Pinnacle reject letter

[Rook]

hmmmm....As Nelly would say..."Its gettin' hot in here!" Just might be possible flamebait but who cares.

After a year or so online(especially if you commute)it might not seem so great. Rose colored glasses can only get you so far. You'll get used to terms like "jets for jobs" "Whipsawing" and (yawwwwn) ALPA. The plane is nice sure but it's not that great of a performer. Save your money you're going to need it to buy plenty of mac and cheese in MEM and while you're an F/O for a while. But to end this on a happy note, Congratulations. Study hard in groundschool and if you end up in DTW holla...

Rook

 

[efiscompmon]

Hey Mtnjam, listen up 'cause this one's for you: MOST OF US HAVE ALREADY BEEN THERE AND DONE THAT

Take your pity-party to someone with less experience--we all worked our way up working for dirtbags. Ask yourself how long you want to be someones b!tch because you are "paying your dues"--with your attitude I guess 747 captains shoud "be grateful" and fly for free. Grow up. Hungry young boys like you are why FOs get paid what they do--and can't support a family.

I am the captain of a brand new thirty-million dollar jet with state of the art avionics. I am a professional. When I sign my release I take responsibility for that ship, my crew, and fifty lives in the back. You want my job? You better understand my job first. Driving an airplane is a small part of it.

Don't care, I'll take it

You certainly will--straight up your @ss if you let management. Just don't expect me to hold your hand or go along for the ride because you are eager to fly the "big planes".

Favorite joke: What's the difference between a new-hire FO and a bucket of chicken? A bucket of chicken can feed a family of four.

May you never know what that's like.

 

[Rook]

Yeah what he said...

You'll come to realize that your quality of life will go way down in one way or the other. Originally, when I was freight doggin' out of Detroit I wanted to go to Eagle so I could be based out of DFW(close to home). Unfortunately(or fortunately)I was one of the very few that couldn't get an interview with Eagle even though I felt I was competitive. Of course if i was at eagle I wouldn't be even close upgrading on anything. So in the long run, now i'm a line holding captain making better money but I hardly see my folks as they're getting into their 'golden years' (cue sad violin music).

Remember to check your attitude at the door my friend. As a new-hire, those redneck friends of mine in the training department have a very good way of sniffing out the guys with the attitude problems and wouldn't mind pinking anyone. One more time, congratulations and study hard.

Rook
(actual ACARS to me when my 915pm highspeed was delayed until 1140pm..."SELCAL!!! from crew scheduling..."is there anyway you guys can do an on-time departure in the morning? It's only 'contractual' that you get 5 hours on the ground" )

 

[Mel Sharples]

All I do is hear Pilots complain and complain about the company they work for. Take my job, make 15k a year, work 12 to 14 hr. days 7 days a week 365 days a year just to make ends meet.

Dude... relax.

First of all, almost EVERY one of us has done what you had to do to get our jobs too. It is far from an exclusive club.

Secondly, wait until you fly at a regional for a year (let alone five) and see if you are still perfectly happy. I like Mesaba and I like my job... but now it is just a job. Once the "Cool! Turbine multi! Uniforms! Flight attendants!" wears off, you start to see this blue-collar job for what it is. I still like it, but it is far from the glory that I thought back in my CFI days. Wait until you get junior manned on a holiday. That is a lot of fun.

The problem is that too many CFI types say "I would do it for little or no money 'cause I love it!" Those people bring down the industry. I'm not picking on you personally. I was once one of those myself. We get so caught up in the dream that we lose sight of other important things.

Just because people complain doesn't mean they don't like something. Maybe we complain because we are trying to make things better. We don't want to keep getting kicked and taking it.

To be honest, I DO miss things about my CFI days. In some ways, it was the most fun flying I ever did. Obviously the pay will never cut it but hey... it was fun.

Bottom line: Good luck to you. Keep the positive attitude. Just don't b!tch at people who aren't happy, especially when they have been doing the job for a lot longer than you.

