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Working as a First Officer. Truly challenging.

“Lots of responsibility right from the start”– “Plenty of challenging destinations” – “It didn’t take long for us to get attuned as a team”. These are just a few comments from your future colleagues in the cockpit at Transavia. And yes, they truly want you to join them. 

"Work that doesn't feel like work"

Becoming a First Officer at Transavia is a first-class opportunity. Surrounded by an amazing team, you’ll be at the helm of a safe and enjoyable flight, often heading to sunny destinations. You’ll be given plenty of freedom and responsibility in a relaxed yet professional atmosphere. You’ll make decisions independently and fly your own flight alongside the captain. Everyone works together at Transavia.

"Hands-on flying and the chance to learn everyday"

Personal development and improvement is part of your flight plan. You’ll land at many different destinations. These range from large airports with every facility to small ones with limited navigation tools and just a few aircraft on the platform. Furthermore, airfields with challenging altitudes or weather conditions offer you the opportunity to show your best side when flying, landing and taking off.  

"A good work-life balance"

On some days, the alarm goes off early, even as early as 3 am. But no matter the hour, you can always be sure that a great team is waiting for you. You’re all in this together. The advantage of starting early is that you also get home early. And if you work a late shift, you have the whole morning to yourself. This makes it a great job to balance with your personal life.

"You can also take on other roles"

Transavia offers you the opportunity to take on other roles alongside your work as a First Officer – if that’s something you’d like to do. For example, you could work as Maintenance Controller with Technical Services or sit on the First Officer selection committee. This makes your work even more varied and gives you the opportunity to broaden your skills in many ways.

"The new Airbus is fantastic"

Transavia has approximately 50 aircrafts. The fleet is currently being upgraded with the Airbus A320/A321neo. It’s a fantastic and comfortable aircraft. The Airbus is newer, more modern and more data-driven. Pilots have been extremely positive about it.

Our hiring process

1. Apply online

Apply for this vacancy if you feel inspired and meet our selection requirements. Upload your CV, cover letter and supporting documents.

2. Assessments

Compass en CPP testen, online of bij EPST in Utrecht.

2. On-site selection

A two-day selection process with our partner EPST in Utrecht. Read about what it involves here.

3. Offer

We will make you an offer of employment if you successfully complete the process.

"The team gets you flying"

Transavia is a large company but it’s a close-knit family of over 3,000 employees at heart. We have a strong team spirit with everyone working together enthusiastically to achieve our purpose: ‘keeping feel-good flying accessible’ Experienced colleagues and young talent support each other’s growth and take responsibility to help one another to improve.

Must watch: People of Transavia

Want to find out how just truly great it is to work at Transavia? Watch the People of Transavia videos.

You can always ask a question

Any other questions? We’ve put together a list of the most frequently asked questions. And we hope you will find an truly clear answer. If you can’t find your question, send us a message: cockpitrecruitment@transavia.com .

We offer a temporary contract with a duration of 5 months (probation period of two months) with the intention to prolong this into a fixed contract if you successfully complete your training and perform well.
Our classification period is 35 days of which 20 days will be working days and 15 will be days off (in full-time contracts). Your weekend is always at least 3 consecutive days and you work for 6 consecutive days at the most. You can submit requests in the classification system (Jeppesen and internally called T-bids).
You almost always go home at the end of your working day. Transavia has just a few destinations where overnight hotel stays by crew are necessary. It also happens that you will fly from another base than the one you are signed to. This will also mean you can be staying overnight there.
Transavia does not pay flight pay. The salary is all-in regardless of the number of hours that you fly. At present, the average number of flying hours a year is 600.
Upon entering service, you are entitled to 19 paid holiday days and 6 scheduled days off. Apart from that, you have 4 days off that you can request after the publishing of your schedule (up to 1 per quarter). Given that you need to use 4 days to get 1 week of holiday, this gives you 7 weeks of holiday a year.
Every pilot is entitled to a 3 consecutive week holiday in the summer period between May and September. Transavia has a production peak in the school holidays which means that you will not be granted the period of your choice every year. Granting of the requested holiday is done according to seniority and assigned ‘priority points’ (priority points are assigned when previous holiday requests are rejected).
Salaries are paid for 2 years upon falling ill.
Yes, there is an excellent payment scheme after 2 years of illness. There is also a Loss of License insurance.
Upon joining each pilot is assigned to a fixed operational base. For all First Officers joining Transavia this usually will be Schiphol (AMS). After joining the company you can apply for vacancies in Rotterdam or Eindhoven. Eindhoven can be arranged fairly quick but for Rotterdam it can take years. Your initial training will always take place in Amsterdam. Due to increasing pressure on our own training department we sometimes outsource part of a type rating to CAE. This can imply that you will be trained partly outside of the Netherlands.
During stand-by shifts, you must be able to be at Schiphol within one and a half hour. Apart from this, we have a jump seat scheme for pilots that live abroad.
After working for 3 months, you can use Transavia’s ISA tickets. After working for 12 months, you can use the My ID travel facility. We have ISA schemes with most major airlines, including KLM, Delta, Lufthansa, Emirates etc.
When you enter service you will be placed on the seniority list. Promotion is done according to seniority, vacancies and successful completion of the Command course. For the First Officers entering service now, we anticipate that this will take 8 to 10 years.
  • Uniform provided
  • Annual medical check provided
  • Annual license renewal provided
  • Parking at base provided
  • Daily allowance during night stop

Working at Transavia: 60 years of great journeys

Ever since our founding in 1965, we’ve believed that everyone should have the opportunity to travel and fly. That belief has always been at the heart of everything we do — it’s embedded in our culture and lives in everything we stand for. With over 3,000 colleagues in the air, at the office, and in the hangar, we provide our passengers with a great journey. Together, we are one team.