Is flying for Regionals worth it?

[mudkow60]

Just a quick question. A couple of military folks (myself included) are thinking about throwing in the towel and trying our hand in the civil sector- specifically trying to get a slot flying for the regionals. My question is- is it worth it? The military provides job security, descent pay, and some of the best flight experiences that I could imagine. But- there are also lots of cons to staying attached to Uncle Sam.

To sum up- is it worth it, having to start from ground 0, being low man on the totem poll? Also, (probably the biggest factor for me) -are the regionals even hiring? And do they hire helo pilots (I have a multi and will get my ATP if I choose to go this route).

Thanks!

 

[Grumpy]

If you can afford to live on 18-23,000 for the next 4 years. If you can get a job in the current market, with thousands of furlowed pilots looking for work. And if you want to throw away whatever amount of time you have built toward retirement.

Then go for it. My advice would be to stay in until retirement. Then get out and try for a job.

 

[46Driver]

Take the bonus and stay for retirement - the airlines are not worth it now. As an alternative, go Customs. If I had to do it over again, I would probably choose the latter.

 

[skiddriver]

Comair is hiring. Eagle is reported to be hiring. NWA Airlink is supposed to be hiring. You probably can get hired by a regional, if you go out and buy some multi time.

You are not competitive (with the aircraft flown listed in your profile) at Comair.

At Comair, as a 2nd year F/O, you'll make a min of $32-35K, up to $35-38K (depending on equipment and if you can hold a line). The bottom numbers I listed are min on reserve, for the 50 and 70. The top are the minimum numbers for a line holder. I'll pull in a little over $40k this year as a 2nd year 70 F/O line holder with Comair, if I fly a few more hours a month over min line guarantee.

I make it work by taking in more than my Comair pay from my mil retirement, plus my wife's teaching salary. The time off and the other benefits make it worthwhile for me and my family.

The other folks I know from the Marine Corps who are working at Comair are augmenting their airline pay by serving in the reserves.

My life (line holder, no reserve commitment) is manageable, and I get a reasonable amount of time at home. Combining regional pilot life (10-15 days off a month) with the expected amount of reserve participation (4-6 days a month), means that you are spending a lot of time away from home, even with military leave.

So it depends. If you are just looking to get off active duty, you can find a better job with better pay in a non-flying job. If you want to fly, you can stay in the reserves and feed that desire too.

If you want to move on to the majors, or can hang at the regionals until you make decent money ($80-100K for a career Comair Captain) then the regionals may be for you.

But 14-20 days away from home a month in 2-5 day chunks gets old after a while, so be sure that's what you want before you jump. Spending month after month on reserve as a slave to the beeper isn't any fun.

 

[TransMach]

Gettin Out!

A friend of mine was/is in a similar situation. Navy helicopter community then fixed wing S3 carrier based. Was in an instructor program with the Air Force for a couple of tours. Got out as a Lieutenant (O-3) and the best he could do was Learjet charter in Miami, and had to purchase his own Learjet type at that. He just purchased a CL-65 rating, but isn't finding any work. Fact is, he just sent me a note and told me the Navy offered him a Lieutenant Commander (O-4) slot in the reserves so he took it.

This fellow is 35 years old, single and lives in San Diego. I think his total time is about 4,500 including 2,000 rotor.

Tough choice ... knowing what I know about the industry today, I think I'd stay in unless the service has just become unpalitable.

G'luck.

TransMach