Pinnacle

[Detroitpilot22]

just my opinion for my situation... NO

Its a hell of a lot better than working at WMU

 

[Detroitpilot22]

Keep it up, Rich! Someone needs to tell the truth about this place, because the company certainly won't when the newbies show up to interview. For the pilots out there that are thinking about coming to work at Pinnacle, listen to Lear70's words very carefully. He speaks the truth about this company, and you deserve to know the truth before coming here. Pilots are terminated often (especially probationary pilots) without just cause, you will be disciplined for calling in sick or fatigued, you will be junior-manned and extended just so the company can understaff the airline at absurd levels, and the list goes on and on. Come here if you need some quick part 121 jet time, otherwise, there are much better options.

the reason people have to be junior manned is when we are short on pilots. And its tough getting people to come to the airline when they think it has such a bad rep. Why would you want to discurage people to come here when we need people. Wouldn't more people help out with our scheduling issues? Once again, I will tell you what i always tell you. If you don't like it, leave!!!!

 

[WMUSIGPI]

Its a hell of a lot better than working at WMU

True but then again being a test monkey in a lab searching for a cure for AIDS is a better job then working at WMU. That's why I left as soon as I could and laughed when I was asked if I wanted to return when I was furloughed.

 

[Flapjack]

Fly Bunny, You're delusional. Your rehashed and reused half-dozen examples of high time pilots getting into accidents does NOT prove your point..see, by far and away, most pilots flying jets are high time. Therefore, most accidents are caused by high time pilots. Get it? Huh? What? Even though we see concentrations of 350 hour backpack-having-spikey-haired wonderbrats, there are still, thankfully, less of these pilots than the salt-and-pepper crowd in the command of jets. Therefore, not that many accidents are from low timers, and half of that is attributable to a good airplane like a CRJ saving their a$$e$. Now look at the kinds of mistakes low timers make...many are unique to their experience level. Period. You're so ignorant of the fact that experience is extremely valuable...awww, forget it. You are a low timer yourself, so naturally you want to think that you are as good as anyone else. Someday you might get it, if you stay in aviation long enough.

 

[Cokie907]

I wasn't going to post until I read the absolute tripe from Flex 20. In support of Rich (Lear 70), we sat alot of reserve together (3 years to be exact) and he is an intelligent, articulate, highly skilled aviator who knows his stuff big time. I'd challenge ANYONE to go up against him in a battle of the aviation wits. Furthermore, I NEVER, EVER heard any FO say anything negative about his CRM skills or derogatory in general, for that matter.

The facts are plain and simple, Pinnacle does have problems with its management exploiting an extremely weak contract. When you're a very junior CA or FO, this can and will wreak havoc with your life. Simply put, you will have no life for about 9 months as an FO and about 5 plus years as a CA. (Last month, I had 11 days home as a 5 year captain.)

If you would like to come to Pinnacle, please determine which you value more, money or your life. As a 9 month plus FO, you will have no money but will have the ability to jumpseat and hold an ok schedule. Once you make captain, you can forget about doing anything unless you live in base, BUT YOU WILL HAVE MONEY! HA HA

Also, keep in mind that our future is ENTIRELY up in the air. Yes, the pun is intended.

 

[PCL_128]

the reason people have to be junior manned is when we are short on pilots. And its tough getting people to come to the airline when they think it has such a bad rep. Why would you want to discurage people to come here when we need people. Wouldn't more people help out with our scheduling issues?

We are short on pilots because the company pays our first and second year FOs so horribly that virtually no one can afford to work here. Not to mention the terrible QOL. If the company needs more pilots (and they desperately do), then they need to quickly sign an acceptable new CBA that addresses these issues and makes this place a livable place to work. Until then, I will tell people the truth about this company so they don't come in blind.

Once again, I will tell you what i always tell you. If you don't like it, leave!!!!

And I'll tell you what I always tell you: I'd rather try to fix things. Perhaps defeatism is in your nature, but it doesn't work for me.

 

[EMB Skillz]

Compared to GIA, where you have to pay them to fly, it must be paradise at PCL.

 

[blackbox]

The facts are plain and simple, Pinnacle does have problems with its management exploiting an extremely weak contract. When you're a very junior CA or FO, this can and will wreak havoc with your life. Simply put, you will have no life for about 9 months as an FO and about 5 plus years as a CA. (Last month, I had 11 days home as a 5 year captain.)

If you would like to come to Pinnacle, please determine which you value more, money or your life. As a 9 month plus FO, you will have no money but will have the ability to jumpseat and hold an ok schedule. Once you make captain, you can forget about doing anything unless you live in base, BUT YOU WILL HAVE MONEY! HA HA

Also, keep in mind that our future is ENTIRELY up in the air. Yes, the pun is intended.

But 9 month example is true at any airline. If anythign, you will probably get a line faster here than at most other airlines. getting off reserve and holding a line= better QOL.

WHen you talk about last month are you referring to April? the lines were horrible in APril. But you have to admit May was lot better.

and when you mention 5 year capt? hey at least your capt. in 5 years, Try and look for a 5 yr capt at American Eagle or Horizon. Did you get hired as a street captain? So you had to sit reserve, thats the price of admission. And no matter where you work, reserve sucks. Its not limited only to pinnacle.

I

 

[blackbox]

Compared to GIA, where you have to pay them to fly, it must be paradise at PCL.

