Regional Pilots, Worth it?

[Twotter76]

I've flown with pilots that enjoy what they do but I would say that 90% of them would do all they could to steer their kids away from this career.

Perhaps if you fly somewhere like Mesa or another crappy regional with a low QOL i'm sure that there is a high percentage of folks there that wish they had done something else - but to say that 90% of a pilot group maintains this attitude is just plain wrong. In fact I flew with a guy a month ago who was obviously very proud that his son had just gotten picked up by Atlas (yes this guy was old).

I get both extremes at my airline - I flew with a guy about 2 weeks ago that had the most passionate hatred of our airline - it was really rather sad really and I told him as much. I cannot imagine hating your job that much - I would like to think that I could quit before it got as bad as it was with this guy. And needless to say it doesn't make people fun to fly with when all they can do is complain.

Now on the flip side I have had Captains that loved their job, were easy to work with, and even remembered to buy the hard working crew a beer or two. The simple difference that your attitude makes is huge - both in your enjoyment of your work and how others percieve you.

While there are certainly aspects to the regional lifestyle that could be improved (pay for example) none of my friends who went to law school or med school have anywhere near the QOL that I have as a medium senority lineholder. I get 16 or 17 days off a month - they are often found in their office on the weekends trying to get something done at the last minute. I definitely spend more time at home than they do (or I could if I wanted to anyway). Their pay is certainly better than my RJ FO scale but then I am not in this for the money.

Worth it? To me, not just yes but he|| yes. Worth it to you? Only you can decide what works for you. Good luck

Twotter76

 

[MW44]

Twotter76,

I see what you are saying and apparently you are very happy. That's good. I just wanted to make sure that Luchini went into this with his eyes open. You are happy making 30k and change; many people struggle at that wage. Where I happen to live to buy a modest house in a nice neighborhood starts at 350k. Obviously that is unattainable at the regional level. I did choose to live here though and I could move to Alabama or something and do fine. Like I said earlier it's all about your expectations going into the job. I've heard horror stories from Atlas pilots but obviously some love it and the guy you flew with thinks it's wonderful. It's all your perception.

 

[NoPlaneNoGain]

It was worth it to me!

I've been on both sides of the fence. I've got the college degree from the business dept. and worked at an "8-5, M-F" job and I was paid **CENSORED****CENSORED****CENSORED****CENSORED** good money for my expertise behind the desk. But ya know what? I was BORED out of my mind! I could not always leave my work at work at the end of the day. I was occasionally "on-call", and I was always staring out the window from my desk wishing that I was outside.
I'm in my 30's now and have no regrets. I enjoy flying multi-million dollar equipment and everyday is a new challenge. I rarely get bored now (there is always a newspaper or magazine somewhere), and you get to work with a variety of people which can sometimes be good and bad. Now when I leave work, I can actually leave it behind (with the only exception being recurrent training events). Yes, it is unfortunate that we are paid so low for our amount of responsibility but this job is a lot better than some. Most of the people I have met that do not like their job are those who have only been in aviation and have nothing else to compare it to. I have found the majority of career-switchers love their flying jobs and have few complaints. In my opinion every job $ucks, but it is about finding the job that $ucks the least!

This is only my opinion,
L8R

 

[Luchini]

Good stuff getting prespectives from both sides. Seems like the biggest objection is lots of hours invested with not enough pay. I think I would be happy making 35-50k a year. Its a very decent living even after expeneses if you are single with no kids like me. I live off about 30k a year and it isnt too shabby. Making around 60k a year would definetly be ok. Especially with lots of days off. With so many days off compared to conventnial jobs do you guys do anything extra on the side to make some extra money? Im thinking I would eventually like to save enough money to buy some real estate since real estate seems to be the only thing that goes up in value after time.

