LCC or NJA?

[hydrarkt]

Um .. hmm.. let me help you!!

A few months ago I flew with a former USAir Captain. He had been there for 18 years and was in his early 40s (he got on young). After the merger with AWA and the list merger fiasco, he bailed on USAir and came to NJA.

He had been a Captain on a Bus and then got bumped to FO on something smaller (can't remember what). He told me that he figured another 10 years to get back to the left seat.

He had no regrets about bailing on them and was happy here.

 

[skyaddict]

I'll echo what all the other airline to frac posters have said time and again. Though there are certainly some little (maybe big to some) negatives vs the airlines, such as the cleaning/stocking, no bidding over start times (a tendency towards early starts), and so forth, but on balance I MUCH prefer the flying variety, lifestyle, and dealing with the pax over the airlines. Of course it's not for everyone. As for not flying the heavy iron, I could give a hoot.

They say the price of oil "should" be $50 a barrel or so were it not for risk priced into it, which has raised the risk-factored price to around $80 (and yes, this in turn is now bumped even higher to $120, but that added amount is mostly a temporary commodity bubble driven by flawed U.S. easy-money/cheap dollar monetary policy). Well, the 121 carriers (mostly) are MUCH riskier now than fracs, so unless you see a huge premium for the incredible risk now faced there, it is way underpaid. I wouldn't even trade my job for that kind of pay factor, as I'm fed up with waking up every morning with a mental ulcer regarding some foolish merger or base change policy or something. Not saying any company that uses airplanes is immune to bad surprises, but stability is a relative term.

 

[CA1900]

A few months ago I flew with a former USAir Captain. He had been there for 18 years ... he figured another 10 years to get back to the left seat...

Holy crap! He'd be a 28-year FO before upgrade? I'm sure the Age 65 change didn't help him either...

 

[imacdog]

The original post can't be a real question, can it?

 

[amaineiac]

Amen to that. I've got a friend that is just dead set against flying anything smaller than an Airbus...and that's fine and all but I think that can be a little greedy when you factor a wife and kids into the mix. But that's just my opinion...

Long live the smoking monkey!

I'm told a few guys left NJA last year to goto Skybus because they wanted to fly something bigger.

I wonder how much yeager you have to drink to kill that kind of pain.

 

[Jafo73]

I wonder how much yeager you have to drink to kill that kind of pain.

Do you mean jager (as in jagermeister)? I don't think Chuck (Yeager) would like you trying to drink him...
:beer:

 

[AirBear8]

I had 13.5 years at US Airways and when they recalled me at a time when I had just 2 years at NJA I didn't hesitate to turn them down. And this was before the arbitrators seniority screw job that would have (had I not retired from Airways upon recall) put my 1989 hire date junior to a 2005 hire at AWA.

Now I'm a 3 year Captain at NJA and I'll make more here in 2008 than I would as a B737/A320 US Airways Captain plus have a much more secure job and much better quality of life. (Even on the 18 day schedule at NJA).

And I agree with the other posters that the airline consolidation in progress combined with age 65 retirement will most likely lead to furloughs again.

AirBear

 

[amaineiac]

Do you mean jager (as in jagermeister)? I don't think Chuck (Yeager) would like you trying to drink him...
:beer:

Ya got me there. It didn't look right, so I googled "yeager drink" and there were some recipes for "yeager bombs" so I figured it was spelled correctly.

After seeing it spelled correctly in your post, it was instantly obvious I botched the spelling. Thanks for the correction.

 

[flyguppy]

NJA application submitted

I've flown everything from 737's to 777's. 13 years at UAL, currently a guppy left seater.

My paperwork went in to NJA Monday. If I'm fortunate enough to get hired, looking forward to having fun at work again, taking pride in my job, and being treated with some modicum of respect by managment.

I loathe what the jerkoff that runs this place has done to the culture at United since he has been here.

"Want to fly the big iron".....not that big of deal since I've done it. I can attest that the Triple flys like a 172........OK, maybe a Mooney.

 

[flexpilot]

Major Airline Thread

Shouldn't be a hard choice, but just wanted to hear input if one had to choose recall to group 2 at U (737/A320) or Netjets. Thanks in advance for the opinions.

