Leaving Comair - 1 Year Later

[BenderGonzales]

Can't believe it's already been a year since I left Comair and, frankly, it looks like it was the right decision.

I made the decision to leave after Fred Buttrell met with the pilots in the trailer and talked about how we would have to be competitive with Chautauqua in order to grow. I believe at the time they were pushing a pay freeze.

I remember thinking, "this place has no future". Here I was, 2 years after being furloughed from a major, wondering if the same would happen at Comair. We were absorbing lost Delta flying (which was emotionally painful as I had a lot of furloughed Delta friends) and now, we had to compete with other regionals simply to maintain the status quo. Chautauqua had started parking at the "C" gates. The rumor de'jour was that we would get the Dornier Jets .... IF we played ball.

Enough was enough.

So -- who else has left Comair over the last year? And do you feel as though you made the right decision? Any move in aviation is a gamble these days. The question for me was, "Do I really want to gamble on a company that is forced to compete to fly for whatever scraps Delta wants to toss our way?" That didn't sound like a formula for long-term job security to me.

Who else? and Why?

 

[OCP]

What did you leave to do?

 

[On Your Six]

Can't believe it's already been a year since I left Comair and, frankly, it looks like it was the right decision.

I made the decision to leave after Fred Buttrell met with the pilots in the trailer and talked about how we would have to be competitive with Chautauqua in order to grow. I believe at the time they were pushing a pay freeze.

I remember thinking, "this place has no future". Here I was, 2 years after being furloughed from a major, wondering if the same would happen at Comair. We were absorbing lost Delta flying (which was emotionally painful as I had a lot of furloughed Delta friends) and now, we had to compete with other regionals simply to maintain the status quo. Chautauqua had started parking at the "C" gates. The rumor de'jour was that we would get the Dornier Jets .... IF we played ball.

Enough was enough.

So -- who else has left Comair over the last year? And do you feel as though you made the right decision? Any move in aviation is a gamble these days. The question for me was, "Do I really want to gamble on a company that is forced to compete to fly for whatever scraps Delta wants to toss our way?" That didn't sound like a formula for long-term job security to me.

Who else? and Why?

Did you find a better position elsewhere? Is your current situation more stable (not sure if that's possible in this business unless you fly for SWA or Fedex/UPS)?

 

[semperfido]

don't look back

 

[cforst513]

so, 1 year later, what and how are you doing now?

 

[av8er2]

Good for you, I will be doing the same in the future. There is no future at any of the regionals.

 

[C425Driver]

I left Comair in June to work outside of aviation. Unfortunately, that didn't work out as well as I expected so I'm back to flying again. I left because I felt the airline industry is no longer worth being involved with. I spent 10 years working for airlines (5 as a dispatcher and 5 as a pilot) and I've only seen it get worse over the years. Those coveted jobs at the majors aren't so coveted any more. When I walked out through the turnstyles in CVG for the last time I felt a huge relief and I never looked back on my decision. I had some great times at Comair and worked with some great people but I needed to move on. I have no regrets about working there, and I have no regrets about leaving.

Good luck to you!

C425Driver

 

[BenderGonzales]

Part 91 corporate flight department.

Best kept secret in aviation. I love it. Although there is no such thing as "job security" in aviation, I think that using an airplane as a tool to conduct business is more secure than the airline business model.

Management knows that these airplanes are a cost center and generate no revenue. They use them specifically for business -- essentially to "buy time".

Also keeps the CEO from having to be frisked by TSA.

I too enjoyed my time at Comair. Being furloughed from the majors and going back to be a regional F/O was tough (both from an EGO standpoint and a financial standpoint) but most of the Comair folks made me feel welcome.

I hope that, ultimately, I was wrong -- and that they survive and prosper

 

[F16fixer]

Bender,
Did you find jesus? This has to be the most honest non- bashing post you've made yet. I'm impressed (not that you care) Keep up the positive posts. Some of us actually enjoy reading success stories.

 

[Brett Hull]

I didn't realize he was lost.

 

[BenderGonzales]

F16Fixer,

One of the problems with the internet is you can't see someone's expression when they're typing.

