living elsewhere.

Tham was one of nearly 200 AirAsia pilots who were laid-off without warning in June.

The 31-year-old, who trained to be a pilot at age 18 and was hired as one two years later, had never thought about changing his career.

“I didn’t expect a pandemic to change everything,” Tham told The Malaysian Insight.

“Before the notice was sent, the company said it was running well. Yet in June, it fired many pilots at once. We were in shock.

“It was my first job. I loved it but I was fired suddenly. I did not know how to react.”

Due to his inexperience in other fields, Tham said it was not easy to find a new job to replace the one that was paying him RM50,000 a month.

He and his wife have set up a fruit business. To prepare for the job, Tham worked at a fruit wholesaler to learn the ropes.

“I woke up at 4am and worked from 5am to 6pm. Every day, I kept myself busy moving goods, learning how to store fruits and purchase goods. After about three weeks, I started my own business with my wife.”

He manages the fruit selection, packaging, and delivery. Every weekend, he drives to a nearby park and sells the produce from the back of his car.

“At first my ex-colleagues were shocked when they heard about it. They could not imagine their captain selling fruits but they all supported me.”

Tham said he did get strange looks from passers-by unused to trunk sales.

He has about 150 regular customers now, and despite his drastically reduced income, Tham said he and his wife had enough to live on.

“Although I have savings, I do not know when the epidemic will end. I cannot rely solely on my savings.

“Selling fruits may not be a glamorous job but it does not matter. We have to face life’s difficulties.”

Tham still spends at least an hour each day catching up with news from the aviation industry.

“I miss my flying days very much. I hope to return to flying once the aviation industry recovers.”

Chew, meanwhile, had worked at AirAsia as a flight attendant since she was 20. She is now 24.

“The job may seem glamorous but it is not as simple as it looks. We have to pass exams, be responsible and work under tiring conditions, which affect our sleep and health.

“On a flight to Indonesia, we had a female passenger who had a seizure. We had to deal with it professionally and ensure she was sent for treatment immediately after landing. We have to maintain the safety of our passengers.”

She said she was worried about the loss of her income when she received her termination notice in June.

“My monthly salary ranged from RM4,000 to RM5,000, which was enough to pay for my car and my plan to buy a house. I couldn’t accept the loss at first.”

Chew misses her colleagues, who were like family.

“Although it is a pity, life has to go on. Life will test us.”

Since she loved a good cup of java, her family encouraged her to start her own coffee brand.

“I have managed to keep several regular customers with the communication skills and experience I obtained as a flight attendant. However, the business still requires more promotion.”

Her new job involves finding suppliers, selecting beans and packaging. She hopes to roast her own coffee beans in the future so she could improve product quality.

In June, AirAsia announced 333 job cuts to reduce the scale of operations. The retrenched workers were 172 pilots, 111 crew members and 50 engineers.

AirAsia and AirAsia X are expected to embark on a second round of layoffs as the pandemic shows little sign of abating.

According to sources, pilots who have not been laid off may be forced to take 15 days of unpaid leave each month. Additionally, AirAsia’s management plans to introduce a 25% pay cut for the remaining employees.

Malindo Airways Sdn Bhd has laid off 2,000 workers, or 60% of its workforce, in a retrenchment exercise last month to stay afloat. – November 14, 2020.