Regards,

Mel

 

[Oakum_Boy]

"you start to see this blue-collar job for what it is. I still like it, but it is far from the glory that I thought back in my CFI days. Wait until you get junior manned on a holiday. That is a lot of fun.
Mel"


This is certainly not a blue-collar job. You know the stresses you go through on a daily basis to keep your passengers and your certificate safe, all the dumbells you have to mitigate from killing you; all the rules, regs, systems, normal and abnormal stuff, checked every six months. Come on now, you certainly are not blue-collar but tragically the company has tried to turn you into one so they don't have to treat you appropriately. Think of yourself as an executive of your aircraft, and you will start to see exactly what these regionals have managed to force us into becoming. You will never look at your comapny more ashamedly, nor think more highly of your MEC for standing up for what is right. Good luck.

 

[Jet_Dreamer]

the airline life looks so cool from the other side of the fence. those shinning crj look so enticing. i thought all those things. i sure look back at my old 135 gig and CFIing.

 

[Rook]

Nice post Mel.

Rook

 

[Steveair]

Easy there fellas. You all are just lashing out at each other! Remember that flying is fun / those of you in it just to make money should try something else. Everyone knows what comes with the territory; poor management, not a lot of time off, horrible pay. It's been said before. Just remember the grass is always greener on the other side;


The guy flying the cub around the pattern looks up and see the cargo prop guy and wishes he was doing that... the guy in the turbo prop - held together by duct tape - looks up and wishes he was flying the RJ. The RJ guy, underpaid, wishes he was flying the 747.... the 747 guy wishes he was flying to concorde.... the concorde guy wishes he was flying the space shuttle and the space shuttle guy looks down and wishes he could be flying the cub around in the pattern.

Right now, for the gentleman who created the post, he's like me and working his butt off and flying planes that aren't too glorious and doing stalls and steep turns all day. It gets really old. I'll take a pay cut when I go to the regionals but I can't wait to fly some place and do it the right way rather than having to teach somebody else how to do it at criptic speed. Everything gets old after awhile but there's always something else to do.

Be HAPPY you're not sitting in some cubicle stairing at a computer screen for 8 hours a day. If you hate your job then do something about it. Remember why you started flying.

If you ever quit learning, you better quit flying.

 

[ohplease!]

time for someone to throw the bullsh!t flag!!!

you guy's are nuts!

I suppose its all a matter of perspective and ya'll must not have one.I've had real jobs: cleaning dishes, delivering drinks, driving trucks, A&P mech from fbo's to major airlines, Haulin' freight at night in nasty wx SE with no radar, blah, blah, blah.

Five years into regional flyin', left seat in a CRJ (previously AT72, which I would prefer to still be in but thats a whole other story), I've never had so much time off. NOWHERE else will you be able to turn 1 week of vacation into almost 3 weeks off work and still be paid! I get a MINIMUM of 10 days off a month (thats atleast 2 more days a month than any of my 9-5 buddies) although I easily average 14+ and still hold weekends off to boot! Not to mention the fact that on day 1 I don't have to be at work until 2:45pm and day 4 I'm off by 8:00pm (not full days). I also have Thanksgiving and Christmas off. I have the ability to swap trips, drop trips, pick up trips if I want to trade time off for money! I'm not gettin' rich but, $70K+ yr. ain't bad at all and thats LIKELY to go up as well! I'm smart enough to live within my means and still save for after I'm retired.

Do I have some heartburn over some things that happen? SURE! Scheduling does some REALLY crappy things... maybe twice a year. should they be allowed to get away with it? Heck NO! Thats for the negotiators to work on for our next contract.

Management decisions? DANG! Sometimes I wonder what the heck these guys are thinking but, in the midst of all these airlines loosing billions, here we are making millions and hiring and gettin' new planes, new crew bases.

Would I like to be paid more? DAH! Who wouldn't. But, I don't work for a major airline....guess what? neither do they any more thanks to many factors totally out of their control. Some day not too far off, things in this industry will turn around and we'll all move up a rung or two.

I knew the game when I came into it and I accept its limitations. I'm not here because I thought I'd get rich and almost never go to work! I'm here because I ABSOLUTELY LOOOVVVEEEE TO FLY. It blows my mind to think that I'm making a pretty good living doing something I used to scrimp and save every penny I could get my fat fingers around just to pay to do. I love being around people and there 20 instances when we have made passengers days, weeks, heck year by getting them there safely (not always on time but, more often than not these days) to every 1 that we really screw someone. Things are getting better all the time. Partly due to the professionalism of the VAST majority of the pilots, FA's, Gate AND management.

