Why hire military over your competition?

[labbats]

I'm curious why all of the majors continue to hire almost exclusively military while the LCCs like JetBlue, Allegiant, Virgin America and Spirit get one or two spots a month if any.

If I were in charge of a major airline I would want people who have already flown my same types of aircraft and by the simple fact of hiring them would hurt my competition.

LCCs are forced to hire fresh and pay to train replacements of those who go to the majors. You'd have newhires that are already consolidated and fully experienced.

What am I missing?

 

[kf4amu]

Military guys are more intensely vetted than civilian guys?

 

[capt1900]

I'm not touching this one.

 

[labbats]

Military guys are more intensely vetted than civilian guys?

5000 hours in the same type of aircraft in the same crew environment to the same destinations isn't vetted enough already?

Look I realize this is a contentious issue, but it's the elephant in the room. I'm curious as to other's opinions about this.

 

[MG386]

Here we go!

 

[pilotyip]

I know from our experience the training failure rate for military trained pilots is far below that of the civilian source pilots that we have hired. The military's weeding out process eliminates a lot of guys in training; I would guess much more than a civilian training program.

 

[kf4amu]

5000 hours in the same type of aircraft in the same crew environment to the same destinations isn't vetted enough already?

Look I realize this is a contentious issue, but it's the elephant in the room. I'm curious as to other's opinions about this.

I think we've all flown with 5000 hour guys you wouldnt allow to drive your family car...

 

[Boxboy]

If you can't safely fly a Boeing or an Airbus (or whatever) from point A to point B with 5,000 hours under the belt, perhaps one should look into another line of work. There are knuckleheads everywhere, whether military or civilian background. Ex-military group is more of a "known quantity" vs. the civilian counterparts. IMHO, one group is not better than the other in the airline world.

 

[t-bone]

I got weeded out before I ever got started by my less than perfect eye-sight. LASIK fixed that for me....but I'm still in the civilian-only boat. Too bad the customer service skills required in the 135/fractional world don't seem to factor in as much in the 121 hiring process.

 

[cbrown1]

I'm curious why all of the majors continue to hire almost exclusively military while the LCCs like JetBlue, Allegiant, Virgin America and Spirit get one or two spots a month if any.

If I were in charge of a major airline I would want people who have already flown my same types of aircraft and by the simple fact of hiring them would hurt my competition.

LCCs are forced to hire fresh and pay to train replacements of those who go to the majors. You'd have newhires that are already consolidated and fully experienced.

What am I missing?

Most pilots at legacies that were hired years ago and that are now in the management positions were military. Most pilots that are at the LCCs have come from the civilian arena. It's just people hiring what they see as the best candidates and those candidates mirror themselves.

 

[humveedriver]

Many airlines want the freshest meat possible in their organization. This way their training doctrines and corporate culture are introduced in the new hires primacy of 121 flying. Military pilots are highly malleable. They are also less familiar with the unions, politics and business side of flying. Also look at supply and demand. Many military pilots were "encouraged" to stay in the military over the last ten years to help support the two front war. During this time frame the LCC's were expanding and hiring, the Legacies were restructuring. Now the military has reduced it's demand and the legacies are retiring pilots finally.

 

[CX880]

Tax breaks if you hire a vet.

 

[Capn Butthead]

I would venture to say that 90% of the problem childs and pilots that no one wants to fly with are ex fighter guys. And god forbid if a cloud is on the horizon!

Most of the military guys I fly with are great...but of all the guys on the avoidance bid they are all military...ask any fo....

I think they are hired because flight ops management is all ex military. They keep recruiting their own. Plus they are more likely to be yes men at first when it comes to unions and contracts...they don't stand up to their superiors. And they make serengettis, combovers and rope belts look damn good!

 

[jonjuan]

Too bad the customer service skills required in the 135/fractional world don't seem to factor in as much in the 121 hiring process.

Are customer skillz unique to 135? I'm sure the hundreds of 121 furloughees post 9-11 did just fine at Netjets and the other frax.

 

[HowardBorden]

I know from our experience the training failure rate for military trained pilots is far below that of the civilian source pilots that we have hired.

I'm curious what type of training you are doing? At my airline I can't imagine our training failure rate is above 1%.

 

[nordo_2]

I know from our experience the training failure rate for military trained pilots is far below that of the civilian source pilots that we have hired. The military's weeding out process eliminates a lot of guys in training; I would guess much more than a civilian training program.

Because nowadays they all have four year college degree's.

 

[waveflyer]

Yeah
We just did this thread

 

[Sluggo_63]

...but of all the guys on the avoidance bid they are all military...

I'm not even throwing stones, but just out of curiosity, was the captain involved in the LGA crash ex-military? I heard that captain was the most avoided captain at SWA.

 

[waveflyer]

I think she was civilian

And not throwing stones, but every other incident at SWA was military...

:-/

 

[stall022]

From my experience, Civilian RJ people know that management is full of BS and they have seen the games that management plays.

Military people seem to be more believing that management will lead them and take care of them. They haven't experienced the games that management plays.

Management likes obedience and clean slates.