American Eagle ..HIRING....

[minarcia]

When I was an F/O at Eagle one of the things that made me realize I had to get out was flying with the company pay leader on a regular basis. He was literally killing himself to make what a normal major F/O makes. I mean he was always at work. A real tournament player O/T hound with crew scheduling and Sabre. He was in his late 50's but literally looked 75+. Hair was all ghost white, skin wrinkled, over weight, and bitter. I thought to myself this is as good as it gets here...

From my time at Eagle, and now looking from the outside in, I couldn't agree more.

 

[no1pilot2000]

How would you rate the following regional airlines OVERALL? Meaning, starting pay and pay progression over time, career progression, management, aircraft you fly, quality of life, fellow crew members and aother employess you have dealt with, and anything else you care to add. Please check your sarcasm at the door please. **PLEASE be honest in your comments (and I know that won't be easy for some of you).

1 being the worse score and 10 being the best score.

 

[CX880]

How would you rate the following regional airlines OVERALL? Meaning, starting pay and pay progression over time, career progression, management, aircraft you fly, quality of life, fellow crew members and aother employess you have dealt with, and anything else you care to add. Please check your sarcasm at the door please. **PLEASE be honest in your comments (and I know that won't be easy for some of you).

1 being the worse score and 10 being the best score.

I'll give it a 6. But it doesn't matter, though. all regionals are the same the only difference between them is the airplane you fly and the schedules associated with that airplane. that's about it. same misery but the koolaid tastes better at some other companies.

 

[no1pilot2000]

When I meant regional airlines, here's the list:

Air Wisconsin
Republic/Chatauqua/Shuttle America
Piedmont
Colgan
Comair
American Eagle
PSA
ASA
Skywest
Commutair
Mesa
Mesaba
Compass

 

[WayBack]

When I meant regional airlines, here's the list:

Air Wisconsin
Republic/Chatauqua/Shuttle America
Piedmont
Colgan
Comair
American Eagle
PSA
ASA
Skywest
Commutair
Mesa
Mesaba
Compass

Stay away from all of them, except SkyWest. They're the only ones with a good QOL and pay.

 

[CX880]

When I meant regional airlines, here's the list:

Air Wisconsin
Republic/Chatauqua/Shuttle America
Piedmont
Colgan
Comair
American Eagle
PSA
ASA
Skywest
Commutair
Mesa
Mesaba
Compass

You can't rate them because it varies for individuals. Some people want closest base, some people want the one that gets them PIC fastest, some people are fixed on only one like Skywest. Generally the idea is if you don't want to spend too much time at a regional you go with the bottom feeders or prop operators like Colgan because they have the fastest movement different bases. If you want a stable place where you can build a career you go to AE or Skywest etc.

 

[no1pilot2000]

Has anyone considered military flying? If your not the full time military type, perhaps fly for the Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve? I used to be in the National Guard and spoke to pilots from the Air Guard and they enjoyed their flying. Pilots in the Air Guard and A.F. Reserve don't fly just one weekend a month or two weeks during the summer either. It's something to consider.

 

[WayBack]

Has anyone considered military flying? If your not the full time military type, perhaps fly for the Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve? I used to be in the National Guard and spoke to pilots from the Air Guard and they enjoyed their flying. Pilots in the Air Guard and A.F. Reserve don't fly just one weekend a month or two weeks during the summer either. It's something to consider.

That does fit most peoples "Fast-Track" to the airlines. If PFT128 could pay to fly in the Military, he would do it in a ...........wait, you're not allowed to eat french fries in the cockpit of a military aircraft, disregard.

 

[pipejockey]

You can't rate them because it varies for individuals. Some people want closest base, some people want the one that gets them PIC fastest, some people are fixed on only one like Skywest. Generally the idea is if you don't want to spend too much time at a regional you go with the bottom feeders or prop operators like Colgan because they have the fastest movement different bases. If you want a stable place where you can build a career you go to AE or Skywest etc.

Well we have to better define the terms "stable place" and "build a career".
If one were to consider having to rot in the left seat of an RJ for 10 years, than yes, Eagle is as stable as they come. Expect to take home $500 a week for 10 long years. Are ya'll ready for that? As far as building a career, well knowing it will be 10 years before you get into the left seat, and about 13 years before you have the PIC time required to POSSIBLY get one of the few major airline jobs that may or may not become available, then yes, you'll be building a career at Eagle because you won't be moving on anywhere else. Unless you want to go to another regional.

And a new hire needs to consider how old they are when they get hired. If you are under 25, you may have a 50/50 chance of making it to a major airline. If you are older, your chances of merely paying your dues at a regional in preparation for a job at a major go down with each year older than 25 you may be. After all, if you are hired at 27 you'll be 40 years old before even having an outside shot at a major. Do people really want to become a new hire again at 40+, knowing no major airline will likely have upgrade times less than 10 years anymore? Even SWA has nearly a 10 year upgrade. And spare me all the talk about how things are going to miraculously change when mandatory retirements start again. Check and see what percentage of pilots actually make it to 65. Most are already gone by then. Mandatory retirement is not going to be this professions xanadu like many believe.