If this is what you want to do, don't let the dorks with the bad attitudes psych you out! They'll never be happy doing anything and if they were some DANG GREAT and had so many other options, they'd be gone already! Keep pluggin' away, you'll get here. And when you do, try to come fly with me and stay out of the pilot lounge, smoking room and the chief pilots office, 'cause the folks who hang out there are like cancer. You know, you see them on here every day.

The pay is really low to start but, it gets better. Just don't think you're going to get rich. Reserve stinks but, its not forever and when you do get a line, it'll seem that much sweeter!

peace!

 

[gobigred1]

You guys all have valid points. Flying at any level beats a real job any day of the week. The problem is (and we all know this) that there are too many guys out there willing to do the job for nothing just to fly a shiny new jet. Do we have to bring up Mesa to prove the point. A few years back I was in the same spot. Just give me a job at a regional for any pay so I can build my time and get to a major. Problem is, there is no where to go these days. Until people stop wanting to fly for peanuts just to fly a jet, the industry is in big trouble. Its great a cpt can make 70 grand but what about the FO's who qualify for food stamps. Something needs to be done but who's going to stop it.

 

[ohplease!]

suck it up and get a second job 'til you get off probation like the rest of us did if you need to.

 

[328dude]

As far as Regional's going under. PSA to name one. Other's in Limbo??? Chicago Express.

Holy Freaking Shat!!!!!!!!!!!!! PSA went under?????????Oh, my god!!!!!!!!!!!



I'm sorry, didn't mean to crap on your watery eye parade.

clueless moron.

 

[Lear70]

time for someone to throw the bullsh!t flag!!!

Well, since you don't know what life is like at PCL, I believe I can throw the bullsh*t flag right back atcha.

NOWHERE else will you be able to turn 1 week of vacation into almost 3 weeks off work and still be paid!

You can't do that here unless you're in the top 10% of the seniority list for your seat, our lines simply aren't built to do that.

I get a MINIMUM of 10 days off a month (thats atleast 2 more days a month than any of my 9-5 buddies) although I easily average 14+ and still hold weekends off to boot!

Again, you can't do that here. Sure, you get 10 days off which is fine unless you commute, and since half our trips are uncommutable you only get 7 days off by the time it's all said and done. And oh, by the way, I've been here going on 4 years and I'm still 140 numbers away from holding a 14 day off line (that's approximately 40 out of 150 Captains get 14 days or more off in each domicile).

Not to mention the fact that on day 1 I don't have to be at work until 2:45pm and day 4 I'm off by 8:00pm (not full days). I also have Thanksgiving and Christmas off.

First, how the fu*k can you call getting to the airport at 0800 on day 4 and getting off by 2000 (12 hours of work) "not full days". Crack pipe anyone? As far as 2:45 shows on day one, must be nice to be in your shoes... we can't do that here. I have Thanksgiving off but have to work on Christmas and as I said before, half our trips are uncommutable on either the front end (0900 show) or the back end (2030 off-duty).

I have the ability to swap trips, drop trips, pick up trips if I want to trade time off for money!

We don't... How does "Trip Drop/Swap denied due to 'staffing'" sound to you? I haven't had a single trip drop, swap, or trade approved in over a year and I'm not in the minority here.

So you can keep your opinions based on YOUR company in our discussion about OUR company to yourself. They simply don't apply.

By the way, I like my job, I like my coworkers, I detest my company's management. "Never compromise SAVINGS" is the most accurate statement I can think of for this airline's management approach. The QOL here is about the worst of a regional I've ever heard of, but since I haven't found anything better and doing something besides aviation isn't acceptable, I'll just keep on keeping on!

 

[91100 100 set]

sigh...

 

[wheelsup]

Hey Mtnjam, you realize that the first couple months of living while training are on you, right? Pinnacle doesn't pay ANYTHING during training, or so I was told.

Hopefully you've saved up some money to survive those first couple months!

~wheelsup