major's hiring future

[brokeflyer]

I really feel bad for all you guys who work at an airline........

 

[GlenQ]

I really feel bad for all you guys who work at an airline........

good point

 

[McNugget]

Please be careful when using that term 'Alter Ego', that's a four letter word around here! AWAC is not an alter ego or wholly owned by US. PDT and Eagle are owned by their respective parent airlines, but they aren't alter ego either. Keep in mind that most all of the regionals growth has been approved by their respective mainlines pilots union groups. Do a Wikipedia search for Go-Jet Airlines for a true Alter-Ego.

Actually, AWAC owns a piece of US, don't they?

 

[800Dog]

There are several reasons why models that worked in the past do not apply any more.

(1) The Flight Engineer slot is gone. Ask around why FedEx does not plan on hiring for 18 to 24 months.
(2) More than half of major airlines' domestic flying is performed by alter ego carriers like PDT, AWAC or Eagle. At Delta, 49% of total system block hours are flown by non-Delta pilots. The Delta list went from 11,400 to around 6,700.
(3) Mainline pilots are getting outsourced, in house. Just look at NorthWest's replacement of the DC-9's at Compass.

Taken as a whole, the percentage of mainline jobs just does not exist any more. At least half the jobs are not coming back.

A job at a Major is still a good job worth aspiring to. But half the jobs are not at a major. Our profession has to focus on fixing this alter ego problem and raising the level of everyone who calls themselves "professional pilots."

The numbers really tell the story. I don't know if the upgrades come too late. I think the folks getting in right now will be OK, but the window of opportunity will start to close in 18 to 24 months then remain relatively stagnant due to age 65 pushing everything back a half a decade. In the event of mergers all bets are off.

Well said. 61% of my seniority list has enabled this to happen. What a shame. To the Express Airlines guy in LAX yesterday wearing the shades in the airport, you are a dork! Sometimes I am truly embarrased by our profession.

 

[CitationLover]

Actually, AWAC owns a piece of US, don't they?

they sold it and made a lot of money from it.