The regionals are sucking the life out of me! Help

[bigbird]

I cant take it anymore. The regional 121 lifestyle is killing me. I seriously think this job is aging me. I hate it so bad I want to get out of flying. Is there light at the end of the tunnel? Should I pursue the corporate world of flying? Give me some insights please. Is life better on the other side?

 

[Av8ing]

Only if you get in with a good company. I have numerous gray hairs from the way I'm treated over here at my corporation. Airlines are a mess, so I'm stuck for a while.

 

[Rez O. Lewshun]

What are you doing to make the place better? Pilots prior to you worked to make your current employer at least good enough for you to decide to work there... Won't you do the same for the guys that want to work there after you're gone?

Now... your expectations are not being met.... why is that? Has your company radically changed since you started working there? objectively evaluate your expectations.... How can you spend the time and money to become a 121 pilot and so quickly hate it?

I offer the classic......

Since my days as a non-fancy lad are coming to an end, the time has come to address the new-hire classes of 1999. You'll have to play that creepy top-40 tune in your head as you read this, this version is called....

PACK VASELINE


Pack Vaseline in your flight kit. This is the only concrete advice I can give you. Studies have proven that packing Vaseline in your flight kit will ease the pain as any one of Hulas' monkey soldiers slides you the dry, sand-coated salami up where the sun don't shine while you're bent over some technicality or black-and-white self-serving interpretation of the rules while they whip you upside the head with their despicable yet unique lack of ethical behavior. Pack Vaseline, my friends.

The rest of my advice is simply the ramblings of another burned-out idiot Captain based on over three years of survival in the Aviation version of Shawshank.

Remember grandpa's rules for self defense: Deny, deny, deny, and make counter-accusations. Example: "I turned in that Irregularity Report on time, I did just what you said and slid it under the door after hours, I never break the rules, maybe YOUR staff lost the report!"

Always be polite. When you yell or get angry you just look like a jackass. It makes the rest of us look like idiots. Shouting and pissing contests are for the weak. Be passive-aggressive. Accept the reroute cheerfully on the in-range call then [very diplomatically] call in fatigued when you get in. Eventually they will get the point and stop messing with you. Think before you speak.

Make an effort to enjoy the flying. You are working at a commuter airline. Enjoy the VFR patters, circling, and non-towered operations. It may be the last time you experience these things in your career.

Stop whining. Your spouse doesn't like it, your parents don't like it, the F/O HATES it, and the Captain can barely tolerate your chicken-******************** rambling about low-pay and bad schedules. They don't ask garbage men during their interviews if they mind getting their hands dirty, they didn't ask you if you minded working at a commuter because that's where you just applied. Redirect your negative energy into something useful like volunteering for an ALPA position and fighting for change.

Maybe you'll pass training
Maybe you won't
Maybe you'll bust upgrade,
Maybe you won't
Maybe you'll be fired out of SVT,
Maybe you won't

But you will be expected to do a good job flying the line by other pilots.
And at some point management will accuse you of being part of a broad, far-reaching conspiracy-because they are bitter old losers. And the next telephone call could be USAirways calling to recruit you despite your on-the-job performance.

Don't be too proud to be flying your aircraft. Most of the passengers think that ATRs are the smallest thing they've ever been on. A Jetstream is bigger than a 152 or a Baron but remember folks it is just a Jetstream. Instead, wow yourself with being a really good First Officer. Fly your best whenever you can. Then you'll find upgrade isn't so bad after all.

Listen carefully to everything the old farts have to say. They may be eccentric, eclectic, or downright offensive -- but after you work for Hulas for 10 years you will be too. 10 years without getting fired or fed-up is pretty damn impressive. These guys will show you how to survive and have fun. But -
If they are overly negative don't be afraid to ask them to quit their job and get out of your seat.

Fill out the paperwork, it may save your ass someday. If you've been here more than 18 months and you haven't filled out an Irregularity form, Hotel Incident Report, Trip Report (at least six), or filed a Grievance then you just aren't with us, are you?

If you are single, date as many people as you can- taking advantage of your mobility. This will enrich your life beyond your wildest expectations. If you are married or steady with someone then don't cheat. This will destroy your life and add more stress than you can imagine.

Maybe you'll be fun to fly with
Maybe you won't
Maybe you'll marry a pilot and have kids
Maybe you won't
Maybe you'll overcome your gender-biased attitudes
I seriously doubt that
Maybe you will be able to control the frustration
Maybe you won't

But one thing's for certain - I hope to see all of you someday in the show.
The past three years were the best and the worst I could ask for.
And you all
should pack
Vaseline.
Good-bye and good luck!

