SWA 2005 Classes

[flying@swa]

Just heard this from a friend who flew with... etc., etc., etc. new class dates for 2005/06;

3 in Nov
2 in Dec
3 in Jan

Welcome aboard!:beer:

 

[PTinbound]

Hey Flying, long time no see!
Remember the days in the pool when you used to go by your alter ego?
I still wear my t-shirt with pride...

 

[Chest Rockwell]

November 9, 16, 30
December 7, 14
Jan 4, 11, 18

20 per class, subject to change

 

[flying@swa]

mistaken identity....

Sorry PT, me do thinks you are quite cornfused... I have no alter ego... I am just me.

Enjoying the good life, nothing more, nothing less.....

 

[Speed]

500 New Hires in 2006

Just flew with an Asst Chief Pilot yesterday.
- He confirmed the planned classes listed above and said that we're planning on hiring 500 new pilots in 2006 to keep pace with retirements (it was ~150-170 planned retirements) and new airplane deliveries (~33 new -700s next year).

- Opening 1-2 new cities next year and we're not shying away from big markets anymore if it's right for us...currently strongly looking at DEN--Duh, look at the news release today...this man speaks the truth!!

- New Pilot Domicile is paid for and will open late next year. SWA currently doing the analysis, but if I were a betting man in Vegas...well, I'd guess LAS.

- Electronic Flight Bag is paid for and will be online next year. It will sit on the side by the window where you currently clip your pubs. Both pilots will have a screen hardwired in there and it will do all the OPC calculations, display all the Jepp Plates and house our FOM...eventually will add the FRM. The OPC will be gone totally. The only thing you'll be bringing to the cockpit will be a headset, flashlight, and sandwich .

- -300/500s are getting new skin jobs which promises to give them 25,000 more cycles and will have old instruments replaced with glass and second FMC.

- PHL will expand to 27 gates.

- His Opinion: Wright and Age 60 will both go away in time.

For those of you still out there wanting to be part of the SWA team, the outlook is still bright. Get building your skill sets, update often, and have all your ducks in line when the call comes...it may come sooner than you think!

Speed

 

[FatesPawn]

Thanks Speed!

Looks like your commute may be getting easier. Wouldn't LAS be nice? Perhaps a nice junior domicile like OAK? As a matter of fact, I think MCI pilots should take hard look at LAS, too. Especially the guys senior to me in MDW

-Fate

 

[PSL]

Speed:

AGE-60 is a political hand grenade ... let me explain

To require retirement at '60' is as arbitrary and 62 ... 63 ... 70 or any number for that matter. Anyone who knows the history of this situation knows it was not a medical issue but an economic one. In the last 20 years, Age 60 has been effectively transformed from an economic argument to a medical one in the minds of many (non pilots) ... in other words ... a safety argument.

Not withstanding a few members of Congress, pilot unions, activists groups; Age 60 will not disappear until you find a President of the United States, FAA Chief Air Surgeon, FAA Administrator willing to take the risk of destroying their careers to change it.

Consider the media frenzy if we had a 65 year old skipper have a heart attack at V1 or on the approach and kill 200 people. Can you imagine the POTUS having to answer questions why he didn't stop this insanity of letting anyone older than 60 fly airliners/FAR135 internationally?

This is NOT an argument that lends itself to many facts ... it's mostly about emotion, perception and the assumption of political risk. To make other arguments might be fine for the debate forums, but it's not representative of the true dilema.

Do we, as a society, tolerate one form of age discrimination to protect us from the 'remote possibility' of an age 60+ pilot being involved in a 'health related accident'? That's the real question as I see it.

Think selfishly for a moment ... do any of the aforementioned parties have anything to gain from abolishing AGE 60? If they do I can't think of what it might be. If you attempt to make the argument that they will do it because it's the right thing to do ... WE (pilots) are fooling ourselves.

While I have no intention of flying FAR121 past 60, it's not correct for me to project my desires on the rest of the pilot corps. That said, however, it hasn't been brought up that other countries (especially western Europe) might not allow an age 60+ pilot to fly in their country even under a US Flag.

I put my money on Wright being abolished and fading from memory before we move anywhere close to abolishing age 60.

SL

 

[NEDude]

What all does SWA want you to bring to the interview?

I assume the normal stuff like logbooks, background info and certificates. What else needs to be ready when they call?

Thanks.

 

[SWAlifter]

I heard the chief pilot say

Speed,

While I certainly hope your right, I wonder if this was the same Chief Pilot that told us in 2002 that the EFB (electronic flight bag) was only 6 months away, oh and so were glass on -300s. The same chief pilots that told us in spring of 2004 (posted on myswa.com) that one new crew base was already paid for and would open in fall 2004 (LAS, TPA, or BNA). And is this the same chief pilot who told us that when we opened Philly with 4 gates that it would be bigger that BWI in 2 yrs (we now have 6 gates).

