FedEx First Year

[purple1day]

Just wondering what the first year at FedEx is like. Training, locations of training, schedules, commuting, ect. Also, any advice from the guys who have been there and done that is appreciated.

 

[SWA/FO]

ask the big beer belly dude.... he knows all.

 

[satpak77]

ask the big beer belly dude.... he knows all.

I thought he was a UPS guy

 

[capt_zman]

Training location depends on what a/c you get (72 or 10). All of the 10 is in MEM and most of the 72 is in MEM, with some offsite in Miami and Orlando (don't know the status of Minneapolis and Dallas). As for what airplane you get all depends on the last 4 digits of you social in your newhire class, highest going most senior. There have been some classes with 72 FO seats available, but mostly all 72 and 10 SO positions.

Length of training is ~2.5 months, which is long (at least for me). As for schedules, there is a big difference in airplanes. The 72 is moving quickly due to the number of newhires coming on board. I have held a line since IOE and am sitting around 50% now. The 10 is a completely different scenario, with all of my newhire class still on reserve with no end in sight. Reason being is that the 10 is going away (being converted to md-10's) and the age 60 retirees seem to flock to the back seat of the 10, which makes movement in that seat non-existent. There is an upside to this of course, as the 10 schedules are much better than the 72 schedules (single leg vs. multi-leg, etc). Also, if you live in MEM, life is good on reserve in the 10 (just ask HoursHore).

The schedules vary greatly, there are many, many combinations you can choose from (night, day, DH's, weekends, single day to multi-day trips, am and pm out and backs, etc). It all depends on what you want to do.

Commuting is different strokes for different folks. It all depends on where you live. Being a northeast guy, I have a bunch of options regarding fedex planes. If you live in high density military places (JAX, COS), it is definitely more competitive. As for offlining, the CASS system has been great.

As I stated before, movement is happening right now. The last bid, pretty much anyone who wanted a wide body slot got one, either in MEM or ANC. 72 FO slots were also available to anyone who wanted them. I flew with the bottom of the list 72 capt the other night, he has been here a little under 4 years.

 

[reddog]

First Year At Fedex

Your question is difficult to answer with less than several long paragraphs. Your experience will greatly depend on where you live (i.e. how hard the commute is) and what your expectations are regarding Fedex. I commute from Spokane, which is a long ways away but, a relatively easy commute in that it is a single hop on the Bus. I just look at it as "nap time" to and from work. Schedules during the first year will vary greatly depending on what seat you end up in. Suffice it to say, everyone these days will do some time in Purgatory on reserve. 727/SO's will get relief a bit earlier. Upgrade opportunities are coming fast with the hiring that is going on right now. People are able to hold MD-11/FO in less than 1 year from hire date. Bottom line for me is that I think Fedex (or UPS I guess) are the best thing going right now and for the foreseeable future. You just have to be willing to take the bad with the good. Luckily, there is significantly more good than bad.

If you have any specific questions, PM me and I will try and answer them.

Adios

 

[purple1day]

Thanks for all the info, especially on the seniority within class info. I plan to commute from the northeast as well one day, and it sounds like if I get the choice the 72 is the way to go for a guy not planning on living in MEM. I am very excited about my first day. Thanks again.

 

[satpak77]

Thanks for all the info, especially on the seniority within class info. I plan to commute from the northeast as well one day, and it sounds like if I get the choice the 72 is the way to go for a guy not planning on living in MEM. I am very excited about my first day. Thanks again.

when IS your first day? did you already interview? care to post your flight times and background

 

[sstearns2]

How long is the wait to get anything in LAX?

Thanks,

Scott

 

[stonewall]

How long is the wait to get anything in LAX?

Thanks,

Scott

I'm not sure about the last bid, but I looked it over about six months ago. MD-11 F/O went more junior in LAX than MEM, but there aren't that many of them. The -11 Capts at LAX are very, very senior. Higher on avg than both MEM and ANC.

 

[airmasn]

anyone know when the meet and greets will begin again? my sponsor and I are still waiting

 

[Ninerfan]

Fedex First Year Experience

Hired in January this year. Went to back of 727 till June, then upgraded right seat of 727. Bid and got MD11 in MEM in the Sept bid with an early next year training date. By next fall I should have about 50 folks junior to me in the MD11.....things are moving fast. My 727FE training was in MEM and my 727FO training was in MSP which is now closed due to sim being unreliable. Company is still using MIA and MCO for 727 upgrades. I am a commuter. I had a hard line my third month as an FE and have a secondary line in my third month as an FO.

Couple additional items for you that I didn't know before I got here:

1. Very commuter friendly. You can reserve Fedex jumpseats and if you are coming from where you live, you can use "staging" status which gives you some contract protections if your commute has disruptions. Also, many of the trips have airline tickets on the front and back end. The value of the tickets establishes a monthly travel bank which you can use to commute or "deviate" (fly to/from your trip from home rather than from MEM). I have consistently used Fedex jumpseats on the end of trips to allow me to buy tickets for my commute.

2. Training. Pretty long (2.5 months for FE and 2 months for FO, I hear MD11 is solid 90 days))....make sure the family is ready for saparation time. You'll have a couple of contract mandated breaks and can jumpseat home over the weekend depending on your schedule. Study and show up prepared and the instructors will be there for you. I was very well prepared for my checkrides.

3. Open time. The 727FO seat is a bit over manned. I have been able to manipulate my schedule quite abit and make it more commuter friendly by dropping reserve days and trip trading for open time trips. All depends on manning, if there is a shortage in your seat then the computer may not allow many trades/drops.

Good Luck, welcome.

PS-I checked the last bid results, looks like LAX MD11 FO went senior (about 2000 #'s above MEM and ANC) ANC was a little more junior than MEM.

 

[FedExFlyer]

anyone know when the meet and greets will begin again? my sponsor and I are still waiting

Last I heard a couple of weeks ago in the training dept is that meet-n-greets may not start again until next summer. They still have a ton of guys in the pile to call. Good luck my friend!!!

 

[skykid]

anyone know when the meet and greets will begin again? my sponsor and I are still waiting

I heard the first of the year - maybe your sponsor can call and try to set up an appointment and find out for sure.

 

[purple1day]

Thanks again for all the great info.

 

[altscap]

I talked with a 'bus FO who jumped on my flight today who said the meet and greets are being phased out due to a greater need for crews to fill new planes. Can anyone confirm this? If this is false, I'm in the market for a sponsor