-Austin Hondo

 

[Floyd94]

Is life better on the other side?

YES....

 

[willNOTfly4free]

If you hate the airlines so much, get out. Life's to short to endure a career you hate so much. I personally enjoy my corporate flying job, and will quite possibly retire from a job flying a corporate jet.

Remember it's just a J.O.B. (Just Over Broke), not a lifestyle, religion, or marriage. Do what's best for YOU MAN!!!

 

[CA1900]

I hate it so bad I want to get out of flying. Is there light at the end of the tunnel?

For what it's worth, that's just what I found at NetJets. I look forward to coming to work, which is a nice feeling.

Some days it's hard work; some days (like today) it's very easy. But the variety keeps it interesting, and 18 hours in Cabo last month sure beat the 90th Buffalo overnight in a row at my last job!

It may or may not be what you're looking for, but it's worth checking out. Browse the Fractional Forum if you haven't already.

 

[rumrnr78]

I cant take it anymore. The regional 121 lifestyle is killing me. I seriously think this job is aging me. I hate it so bad I want to get out of flying. Is there light at the end of the tunnel? Should I pursue the corporate world of flying? Give me some insights please. Is life better on the other side?

As other have said, it depends on what you want. I work for a great company, good time off, trips that feel like mini-vacations (for the most part) and fly well maintained aircraft. Get your resume out there and make connections. A good corporate job will not land in your lap, you will have to fight to find it and get the job!! It is possible; if I slipped through the cracks and landed a great gig so can you. Cheers- Rum

PS- never hang up the resume though!

 

[ILOVEBEER]

I left SkyWest in 2006 because I too wanted to kill myself (not literaly but you know what I mean). I took a management job outside of the aviation industry and after nearly a year, I needed to get back into flying. I was VERY lucky and landed a sweet 91 job which I hope never goes away.

Personally, I would only fly charter/airlines again if it was the only job left to pay the bills. It's such a nice change to fly with the same people all the time and not a bunch of low timers who are always trying to kill you.

Leaving SkyWest after 6 years was the hardest decision I have ever made in my professional career and to be honest, I thought I would miss it.

I don't. Not even a little.

 

[LegacyDriver]

I...[get]...trips that feel like mini-vacations (for the most part) ...

CRJCA!!!! Come quick!!!! We need to do an intervention!!!!

Rum....listen to me carefully. Put down the blue koolaid....and *back* away from it.

 

[maximizer]

i have been a P91 pilot for 25 years and it has been great. I could not imagine a lifestyle as a regional airplane driver ("not that there is anything wrong with that"- jerry seinfeld). It is always easier to find a job when you have a job. So start looking.

 

[BoilerUP]

Yes, there is life on the other side....but the grass is only as green as you and your employer allow it to be.

I made the jump from RJ FO to corporate CA after 2 years at Air Wisconsin, and I could not be happier for the switch. I got a job in the place my wife and I wanted to live, for a growing & financially sound company that specializes in a field that is largely recession-proof, for money equal to what I would have made had I stayed and upgraded. As an added plus, I'm on first-name basis with everybody in the company and 2 weeks into my employment I got a flat-screen TV as a "Christmas gift" as well as the company-wide bonus. While I really liked working at AWAC I'm THRILLED to be in my current position.

There is no promised land, no corporate job manna from heaven. Driving the airplane is the same but the ancillary duties of corporate flying (as well as the requisite level of passenger care and customer service) are often foreign to a pure 121 pilot. All that said, if this fool can figure it out you can too.

Good luck, and if you're serious about moving into 91 you need to have started networking last month.

 

[blzr]

I cant take it anymore. The regional 121 lifestyle is killing me. I seriously think this job is aging me. I hate it so bad I want to get out of flying. Is there light at the end of the tunnel? Should I pursue the corporate world of flying? Give me some insights please. Is life better on the other side?

I felt the same way 4 years ago. I got hired at a part91 gig, got a type, and life is good, sorta. Part 91 can age you some too. We go to the SAME places overandoverandoverandover again. after the second year it has become "Grounhogs Day". It is OK money, but there is very little chance of advancement.

This will sound stupid to some, but after a few years of 150-300 hrs a year flying, you will miss the regionals. I just miss the change of scenery. For us, a trip is usually 2.8 hrs the first day, sit 5 days and then 2.2 comming home. then no fly for a week or two. The boss calls and wants to fly most wekends during football season, he is not a fan, so you end up sitting in an fbo or driving his rental car while your team is playing.

the rest of the company employees see you as underworked. Most have no clue why their company needs an airplane.

