Mesa?

[bugchaser]

OK, my situation is this: For whatever reason I have decided that I want to switch gears and be an airline pilot. I have quite a bit of PIC single and turbine time. The big problem is that I am light on the multi time. I am currently at just under 200 multi. While most of my flying is ag, I do stay active instructing and am current on instruments and in 400 series cessnas. Looking at the regionals currently hiring, it looks like Mesa is one of the few that I might have a chance with at my multi time. Are there others that I should apply with? I am in a position that I can stand the low pay for a few years but the one thing that I can't do is relocate. I know that it will be hard but is it possible to work for Mesa or another regional and live in the central Texas area. Maybe there is another avenue that I haven't thought of? Any comments or suggestions are welcome. Let's just not rehash the past sins of Mesa.

 

[wil]

I know ASA will hire at least 100 this year. The pool has been drained (or emptied as the case may be ) and I know we are looking for qualified candidates. I would urge you not to go to Mesa. I do have friends there and all are looking to punch out as soon as possible. Good luck- Wil

 

[Stinkbug]

ASA or COEX would be my choices if I was in your shoes. I'm not positive but I believe Skywest may have a Texas domicile. Eagle's hiring too but I think Dallas is a fairly senior base. Air Midwest (Mesa) has a domicile in Brownwood, TX. Good luck.

 

[WileE]

Don't count on TX.

It shouldn't be too hard to get Brownwood IF you get the 1900, but you don't have a choice about which aircraft you are going to get. Also if they do give you the 1900, Brownwood is a EAS airport (essential air service) and the future of that program as well as AirMidwest's contract is far from guaranteed.

If TX is where you need to be there must be other company's with a far larger footprint in that state. If you are going to be a commuter anyway, it really doesn't matter which company you are going to work for, they are all going to be pretty much the same as far as commuting goes. You might want to go with one that has a decent commuter policy, which Mesa does not.

 

[C150Heavy]

AMW

Air Mid West is gone at the end of 2006

 

[Dignan]

Skywest has a IAH Brasilia base that so far has gone very junior, and would probably be easy to get. There's also a very small Dallas jet reserve base, but I don't know where that stands as far as seniority. As far as hiring for the upcoming year, I don't know but someone on this board no doubt has their ear to the ground on that one. Hope that helps and good luck.

D

 

[embraerjetpilot]

Once again, wouldyou really sell your soul to the devil? Dont do it man, its not worth it.

 

[skydrvr]

OK, my situation is this: For whatever reason I have decided that I want to switch gears and be an airline pilot. I have quite a bit of PIC single and turbine time. The big problem is that I am light on the multi time. I am currently at just under 200 multi. While most of my flying is ag, I do stay active instructing and am current on instruments and in 400 series cessnas. Looking at the regionals currently hiring, it looks like Mesa is one of the few that I might have a chance with at my multi time. Are there others that I should apply with? I am in a position that I can stand the low pay for a few years but the one thing that I can't do is relocate. I know that it will be hard but is it possible to work for Mesa or another regional and live in the central Texas area. Maybe there is another avenue that I haven't thought of? Any comments or suggestions are welcome. Let's just not rehash the past sins of Mesa.

DO YOUR RESEARCH!!!! Thinking about Mesa?? Are you crazy?! Every person is responsible for their own actions. Be careful....you'll be sssooorrryyyyy......

So you're thinking about selling your soul?

 

[BoilerUP]

I'm not an airline pilot (yet), but.......

Apply to everybody who is hiring. CHQ, Eagle, Skywest, ASA, Comair, Mesa, XJET, and anybody else you meet minimums for. Once you start getting phone calls for interviews, then you can start thinking about where you want to go, and once you get job offers, then you can make your decision.

ASA may be hiring this year, but from an intern I know there right now they have literally hundreds of resumes and you aren't competitive without thousands of hours of multi time. Same goes for Comair, and the amount of hiring they are gonna do depends somewhat on the 45 jet RFP. These might be the hardest tickets in town to get right now.

CHQ is hiring a ton, too. Fly shiny new EMBs to points east of DEN. Toss an app in to them; I think their mins are 1200/300. They have been known to hire under minimums.

Eagle is hiring now, and I hear they are gonna need a bunch of pilots - because 50% declined furlough recall.

Pinnacle is another that is hiring. I hear their upgrade times are fairly low, and it looks like they might be poised to get a bunch new CRJs.

XJET has been discussed out the wazzo on this board.

Seems like everybody talks smack about Mesa on this board, but the fact of the matter is they are growing very fast and current upgrades are some of the fastest in the industry. I would be concerned what might happen if Airways goes Chapter 7. Either Mesa takes a huge hit....or JO buys the sloppy seconds and starts his own major. They also have the Midway certificate with narrowbodies on it, so that might be in the cards as well. At this point in time, nobody knows.

Mesa has pay and work rules that are below industry average, and that is widely known. That being said, they get paid (just a little) more than some of their competitors. You might have a quick upgrade, you might not. If Air Middy does close in 2006, my guess is it will transfer all those pilots to jets - and I seriously doubt closing down all 19 seat markets in three years.

Apply using the shotgun method, interview everywhere you get a call from, and only make a decision once you get a job offer. Who knows - you may only get called by Mesa...don't sell yourself short. Do what you feel is best for you, and don't worry about justifying anything to anybody on this board.

If you DO get hired by Mesa, help raise the bar when your contract comes back up so nobody has a reason to keep bitchin' about ya. GOOD LUCK!

 

[Lou3]

BoilerUp--great post!