And with management clamoring ever more vigorously to place yet more and more, and larger and larger aircraft on regional property, you see your chances of making it to a major airline even more remote. What is mind boggling to me is to hear these regional guys wanting their regional airline to grow so they can see some movement, but while they may see movement at their regional, it is at the expense of movement at the place where everyone dreamed of going when starting this career...a MAJOR airline!! And it also doesn't help that current mainline pilots still refuse to do whats necessary to get these large RJ's on mainline property. They continue to give up scope, they continue to turn their nose up at any flying that is done in anything other than a Boeing or Airbus. What do you expect from them really, they have theirs, to hell with everybody else. Then they have the audacity to complain that all of their flying is going away.

If a new hire into this profession is counting on expansion, forget it! Our current ATC system is an embarrassment that flat out can't move current traffic on time. As the economy improves, we will once again have the oil price volatility again. It was 2 years ago, and oil was over 100 a barrel prompting the industry to cut capacity stating that the current capacity couldn't be sustained at oil over 100 a barrel. And it was that dumb luck, not managements mental acumen that has helped the industry limp by since 2008. Oil already is nearly 80 a barrel. It will be well over 100 during summer and sometime next year we will see 150 a barrel again. Management claims that fares need to be at their current dirt cheap levels just to fill up our current reduced capacity which is about 15% less than early 2008. What's going to happen when oil is 150 again. Are you new guys going to be willing to accept even lower wages than are currently paid?

BTW, not being sarcastic, just laying it on the line as bluntly as possible. I wish I had this kind of info when I got into this free-fall of a profession, although when I got into this in the 90's, the environment was much rosier, or at the very least, not as dark. These new guys today have no excuse not to know what they are jumping into these days. I don't feel a bit sorry for anyone getting into this profession after 2004 or so, when we all knew things would never be allowed to get back to even what we had in the late 90's.

 

[atpcliff]

Hi!

Horizon is the best. It used to be Horizon and AWAC were neck and neck, but AWAC has drastically changed. Horizon has changed, but not like AWAC.

It may be irrelevant, as Horizon guys may end up at DAL anyway.

cliff
NBO

 

[DGdaPilot]

Eagel will soon have a provision giving preferential interviews to any ALPA pilot.

 

[hou757]

Eagel will soon have a provision giving preferential interviews to any ALPA pilot.

When does this happen. Got a few friends this might help..

 

[DGdaPilot]

I think the LOA will be voted on by the Eagle ALPA MEC within a week.

 

[DGdaPilot]

Just got this in my email:

Recently the MEC reached a tentative agreement with management that will obligate Eagle management to grant preferential interviews to ALPA pilots. The MEC will be voting on this draft letter of agreement on Thursday, May 13th. The draft letter of agreement is posted under the draft letters of agreement tab in the contracts section of the ALPA-Eagle website. Please provide your local representatives with any input you have.

 

[pipejockey]

I don't understand how this is news. First of all, the vast majority of regional new-hires have never worked for an airline of any sort, let alone an ALPA carrier. Secondly, the company will ultimately hire anybody they want regardless of union affiliation. Thirdly, the extreme few of those who are furloughed, or who have seen their airline mismanaged into oblivion and who are now out of work, are not going to start at THE most senior regional airline in the world with 10 year upgrades that will continue for as long as that airline exists.

Eagle is a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma! The problem with that company is that it takes so long to upgrade and to get the PIC time needed to move on to a major, that by the time many of those guys get their 2000 PIC which will be the bare minimum to get the few major positions that occasionally present themselves, many will be in their 40's and much less likely to start over on the bottom of another seniority list. Where they will be FO's once again, back on reserve, working weekends, holidays, and contractual min. days off! Then after about 10 years if you are lucky, you can upgrade at about 50+ years old and be back on reserve, working weekends and holidays all over again with min days off on the smallest equipment on property. Does anyone really want to be doing that again in their old age? It is this reason, that the perpetual 10 year upgrade will exist at Eagle for the rest of time. It is a black hole of airline pilots....once you're sucked in, you can't escape.

Consider that they have over 500 guys with AA seniority numbers, who sooner or later will be handed a job at AA on a silver platter, and I have heard that most of them are all balking at the thought of going to AA. Most are staying at Eagle. And for those few furloughed regional guys who may be thinking that they will just use eagle to start building flight time again, do you really think that they won't require you to resign your seniority where you are furloughed from?

I'm just trying to give the newbies today the straight facts that were not anywhere to be found pre 9-11 when I got involved in this career that is devoid from any reasonable future. Obviously, my first recommendation for anyone getting involved in this industry is to run....run far away from it! But if you feel you just have to limit your future success by way of getting involved in this horribly mismanaged industry, then certainly do not even consider going to Eagle. Anyone 30 or older will be closing the door on any chance to progress to a major airline if they go to Eagle.