Flight Ops Q's

[CR7pilot]

Anybody interview with FLOPS recently?

I am tring to find out as much info as possible, however most of it is over a year old. Can any tell me about the company basics?

Also, what do y'all think about the Hawker 400XP/BE400A?

Thanks

CR7

 

[dime line]

yes please don't come here thinking this place is at all great. And if you come here please send in your card as soon as you get here!!!!

 

[guido411]

Well, the long and the short of it. . .

FLOPS is goind thru shrinking pains (which are far worse than growing pains). Pilots have been leaving in droves and apparently the number of AC is going to stay around the 200 mark. This means we're obviously short handed. So management decides they're gonna hire a whopping 20 pilots!! Wow. If you're hired you'll be working the new 21 day flex schedule out of ATL, enjoy. The currently have an ad for ATL pilots. Plan on working this schedule for YEARS. QOL takes a seemingly daily hit for the worse, the morale is in the dumps and a union push is on but it's AGONIZINGLY slow. So as dime said, if you come, send your card in ASAP!

The Beechjet is a fine airplane. The airplane was designed to fly 300 hours a year and we fly them 300% more than that. Some planes have their problems but many are solid. Can't fly anywhere with 7-8 pax on board. Can only top off with 1 (maybe 2). Good and bad, short legs is what you want in a small cockpit. Difficult to get the most out of akward baggage areas. Crappy lav design. If you get hired you better like it because you're gonna be in it for a while.

 

[On Your Six]

From what I have heard, I would avoid FLOPS and NJA for the time being - focus on CS and Flexjet (now hiring into the CL300 at 40/45) if you are a wannabe fractional diehard. NJA will be better after the strike but FLOPS appears to be getting worse and worse...

 

[leardawg]

I just left there after three years (originally planning to park my career there). Things have changed a lot during that time. I would look at it more as a time and experience-building job, like flying freight. If you are early in your career and are single, it might be worth consideration. Plan on flying 14/10 (for however many days in a row as they see fit to schedule you under the new flex schedule) as a goal, not a limitation. Plan on living near one of the maintenance bases, or travelling there on your own dime and time. If you are planning on a timely upgrade to PIC in order to support a family and hold a mortgage, RUN THE OTHER WAY!!! If you don't think you can handle starting a 14-hour duty day (maybe more per SOPs) at 2 a.m., getting barely 10 hours of rest, doing another 14-hour day, and repeating this cycle day after day, look elsewhere. There are questions now about the quality of hotels you will be required to get your rest in, as well as how you are going to obtain meals while on the road. If a union is voted in, it will likely alleviate many of these problems, but it hasn't happened yet. And there is the question of job security; the way owners are being dis-serviced has to make one wonder if the company can survive (many have supposedly vowed to not renew when the time comes, which in turn leads to poor word-of-mouth referal. Fractional owners and potential owners all travel in the same circles). Unless things turn around dramatically, you could be out of a job a year from now. I personally don't think the current leadership is up to it.

I would recommend looking at FlexJet and Citation Shares first, then NetJets, then Flight Options as a last resort, if you really need or want a fractional job that bad!

Good Luck!

 

[On Your Six]

Just curious - how many Legacies are you FLOPS guys operating? How many more do you have on order through the end of 2005? What sorts of routes are they tending to fly - transcon or short hops? How about Hawaii?

Thanks

 

[Dep676]

I think we have 8 now. Not sure about the rest of your questions. Sorry...

 

[Heavy Set]

I think we have 8 now. Not sure about the rest of your questions. Sorry...

I saw a FLOPS Legacy recently at LAS. Do they have flight attendants? Looks great on the ramp.

 

[Dep676]

I saw a FLOPS Legacy recently at LAS. Do they have flight attendants? Looks great on the ramp.

Yes they do and they are hiring some. You want a job?????????

 

[dsptchrnja]

I looked at a gorgeous Legacy the other day. Talked to one of the crew briefly, said they have about a 94% dispatch reliability. They flew PUB-PHOG with plenty of fuel left over. Main pax complaints is that they are noisy (inside), and cabin is narrow (but the noise comment came from from someone else and I think he was referring to the first Legacy model). But man, all the baggage space you could ask for. Pilot said he's getting paid the same for flying the Legacy as he did the X.

 

[Heavy Set]

Yes they do and they are hiring some. You want a job?????????

Well, the way the industry is going... I bet you could still earn more than a JetBlue E190 pilot.

 

[dime line]

I'd rather work for Lowes than fly the 190 for Jet Blue, for the pay. Too many pilots that "just want to fly a jet", will take that job.