Like I said, I certainly hope your right, but when it comes to "I heard the chief pilot say", it usually only makes for good rumor. The facts usually come unexpected, like opening PHL, PIT, and now Denver.

 

[canyonblue737]

What all does SWA want you to bring to the interview?

I assume the normal stuff like logbooks, background info and certificates. What else needs to be ready when they call?

Thanks.

http://forums.flightinfo.com/showthread.php?t=52234&highlight=high+school

 

[canyonblue737]

Speed,

While I certainly hope your right, I wonder if this was the same Chief Pilot that told us in 2002 that the EFB (electronic flight bag) was only 6 months away, oh and so were glass on -300s. The same chief pilots that told us in spring of 2004 (posted on myswa.com) that one new crew base was already paid for and would open in fall 2004 (LAS, TPA, or BNA). And is this the same chief pilot who told us that when we opened Philly with 4 gates that it would be bigger that BWI in 2 yrs (we now have 6 gates).

Like I said, I certainly hope your right, but when it comes to "I heard the chief pilot say", it usually only makes for good rumor. The facts usually come unexpected, like opening PHL, PIT, and now Denver.

like you i have my doubts on much of that except for the EFB. it seems based on talking to a bunch of folks out of PT/PC that crum and others are confirming the EFB is a done deal and budgeted for next year. i think the hand is being forced because no one is making the hardware for the OPCs anymore and something needed to be done. there is a sim now with a sample of the EFB setup already running.

 

[737lj]

Interview to Class Timeframe at SWA

Just a note for those wondering what the current timeframe is looking like:

• Call for interview third week in May
• Interview second week in June
• Call to continue process July 20
• Call for class date October 20
• Class date slated for November 16

Good Luck to everyone waiting to hear from the latest DB!

 

[canyonblue]

- New Pilot Domicile is paid for and will open late next year. SWA currently doing the analysis, but if I were a betting man in Vegas...well, I'd guess LAS.

Speed

I hope it is not LAS. Hard Rock on a Fri-Sat night beats any overnight.:beer:

 

[Speed]

Follow Ups to Comments from the Bros

Fates,
You crack me up buddy...always looking out for those of us senior to you to move out of MDW so we can have a better life :laugh: . If Vegas were to happen, you may be right that quite a few west coast commuters would shift over to LAS. I checked Sky-Guide and there are 20-25 flights a day LAS-DEN. It looks like it could easily be commutable both ways for me. Of course the loads are always full in and out of Vegas...but CASS has opened up the jumpseat again...hmmm, we'll have to see. Don't think I'd miss the bag drag in the snow from the Crash Pad in the winter. There may also be a healthy movement to NV to eliminate State Income Tax. No sense conjecturing too much, LAS may not even turn out to be the next domicile (if there even really is one at all).

PSL--great points about the age 60 debate. Will the politicians feel pressure to extend the age to 65 though to mitigate the damage that has been done by the Bankruptcies and loss of thousands of Pensions? Personally, I have no problem with a tougher physical and allowing pilots to work until 65 if they choose to. Yes it may slow down upgrades a bit, but we'll have the same opportunity when the time comes and maybe the flying public will have more confidence in their flight crews if we're taking a tougher physical and have more incentive to be healthy and fit. That's just my opinion and I'm sure politics will influence the decision more than rational.

SWAlifter & CanyonBlue737,
Thanks for clarifying to the forum that just because "a chief pilot told me" doesn't mean it's Gospel...and is really still in just the rumor stage. I didn't live through those "psych" experiences. The thing that gave it credibility to me was the fact that he told me GK, Crummy et al were telling these things to new hire classes and during PCs...which means that at this moment in time they truly are planning on a new pilot domicile, opening two new cities, bringing EFB on line, not shying away from bigger markets, reskinning the 300s and putting in glass. But, flexibility is the key to airpower...and indecision is the key to flexibility, therefore--indecision is the key to airpower . At any rate, thanks for the history and caution to keep cool heads...it's a fast breaking ball game with lots of variables.

With that said, I'm going to kick back, relax, and dream about DEN being the surprise announcement as the next pilot domicile and how great it's going to be driving to work like FatesPawn...kicking back and smokin a luckyimp: .

Speed


.

 

[Cray Cray]

Class calls are still going out for November. For calibration, I interviewed 20 JUN and was offered 30 NOV. Good luck!

 

[str8upflyrght]

What all does SWA want you to bring to the interview?

I assume the normal stuff like logbooks, background info and certificates. What else needs to be ready when they call?

Thanks.

they'll send you a checklist. most of the stuff is pretty simple (log book,medical,license) the ones you may need to track down (and could take time) are high school and college transcripts.