Some of the posts that you perceive as bashing aren't intended as such. Obviously I have a strong opinion about things. -- Most of us do.

Sorry you felt that i'm a basher or a troll. No, I didn't find Jesus.

Just don't have anything to be opinionated about today.

 

[jacko123]

I left Eagle after 5 years for another 121 flying job. Best decision I have ever made!

 

[PositiveRate]

You want a cookie Bender? A lot of us have left, but we don't need threads announcing said anniversaries.

Comair is stuck in some terrible times...the "it was a good decision to leave" mantra doesn't add anything but insult to their plight.

 

[jumppilot]

You want a cookie Bender? A lot of us have left, but we don't need threads announcing said anniversaries.

Comair is stuck in some terrible times...the "it was a good decision to leave" mantra doesn't add anything but insult to their plight.

I disagree. I find it interesting to see what people are doing, why they left, what they are experiencing.

A thread on flightinfo doesn't insult anyone, as it is crystal clear what is going on in the airline business.

 

[h25b]

You want a cookie Bender? A lot of us have left, but we don't need threads announcing said anniversaries.

Comair is stuck in some terrible times...the "it was a good decision to leave" mantra doesn't add anything but insult to their plight.

Lighten up Francis....

How about just saying, "Nice move for actually seeing the writing on the wall..."

That's the whole key to this business, getting them BEFORE they get you. Sometimes you're able to see it coming, sometimes not. I say good job for seeing it coming... I had a guy exactly like you tell me that I was crazy for leaving the airline business to go corporate back in 1999. Ironically that was about the same time we were getting our first jets at Chautauqua, and I still say that was about the time period when everything started going downhill. You know, when the outsourcing of major airline jobs began. If I were still there I'd be a EMB-170 Capt. flying 10 times the number of people making less money than I do now...

As for "their plight," I can only hope that this revelation that 50 seaters don't make any money will lead to major airline pilots getting some of their flying back. When I started connecting from one RJ to another, I knew we were all screwed.

 

[PositiveRate]

my name isn't francis...(sarcasm)

I'm one of the ones who left...not sure if you caught that...I got very lucky...it had nothing to do with having great foresight, which is how I read the first post. It seems bold and a bit like kicking them when they're down to post about how leaving was a good move and celebrating the anniversary of the decision.

Sue me for having an opinion and being a Debbie Downer. I will admit this, though. Comair was a big break for me...it was a step back from the majors for him. That could account for a large difference in nostalgia for our former employer.

 

[skiddriver]

Left in Aug '04 for an aviation management job. Pay is great as are benefits (oil bidness). Make more than Flightinfo's most famous Comair supporter Gen. Lee, with one year on the job. No flying, just running the show.

Sometimes folks ask me if I ever wanted to fly for a living again. I say, "sure, if they let me blow stuff up again".

But the bottom line is that I didn't leave because I thought Comair was messed up, I left because I didn't enjoy the job (it was boring compared to military flying) and because I applied for and got hired at a job I found interesting and where the pay met my personal requirements. I enjoy the work, and I don't regret the move in the least.

Good luck to the folks back at Comair (and Delta).

 

[Al Coholic]

When I walked out through the turnstyles in CVG for the last time I felt a huge relief and I never looked back on my decision.

I felt the same way... I really enjoyed my time at Comair but I walked out of the trailers for the last time with a big smile on my face.

 

[citdrver]

I made the walk through of the mighty turnstyle in October of '04 to go back into corporate. I was offered a job out of the blue, flying less, making three times my FO pay, and no more commuting. I enjoyed the people at Comair and it was a good experience, but I hated being used and abused as a junior FO, but that is how the game is played when you have no senority. Now I would be close to if not getting the pink furlough slip if I were still there, so I most definately have no regrets for leaving or going there either. I do wish them all the luck, and even those Delta guys who are going to be bent over real soon by a bankruptcy judge.

 

[BenderGonzales]

I wonder if those of us who have left can offer assistance to any of those who will be getting furloughed?

My particular flight department is not hiring, but i'll certainly keep my ear to the ground and, if I hear anything, post that info here.