Southern Hiring

[HA25]

I personally know a Southern captain who left there last month to go to Kalitta as an FO... that's how bad Southern is.

 

[Heavy Set]

This is a bit interesting. They interviewed and hired several of us into a pool last October. I have not heard anything from them yet.

How often have you been following up? I'd copy the ad and email it to them with a question as to when YOUR class will start... Definitely follow up if you want to fly the Whale (even though there are other great operators out there). I loved flying that airplane in the latter 90s. Good luck.

 

[HA25]

How often have you been following up? I'd copy the ad and email it to them with a question as to when YOUR class will start... Definitely follow up if you want to fly the Whale (even though there are other great operators out there). I loved flying that airplane in the latter 90s. Good luck.

Personally I'd rather fly the 767.... far more comfortable cockpit.

 

[atpcliff]

I personally know a Southern captain who left there last month to go to Kalitta as an FO... that's how bad Southern is.

Kalitta Air is a good place to work, so it makes very good sense to leave Southern to go to a place like Kalitta, or CAL or AA or DAL, or any other place that you consider is a "good place" to work.

Great talent is the key to our success, and we strive to create an environment where employees are enabled to contribute to their full potential by leveraging their unique experiences, perspective, and viewpoints. We take pride in delivering exceptional service to our customers, and providing our employees the experience of a lifetime… being part of a multi-cultural, global community which is shaping the future of our organization and touches the lives of people all over the world.

Sounds like something I read from one of the WWII propaganda desks!

 

[gringo]

Kalitta Air is a good place to work, so it makes very good sense to leave Southern to go to a place like Kalitta, or CAL or AA or DAL, or any other place that you consider is a "good place" to work.

Kalitta is certainly a good place to work, but as far as a comparison, it would be a lateral move, at best. Connie's pay rates and work rules are in fact better than Southern's, but only slightly. It would make no sense for a Captain here to bail and start at the bottom of the list over there.

Leaving Southern as a Captain to go to Atlas, Southwest, American or JetBlue, THAT makes sense. Leaving Southern to start over right seat at Kallita, that does not compute. I'm not saying people haven't left here to go there, but if they gave up their left seat, it was more than likely a decision that was forced upon them (read: they were fired).

An FO or an engineer leaving to go to Connie, that would make more sense, but again, as it's more a lateral move, not much.

Sounds like something I read from one of the WWII propaganda desks!

Cliff, I certainly hope you're not trying to compare SAI with the propaganda machine of Nazi Germany. Or even that of our own War Department. (God, do I miss that term- "Department of Defense" just dosen't convey the same awesomeness, does it?)

SAI certainly has its share of issues, but things are getting better. I remember a time not too long ago where Atlas's future looked just as bad as ours. They managed to turn themselves around and are now considered to be the premiere ACMI hauler in the industry.

Our contract is up for renewal, and it would make sense that the new management would want to get it passed quickly; their goal is to grow the company and then sell it, make it go public (like Atlas, except for the unfortunate bit about the founder dying in a plane crash). They won't be able to find a buyer if Management is tied up in labor disputes with the pilots. It's my personal belief that we'll get a new contract fairly quickly, like 1-2 years, rather than the 5+ years these things tend to drag out.

QOL here isn't great, but it's far from horrible. Quite honestly, about the biggest beef I have is the nonsense of flying around in Cattle Class around the world. Yes, scheduling is screwed up, but it's ACMI. Yes, travel is screwed up, but again, ACMI. I have it on pretty good authority that Atlas's scheduling department is just as bad as ours. The hotels we stay at are by and large very comfortable. Pay and benefits could be better, but again, contract negotiations are starting in August.

Time off is improving- the company is striving to get people home after 17 days, down from 20. Last month, I was home after 16.

Management has been mostly replaced. The vindictive child-like behavior of days past are pretty much over. Calling in fatigue won't get you fired.

Most of the airplanes even have FMS's installed.

Anyway, I'm not trying to be a cheerleader for the company. If I got my recall from AA I'd certainly take it. Lord knows they have their work cut out for them to get them to where they want to be. But it's not all doom and gloom here either. And if we start getting those 400's and the next two 777's as scheduled, upgrade here will go quickly. Like under a year quickly, for new hires. (In the Classics, anyway.)

For heaven's sake, it's not Sky Lease Cargo!

 

[ROSWELL41]

Would a guy leaving a regional FO seat be able to upgrade quickly at SAI or is there some minimum heavy/international time requirement that would take a few years to meet?

 

[gringo]

Would a guy leaving a regional FO seat be able to upgrade quickly at SAI or is there some minimum heavy/international time requirement that would take a few years to meet?

The company's policy is 1000 hours jet and 500 hours heavy. Most guys seem to average about 500 hours a year here, so theoretically, you could be eligible for upgrade within 12 months.

Last year they were "upgrading" First Officers right out of ground school ("Captain-qualified First Officer") but these guys already had PIC experience from somewhere else, usually another widebody ACMI trash hauler.

For a regional FO with no PIC time, I'd expect to wait at least a year. Besides, if all you know is the calm quiet comfort of domestic daytime ops, you'd want to spend at least a year flying into such garden spots as Africa or Afghanistan. Or the super crazy places like Amsterdam or Frankfurt. Or Dubai. You really don't want to be making the decisions required here too quickly- it really does take some time to figure out this type of flying and become comfortable with it.

 

[Sir Innocenti]

Inane post on my part, but my fingers are crossed, I filled out the app on July 1st...Ive always wanted to fly ACMI internationally.....I'll keep that quiet at my next FAA physical in case they want to send me for a psyche eval....

 

[ROSWELL41]

The company's policy is 1000 hours jet and 500 hours heavy. Most guys seem to average about 500 hours a year here, so theoretically, you could be eligible for upgrade within 12 months.

Last year they were "upgrading" First Officers right out of ground school ("Captain-qualified First Officer") but these guys already had PIC experience from somewhere else, usually another widebody ACMI trash hauler.

For a regional FO with no PIC time, I'd expect to wait at least a year. Besides, if all you know is the calm quiet comfort of domestic daytime ops, you'd want to spend at least a year flying into such garden spots as Africa or Afghanistan. Or the super crazy places like Amsterdam or Frankfurt. Or Dubai. You really don't want to be making the decisions required here too quickly- it really does take some time to figure out this type of flying and become comfortable with it.

I realize that I would have a ton to learn. I would welcome the challenge of ACMI flying. I just don't want to get pigeon-holed because I don't have previous PIC time. If that's the case, I may as well just stay at the regionals and wait for that upgrade whenever it may come. Does SAI upgrade solely based on seniority or are there merit based upgrades like Omni?

 

[gringo]

I realize that I would have a ton to learn. I would welcome the challenge of ACMI flying. I just don't want to get pigeon-holed because I don't have previous PIC time. If that's the case, I may as well just stay at the regionals and wait for that upgrade whenever it may come. Does SAI upgrade solely based on seniority or are there merit based upgrades like Omni?

Lack of previous PIC time does not seem to be an issue here. I know quite a few guys who have been upgraded here after flying nothing bigger than an RJ or an ATR, with zero PIC time. A few of the Captains here are in their late 20's- just learning to shave! (All of them are excellent sticks, though.)

For the most part, upgrades are based upon seniority, but the candidate must also have at least 3 letters of recommendation in his file for him or her to get the nod. So it's a bit of both systems. And there are a lot of FO's on the list who have no interest in sitting in the left seat of the Classic- they'd rather move over to the 777 or 400 right seat.

All I can say is, if we get the 400's as planned and 777 #3 and 4 next year, there would be a LOT of movement and opportunity to upgrade quickly.