CAL vs. DAL

[kassel737]

Not enough retirements at DAL and not nearly as good management. CALby a long shot.

 

[a10hogplt]

General, i dont post here much.....but i couldnt resist this time...

dude, you have no life, quit drinking the damn delta Koolaid........Delta is pathetic, so just get over it....you are really pushing it.....give up posting on here and get a hobby.

 

[On Your Six]

General, i dont post here much.....but i couldnt resist this time...

dude, you have no life, quit drinking the dang delta Koolaid........Delta is pathetic, so just get over it....you are really pushing it.....give up posting on here and get a hobby.

Thanks for your great contribution, jacka$$. At least the General has an opinion and adds (or subtracts) to the debate. This is an information/opinion forum - right? What have you added to this debate? Nada. You can either ignore the General and his opinions (skip his posts) or voice your own on the subject at hand.


As for my opinion on this subject, both options would be good choices over the longer term despite CAL's poor starting salary/benefits. Delta after Chap 11 will be much stronger and have a much better outlook due to its international expansion and I highly doubt the US/DL merger will happen (primarily due to DOJ issues and overall debt capacity questions). A UAL/CAL merger still might happen and that could change the outlook on CAL hiring and career progression... You never know...

 

[pipe]

Probably more stability at CAL, but better uniforms at DL. Who knows? If we get away from USAir then things will be good, with or without a merger with NWA.

Bye Bye--General Lee

Please tell me you're kidding about the 1940's Royal Navy uniform.

PIPE

 

[calfo]

At least my uniform isn't double-breasted, and I can afford the other half of the stripes on my sleeves.

 

[CA1900]

I'd just like to thank whatever moron at Delta decided to put the seat trays in the armrests on the 757 exit rows. Talk about freaking uncomfortable.... grrrr.


(Thumbs-up on the LED reading lights, though.)

 

[Pat Fabin]

Uuuhu...our uniform goes back to the 1930's thank you very much.

When making a decision about going to a major you need to look at history, and make LONG-TERM decisions.

CAL has never been one of the desirable carriers to work for...they always had bottom-of-the-barrel wages and working conditions. The ONLY reason they are attractive right now is that the other majors have given so much in concessions and they've been one of the few places hiring. While the upgrade progressions are certainly impressive, they won't last forever. Back in 2000, we had 2 year Captains at DAL...things change.

CAL has never once stood up for themselves and led the industry anywhere...I doubt their track record will be much different come time for Section 6 negotiation.

If you like flying for a pilot group with a large scab contingent...go to CAL.

Absent of payrates, our pilot contract is light-years better than CAL and is probably the best legacy contract out there. I'm sure when it comes time, we'll leap frog CAL and be back near the top of the pax. carrier business. Heck, we took a 33% paycut and STILL paid more than CAL. It wasn't until our BK that we fell below.

As for management, CAL has certainly been able to weather the storms over the last few years very well, and will probably continue to do so. I do, however, believe the new management at DAL to be just as capeable and will do great things with our superior network. Our new long-haul domestic product is better than anyone's out their with dual class leather seats, TVs in every seat, new food and drinks, etc. Our long-haul product with the lie-flat seats is constantly evolving. DAL is truly re-investing in the product. CAL still offers the same old average thing they did in the mid 90s. And whats up with that turkey "sub" thats no bigger than my fist?

CAL has only about 12% heavy aircraft while Delta's fleet is 25% heavy aircraft...2.5 times as many heavy airplanes as CAL. DALs pilot group is currently only about 50% larger than CALs.... bottom line there are far more opportunities to fly heavy aircraft at DAL (and thus better pay and working conditions) than CAL. As Delta's focus points more towards long-haul international, this will certainly tilt the scales more in DAL's favor.

For a junior guy, Delta's fleet is more enjoyable to fly. On the 73NG and MD88 fleet, each plane is identically equipped...no need to switch between the 737-3/5/7/8/9.

Have you seen CALs training center vs. DALs? Pretty self-explanatory there.

Delta's PBS system is far superior to CALs (our PBS guy is always hearing from the CAL rep about how they are unhappy with what they have).

I have many friends that went straight from ExpressJet to CAL and most of them say its an anti-climactic experience.. basically ExpressJet with different airplanes. I guess that says a lot for XJT, but not so much for CAL.

We've fallen pretty far from where we were, but DAL is still a first-rate, very organized, very structured company where people are treated as professionals and people generally do a great job.

These are, of course, my opinions but CAL has always been a 2nd tier major and I don't see anything they've done lately that makes me think any different other than they pay more than us....for now.

 

[propjob27]

CAL has never been one of the desirable carriers to work for...they always had bottom-of-the-barrel wages and working conditions. The ONLY reason they are attractive right now is that the other majors have given so much in concessions and they've been one of the few places hiring.

The exact same thing could be said about FedEX and UPS, though I doubt there are alot of guys who regret going to work for those 2 outfits.

I'd take CAL over DAL. Having said that, a guy/gal would have to be pretty da m n lucky to have offers from both at the same time in order to have this choice in the 1st place.

 

[fatboyplt]

If one does not have a job. I would think the first to hire you..

Birdman
BTV

 

[abe44]

Personally, I'd hold out for Fed Ex or UPS.

Strive for the best...don't sell yourself (and your career) short!

A job at one of the above carriers will be better, over a career, than any pax carrier (including SWA...the best of the pax carriers right now.)

Just my opinion,

Abe