Positive changes at Ameristar

[Rouge Warrior]

did the swedes leave? where did they go?

whoring it on the 121 side plus doing a little back door action for the 135 side as well.

 

[pilotyip]

funny about ads on 350/jsfirm; we are advertizing for DC-9 F/O's also. 1000TT, 500 MEL, 1 yr 121 time, over 150 hits, 5 meet the mins. There is no one out there to do this job any more.

 

[Rouge Warrior]

Can you blame them Yip? I mean tied to a pager, short call, 30+ year old airplanes versus new jet, low entry requirements, a decent schedule, the ability to commute for free to and from work, good insurance , vacations, sick days, and getting PIC turbine in the same time frame as at the on demand guys.

What would you do if you were just starting out?

rw

 

[landlover]

Can you blame them Yip? I mean tied to a pager, short call, 30+ year old airplanes versus new jet, low entry requirements, a decent schedule, the ability to commute for free to and from work, good insurance , vacations, sick days, and getting PIC turbine in the same time frame as at the on demand guys.

What would you do if you were just starting out?

rw

don't forget about defaulting on your student loans when you go the regional route.

 

[dickburns]

And sitting on a ramp for 5 hours because of "thundestorms" and flow control, a hot airlplane with a broken APU, some smarta$$ passenger with a hidden camera pushing your buttons. I'll take on-demand freight anyday as an experience builder over a regional.

 

[Windsor]

And sitting on a ramp for 5 hours because of "thundestorms" and flow control, a hot airlplane with a broken APU, some smarta$$ passenger with a hidden camera pushing your buttons. I'll take on-demand freight anyday as an experience builder over a regional.

Both of the guys I know that have left AJI for the regionals love it. Nice planes, decent sked and not being tied to a pager is a big plus.

 

[pilotyip]

Rouge I would go for the money, 37K to start with us versus 20K at a regional. To each his own

 

[Rouge Warrior]

Having done both I'd say I learned a lot in the on-demand but the money isn't the end all be all when you first start out. I supported my family on a less than 20K when I first started flying.

 

[Tug Driver]

who cares about a 5 hour ground hold... once you leave the gate, you are getting paid. block or better baby.

only 6 months left of living off pbj's. then i'll be making more than when I left the freight world.

god I love this job...

 

[Rouge Warrior]

Bat boobs

 

[atpcliff]

Hi!

Rouge Warrier:

I am answering your comments based on USA Jet-I don't know the details of other on-demand companies:

Callout:
Most of the Falcon guys, most of the time, are on a pager, where you're sometimes called out in 25".

Most of the DC-9 guys are flying passengers, with a 6-month schedule during the NCAA season, with no callout at all if your primary, and a 2 hour callout if you're on reserve. The freighter DC-9 guys are on a pager with a potential callout as short as 25".

Old Planes:
Yes, they're old. My Air Force plane was older.

Schedules:
Falcons get 11 days off a month, and -9 guys 13. If you're on frieght, most of your holidays are off (I'm 5 out of 5 years of having XMas off). The schedulers are flexible. I have, overall, gotten most of the days off I want.

Entry Requirements:
They are now as low as the regionals for Falcon new-hires. They want more experience for the DC-9 guys.

Commuting:
We are in CASS, and on many airlines' jumpseat lists. I have often been airlined directly home (or where I want to go) when on the road and days off come up.
Some commuters are airlined directly to a plane when their days on start.

Insurance:
USA Jet has GOOD insurance (relative to other companies in the US, NOT relative to Canada). My spouse has worked for 3 brokerage firms in the US, with 1 of them in the Forbes top 100 companies EVERY year. All three of them had CRAP insurance. USA Jet is much cheaper for the employees and, overall, the coverage is better.

Vacations:
Year 2-5 days, after 5 years-10, etc. Some of our guys have 30+ days of vacation.

It's not great, but you can combine your vacation with days off. I got 15 days off in Mar (Manzanillo), and 15 days again in Jun (Puerto Penasco and San Carlos).

Sick Days:
We have 6 personal/sick days a year, that rollover if they're not used. If you need a personal day, or you call in sick, they say "OK". I last called in when my spouse's uncle died. They said no problem and I actually got a Bereavement Leave Day for the day I needed.

When my dad got seriously ill, I was in ELP, where it's harder to jumpseat for us. The company released me immediately, and then paid for my ticket to go ELP-PNS.

PIC Turbine:
For now, our upgrade times are holding up (3000 TT falcon, 4000 TT and 500 MEJ PIC DC-9). We don't fly as much as a regional, so it is slower, depending on the situation.

When Eagle was at 10+ years, we were faster. Now that TSA and Pinnacle have reduced mins as low as 1500TT, they're faster for the low-time guys.

We've just had some guys upgrade to Falcon Capt after less than 5 months with the company. Obviously, they had some time when they got here.

Pay:
The guys that live near DTW make the most money (selling days off for 4 hours of pay per day sold-I'm at 5 year Falcon pay-$90/hour) and are home over 20 days a month-lately almost 30. Last year one of our 2nd year Falcon FOs made $7K in one month.

It's not for everyone. I like it. If you want to sit at home 25 days a month and make $150K+, don't come here.

cliff
YIP

PS-I will leave if/when I find a better job. USA Jet isn't the best job in flying, but it's decent.

 

[Denizen]

Gawd what was I thinking...

 

[Rouge Warrior]

Hi!

Rouge Warrier:

I am answering your comments based on USA Jet-I don't know the details of other on-demand companies:

ATP Clitt,
Then don't respond, Read the thread title! If we wanted to know how things were at USA Jet we would read some of the threads about how "GREAT" it is there. So mind your own business and STFU.

Have a nice day
rw

 

[stupidpilot]

As far as I'm concerned if good ol Ameristar goes down the tubes I wouldn't cry one bit. TW deserves everything he gets. Plus probably some jail time. He is a first class PRICK!

Although I do feel sorry for some of my friends that are still there.

 

[pilotyip]

Cliff you left out Tution reimbursement and $1.83/hr per diem