For SWA Poolies

[Bigoober]

Guys,

As a poolie. Thanks for the insight. Yes, the good stuff is always easier to take in, but I know to always temper it just a little.

spciii, the M&A is what rattles me most. It is what it is, but boy do I want to get my foot in the door before any of that happens. Being an employee is much different than being a person who will be an employee!

chase, nothing worse than feeling like a temp employee. It leaves a bitter taste that is hard to get rid of (although a few beers seem to help!). I hope that you guys have more than you can handle before we get on property. I want to be there because they need a pilot for a career, not to get them through the summer!

I have never heard a SWA pilot say it isn't worth it! That's good news and something I haven't heard from another company.

Hope to see you all soon. Thanks for the update.

 

[4 Fan Trashcan]

Chase, et al. Thanks for all the info. Keep it coming, good, bad or otherwise!

 

[FlyinGuy]

When you are waiting, nothing seems to move fast enough. I do believe things could pick up nicely by the end of the year. My best guess would be 2 classes sometime in the 4th quarter with several kicking off 2011. Hang in there and keep swimming.

 

[RJones]

Warren Buffet mentioned LUV as a takeover candidate

What makes you think that is a good thing?

 

[Daddy]

I disagree with the idea of classes in the fall...there will be seasonal cutbacks in September and that will go through spring break of 2011...I think we feel like we are slightly undermanned right now due to the low line/trip density, but we have a ton of guys going through RNP training...I dont see the training center handling newhire training until Jan 2011 at the earliest after all this RNP transition. Chuck Magill said about as much at the training center. Things are better here and I think a couple new cities may very well happen, but I would plan on being in the pool until January...sorry, but that is just my opinion.

 

[scoreboardII]

To be realistic about hiring, SWA lines have to return to 07 levels of around 90 plus hours a month. We need to grow ten percent to hit that mark before SWA "breaks even" with current manning levels. The JA events are always going to happen, you still need to cover the short notice online sick or line improvement sick call, no matter the manning level.

My guess is unless a major "purchase" without bodies is made, those in the pool have another year before interviews return. Longer if any acquisition/merger is announced that come with bodies.

Keep the faith, stay current.

 

[clueless]

Overstaffed? I was JAed last month and my phone rang 3 or 4 times today for JA trips....

 

[texman]

I am on reserve, the company has used me every time during my reserve block. My domicile chief told me that the fall reductions are the standard of 2% not like the 7% we felt when the economy fell. I asked him about the f word he said it was never mentioned during that period or now. So with that being said it was a sigh of relief. The word on the street is hiring by the end of the year. So I am guessing a jan class. I do hope that we get are line totals up for the people that do hold a line can return to the 90 to 100 plus trip total. But no one has taking a pay cut in general with the totals being down, we did get a pay raise. To actually see it the totals do need to go up.

Being on reserve isn't that bad, but don't except to give away your reserve trips away easily all the senior fo's know that they will fly. I fly about 60 block hours a month, but get paid for 90 or 100 if I go over the guarantee. The past two years I have been rerouted about 10 times. I have been switch from a PM shift to a AM shift about half a dozen times. The schedulers have released me early from my PM shift on my last day so I could get home about 98% of the time if they have no more flying. All the captains are great, yes being on reserve you will fly with the 1% that no ones likes to fly with.

For you poolies hang in there it is wroth it. The only thing that is hard is commuting if you haven't done it. I told my self if this is the only thing that is hard then life isn't that bad. Great company and I think our generation of pilots at SWA will see international. Which will give the company a breath of fresh air.

 

[mt2]

Thanks for the info, pro and con. Any info we can get here poolside is greatly appreciated.

 

[scoreboardII]

when they are flying a reserve 110 a month, then SWA will hire.