Looking for some info on Airtran. I know you guys just voted down the last proposal (good for you) and that shows unity. How is life there, pay, QOL, moral, equipment and so on. Please, just Citrus pilots who have have something constructive to say good or bad. Thanks 124
As someone who lives in base, life is pretty good. Like Lear, I took a sizable paycut to come here from Pinnacle, but the increase in QOL, even as a reserve pilot, has been worth it. For the commuters on reserve, it's probably a different story since we lost the ability to drop reserve days. They end up spending time in a crashpad for a big chunk of the month, especially since reserve FOs just aren't flying that much right now. Reserve is running around 6-8 months for 717 FOs, not sure about 737. Figure a few extra months of build-up lines after that before holding a hard line.
I'm expecting anywhere from 4-6 years for upgrade. At current FO payrates, that wouldn't be fun, but we should have a new TA within the next couple of years that will boost the FO rates. Captain rates are already at about industry-standard for SNB equipment, so the next TA should boost those to pretty good rates also.
I disagree with Lear about preferring CAL, NWA, or UAL over here. CAL has just hired too many people already. Seems like a big furlough-fodder risk there. NWA is just an absolutely miserable company. I can't imagine putting myself through a few decades of misery at that place. UAL just scares me with the talk of mergers and financial issues. Doesn't seem like a stable place to be. If you live in any of their bases, though, then it would definitely be preferred. Living in base is always the top priority in my mind.
Basically, most of the people here are great to fly with, the stews are younger and not pissed off all the time, you get a decent amount of time off, and the pay will probably be improving. With the new union leadership, I think this is a great place to go with a good future.