 

[roadrunner]

I've been at SkyWest 3 years, and I must say that I do enjoy the job very much. I'm an FO and made about 40g last yr including per diem. I can live pretty comfortably on that money, although if I were married and had a family, then I would be dirt poor. It's a good single guy's/gal's job, but if you have a family, dont plan on spending a lot of time with them, especially if you commute. I've flow with a lot of guys that don't get to see much of the wife and kids. That's unfortunate. The vast majority of our trips are 4on/ 3 off. I don't spend too much time at home, that's for sure. All that being said, I'm having the time of my life. The crews are great. They make those 4 day trips a lot more bearable. I've met some really great friends since I've been here. You can't beat the view from the office either!

 

[Luchini]

Hey thats great to hear Roadrunner. Glad to see your enjoying your job and yes 40,000 is comfortable to live off of if you're single. Im sure in a few more years youll be making even more then that. Where do you plan to be 5 years from now? Still flying for Skywest as a FO? Also how did you obtain all your training and ratings to be where you are at right now? I always like to hear how people have made it into the airline industry.

 

[SkyWstman]

Luchini, I've been at Skywest for ten years and a previous regional for three years. At this level it's not too bad but how long will it take you to get here?
The carrots at the majors are dissappearing. Retirement programs will be gone. The jobs are dissappearing. The money is significantly less than it was. Many of us at the regionals are not going anywhere. And you will probably have a significant other someday and possibly children. So how long do you want to work for nothing is the question?

 

[Luchini]

Luchini, I've been at Skywest for ten years and a previous regional for three years. At this level it's not too bad but how long will it take you to get here?
The carrots at the majors are dissappearing. Retirement programs will be gone. The jobs are dissappearing. The money is significantly less than it was. Many of us at the regionals are not going anywhere. And you will probably have a significant other someday and possibly children. So how long do you want to work for nothing is the question?

Well the industry may not be in good shape but there will always be hirings and what not. I believe hard work pays off in any profession and yes money is a very important factor but its not always about money. I dont need alot of money just enough to live comfortable in an apartment with 1 car, 3 meals a day, and occasionial time to eat at resturants, hang out with friends, etc. If some of you are very unhappy with your profession why dont you quit? Im sure having flown as FO and being responsible for millions of dollars of equipment and passengers would look good on alot of resumes. If you are unhappy making 30-40k a year there are plenty of jobs that pay that. At my last job I obtained an entry level position and made about 35k a year with no college degree. I quit though because I got tired of how things were so unorganzied and mainly how each day I dreaded to go to work and have to deal with more dumb customers having to yell at me. (retail sales/customer care) It was finally at this point that I realized I needed to quit while I was still young and do something that would not dread everyday. Ive got some tough decesions to make soon and thank everyone for their valuable input.

 

[PBRstreetgang]

I've been at SkyWest 3 years, and I must say that I do enjoy the job very much. I'm an FO and made about 40g last yr including per diem. I can live pretty comfortably on that money, although if I were married and had a family, then I would be dirt poor. It's a good single guy's/gal's job, but if you have a family, dont plan on spending a lot of time with them, especially if you commute. I've flow with a lot of guys that don't get to see much of the wife and kids. That's unfortunate. The vast majority of our trips are 4on/ 3 off. I don't spend too much time at home, that's for sure. All that being said, I'm having the time of my life. The crews are great. They make those 4 day trips a lot more bearable. I've met some really great friends since I've been here. You can't beat the view from the office either!

Kool-Aid-sure is good
P.S. 40k?, I have never even come close to 40k even with JR manning, 4 day trips that pay 19hrs make it almost impossible pick up extra flying to make that kind of money, unless you are picking up locals on every day off. Yeah baby, work 6 days a week! Pass the kool-aid!

 

[BJK]

PBRstreetgang.

You're at SkyWest, right? Granted, I don't fly the RJ, but looking at the bid packets, average line values in SLC have been hovering around 87 hours/month with roughly 300 hours of monthly per diem. Do the math with 3rd year FO pay and it equates to somewhere in the neighborhood of $43K+. Everything else in your previous post I agree with. QOL is hard to come by in the regional industry and I certainly don't see any major improvements coming in the future.