EMB skills, You change your handle to IhatePCL128. Y do you have such hard on for PCL 128? So he went to GIA. I think thats a scumbag outfit, but I aint gonna hate on someone who went there. Especially not like the effort you put forth. You need to lay off him. Even in posts that has nothing to do with him, you make a comment about GIA/PCL128. On second thought you should change your name to IneedaLife

 

[Cokie907]

Blackbox, Who ya trying to fool there buddy? Please spare us your platitudes such as "price of admission" and "no matter where ya work, reserve sucks". It has been said that you judge the quality of an airline by how it treats its reserves. Well by that criteria, Pinnacle is sittin' beneath the blue juice my friend. Imagine sitting around, doing airport reserve week after week and always getting extended on day 5 (after sitting for 4 days and watching junior people get called out BEFORE you when you were marked call first). How much extra pay do you get for the extension on day 5? ZERO! I could go on and on, suffice to say that reserve is far worse at PCL than it is at other regionals (besides Mesa and Trans States), I've compared notes over 3 years of sitting it, trust me!

You also said that people here will get a line faster than at other airlines, now why do you think that is? Perhaps it could be because attrition is occurring at breakneck speed. In fact, it could be likened to a revolving door for FO's as of late, would you not agree? What is causing this attrition?

Oh yeah and another thing. You stated that May was alot better. Why should ANY month be ALOT better. At a GOOD regional airline, ALL months should be good schedules, right? April was HORRIBLE and so was March and February and January...yadda yadda yadda....

 

[blackbox]

Cokie, i was fortunate enough not to have sat airport reserve. And for while they got rid of it all together. NOw they have it, but its only for late reserve, which is only 4 hours. Also our reserve periods are 12 hours long, wher other airlines are 13-15 hours. I do agree that you do get abused when you are on reserve. But as a new FO, wouldnt you rather fly than sit in a crashpad? I have only been extended once, and the second time they tried to, I denied it. This was before the extension LOA came out, so i had to see the base manager. This was less than a month after IOE. haha.

I did say we get a line faster here, for whatever the reason. I know its due to attrition, but as a reserve pilot, why would u care?? u hold a line.

that last line is what gets me most. instead of seeing the lines as improve ment you ask "ALL months should be good schedules, right?" Maybe you think the airline is a lot worse than it actually is because you want to percieve it that way.

As for me, what gets me most is second year FO pay. first year, well it sucks at almost all airlines except Horizon. But I will leave that to the negotiating committee and cross my fingers hoping for a huge raise. Until then I just go about my job trying to enjoy it as much as I can. As a line holder, I come into work, fly for a few days and go back home. Dont ever see the CP or base manager, dont deal with scheduling, jsut check in, grab my flight case and I am out of OPs. How much different is that than if i flew for Skywest, AWAC, or ASA? I just havent been screwed by scheduling or the company as some others might have, so thats why it easier for me keep a positive outlook. I know this place has more than its share of problems. The just havent affected me yet.

its all what you make of it. I dont drink the Pinnacle Kool-aid, but I dont drink the Flightinfo Haterade either.

 

[Raskal]

Your analogy of medical doctors is almost laughable. Have you ever asked the surgeon operating on you how many people s/he has operated on before? Being a professional pilot, even if you’re with the best major (whatever that is) or the best corporate flight department, most likely your health insurance would only allow you to see the cheapest form of medical practice: the top-of-the-class graduates (the smartest and ones with most experienced) are working in very expensive Private clinics. In plain English, you’re most likely being operated on by the bottom-of-the-class-graduate surgeons.


Bunny

All right bunny, I've been reading this thread trying to skip your off-subject replies but now you've gone way past the delusional line. As someone who has a child that has gone through a couple of very difficult surguries I find the analogy to surgeons dead-on accurate. Yes, a good question for any surgeon is "how many of this specific procedure have you done?". Contrary to your obviously ignorant (or maybe inexperienced is a better term) the answer you get will be honest and often a reccomendation will follow if the doc doesn't feel he/she is the best qualified for the procedure. I also speak from the perspective of having two surgeons in the family.

Experience does involve quantity. Stick ability itself doesn't neccesarily come from hours, but the capability of handling situations safely and efficiently does. Your ability to land an aircraft is only a little part of your job and to view it any other way exposes, yet again, a lack of experience.

Oh, and you may want to rethink the military analogy. In WWII, as you mention, most of the young kids died. It was only the ones who luckily gained "experience" that survived. The military has no qualms about using teenagers for fodder, often they have no choice. Aviation operators, regardless of field, do have a choice and because they intelligently choose to exercise it shouldn't be offensive to you. It should be somewhat comforting.

 

[Detroitpilot22]

Another thing about pinnacle, if you just suck it up on reserve and deal with the crappy stuff, when you get a line, it is a big difference. If you have a schedule that doesn't quite meet your needs, and you are respectable with the schedulers, they will try and find something that works for you. You can drop/swap with open trips, or with other pilots to maybe get a better schedule.

 

[bertengineer]

I am a FO for Pinnacle and I have one thing to say.....

Damn glad to be here!

 

[bertengineer]

I am a FO for Pinnacle and I have one thing to say.....

dang glad to be here!

I didn't say dang...

 

[rballty]

Does anyone have information on the process for obtaining a waiver for entry into Canada if you have certain convictions on your record? I just received an interview invitation, but I have a conviction on my record that looks like I need a waiver for entry into Canada. Does this process take a while? I thought I read somewhere that it could take up to one year? Any information someone can provide is extremely appreciated. Thanks.

 

[uberbored]

Stay away from pinncale, it is a crap hole, seriously it really is, you don't want to work there.

 

[PeanuckleCRJ]

ubernospeakenglish

 

[uberbored]

ubernospeakenglish

you are a dumba$$

 

[CrownandCoke]

Got an email from them. "Come to our job seminar if you have 350TT." Just curious but how much good is a 350 hour pilot when the crap hits the fan?

I got hired with 560. I did the CRJ program at UND, and that was a huge turn on for them. So far, it seems like a good company, I definitely have no complaints thus far. I hear a lot of whining pilots, but I figure it's a lot better here than other places.