It would be interesting to see how this thread plays out on the MAJOR Airlines section.

 

[johnsonrod]

Netjets is a far, far better better than USAirways. No comparison. If you don't get on with Netjets, I'd also consider Flexjet and Citationshares. Netjets is still the best fractional option in my opinion with 100 domiciles and solid job security. The starting salary and full healthcare coverage ain't bad either...

 

[clueless]

I had 13.5 years at US Airways and when they recalled me at a time when I had just 2 years at NJA I didn't hesitate to turn them down. And this was before the arbitrators seniority screw job that would have (had I not retired from Airways upon recall) put my 1989 hire date junior to a 2005 hire at AWA.

I don't understand why the US Air guys think they got screwed by a relative seniority integration when they were BOUGHT by AWA.

US Air had both feet swinging over the edge of the grave for years, and were probably only a few days away from shutting down completely on several occasions during the few years prior to them being bought by AWA. Had that happened, all of your jobs would have vaporized and you'd all be the bottom guy on some list somewhere.

How can the most junior guy at the acquired company (whether he had 15 days of seniority or 15 years at his old company) expect or think he deserves to be anything other than the most junior guy at the new company?

The fact that the most junior guy at US Air had 13+ years of seniority is just another testament to how crappily that place was run for a decade or more.

 

[av8trinabarrel]

I don't understand why the US Air guys think they got screwed by a relative seniority integration when they were BOUGHT by AWA.

US Air had both feet swinging over the edge of the grave for years, and were probably only a few days away from shutting down completely on several occasions during the few years prior to them being bought by AWA. Had that happened, all of your jobs would have vaporized and you'd all be the bottom guy on some list somewhere.

How can the most junior guy at the acquired company (whether he had 15 days of seniority or 15 years at his old company) expect or think he deserves to be anything other than the most junior guy at the new company?

The fact that the most junior guy at US Air had 13+ years of seniority is just another testament to how crappily that place was run for a decade or more.

I think they call it battered wife syndrome..My dad is retired from airways and he is even floored by the audacity of the easties. Everything Airways has ever touched in the last 40 years has turned to crap!

It's a no win situation for anyone involved..but to think you should get date of hire after being pulled out of the porcelain god by another airline would be amusing if it were not so sad. I have many friends on both sides and wish them the best!

 

[FLYLOW22]

I don't understand why the US Air guys think they got screwed by a relative seniority integration when they were BOUGHT by AWA.

Oh, here we go.

Lemme put it in perspective for you. We at the frax mostly came from 121. We think that Part 121 pretty much sucks equally, whatever flavor we are discussing. We don't really care who pissed on who and who's daddy is better.

Nicolou? Who cares. Not here.

We have no dog in any of your fights. Sorry.

Oh, and P.S. ... the comment about "both feet swinging over the grave"... None of the airlines were built for a model of $110 per barrel oil. NO airline is immune. How many have failed already? 5, 6?

It's pretty scary actually.

 

[Voice Of Reason]

from another thread, same reply

Repost applicable to this thread as well:

You DARED turned down the sacred NJA offer?
You must be crazy...
Don't you know NJA is today's best thing since UAL?
They are paid the best, get to kiss the best a$$es, get to eat the best crew meals...
Don't you know 100 year old Warren Buffett owns NJA and he's going to live forever, and anyone who follows will be specially programmed to do exactly as he has done (just erase the last 20 years of pilot pay from your mind)?
Don't you know the best of the best wealthy they drool over will never EVER cut back on private flying, no matter how high oil is or how many of their companies tank in this increasingly poor economy?
Don't you know anyone who turns them down must be an idiot and anyone who thinks differently about their company "must have been turned down" there?:smash:
There. I must have have saved 17 pages or so of clutter from this thread.
Congrats and good luck to you. Take the adventures while you can, so you don't end up like 80 percent of the NJA guys on here who have to try and justify THEIR inner voices by expressing the above 24/7 on a message board, rather than getting out and enjoying the life they claim so many should aspire to.
Carry on.