Dude, if the grass seems greener on the other side, it's STILL just grass. If it actually is greener, nobody is picking up the doggie poo and it needs to be mowed more often.

There are pro's and cons for both jobs. You get to bid a schedule and trips. When you are off, for the most part, you are off. In corp, you generally have no schedule and are expected to be available 7 days a week. You may not fly for days or weeks at a time, and the moment you actually make plans, the boss comes up with a 3 day trip to Dustville.

Good Luck

 

[joelo88]

Hey man. i agree with a lot of what BLZR said. some 91 gigs aren't so great. and we all know that charter/management companies can be a mess too. you could end up stuck in some plane flying a spoiled rich a-hole who complains about everything non-stop (like while your trying to land, take off, dodge traffic at 5000ft in a busy terminal area, taxi at a class b airport), and then have the company basically side with said owner because "that's what the customer wants and we are here to serve the customer". oh yeah, you wanna be an aircraft detailer too? the owner of the aircraft i fly asked myself and my co-pilot to "come in on the days when where not flying and paint the cockpit gauges and stuff with model paint and brushes." yeah i'll get right on that...

some days, i envy the airline guys. close the door and just fly... or so it seems. b careful what you wish for.

 

[LegacyDriver]

[L]ife is good, sorta. Part 91 can age you some too. We go to the SAME places overandoverandoverandover again. after the second year it has become "Grounhogs Day". It is OK money, but there is very little chance of advancement.

There is a lot of truth in that statement.

This will sound stupid to some, but after a few years of 150-300 hrs a year flying, you will miss the regionals.

One of my buds said, "I sure miss (the RJ). I never thought I would ever say that."

Never thought I would either but a huge part of me does.

the rest of the company employees see you as underworked. Most have no clue why their company needs an airplane.

Didn't you get the memo that pilots are overpaid and underutilized?

Dude, if the grass seems greener on the other side, it's STILL just grass.

Yup. No place is perfect. You trade some issues for others no matter what.

If it actually is greener, nobody is picking up the doggie poo and it needs to be mowed more often.

LOL. That's funny!


One thing I hear about corporate vs airline flying is it is like "Office Space" with wings. As he put it, The Rat Race is mitigated in the airline world by the seniority system to a large degree. "We are just like people in any other area of corporate America except we fly airplanes.". Certainly a take worthy of considering.

"Uhm, listen, I know it is your weekend off but I'm gonna' need you to fly Saturday. All right? Yeah, that would greeeat. Thanks Melvin." LOL

There are pro's and cons for both jobs. You get to bid a schedule and trips. When you are off, for the most part, you are off. In corp, you generally have no schedule and are expected to be available 7 days a week. You may not fly for days or weeks at a time, and the moment you actually make plans, the boss comes up with a 3 day trip to Dustville.

More truth especially the making plans part. I don't know if that is endemic to flying or just a cosmic joke of some sort like Murphy's Law but it sure happens a lot! LOL


Good and bad everywhere. This business is about tradeoffs.

 

[rumrnr78]

CRJCA!!!! Come quick!!!! We need to do an intervention!!!!

Rum....listen to me carefully. Put down the blue koolaid....and *back* away from it.

This from a guy who will be in SFO all day with an afternoon showtime the next day!! Talk about the life. And with CRJCA! An added bonus.

Oh, I forgot, all 3 of us are the same person under different screen names. Hey guys, don't take the brown acid Rum

 

[CRJCA]

Im going to go on record and say I love rumrunnr78. But then again I love myself!

 

[Goose Egg]

For what it's worth, the regionals are sucking the life out of me as well. Granted, it's only coming out about a mm^3 at a time, but sure enough, it's coming out. Parts of being a regional pilot I absolutely love--most of which are in relation to flying to smaller, uncontrolled fields (which is an absolute blast!)

I too am at SkyWest, and it's a good company... for a regional, anyway. I can't remember whether it was in this thread or in another one I read, but someone said something about leaving the airlines after someone had worked so hard to get there. For me, I don't really consider the airlines to be "there." I consider it part of my 'dues paying' to get somewhere else. I figure I've got about 4-5 years of being a regional pilot left in me. If I can find something else before then, all the better.

-Goose

 

[LegacyDriver]

This from a guy who will be in SFO all day with an afternoon showtime the next day!! Talk about the life. And with CRJCA! An added bonus.

Oh, I forgot, all 3 of us are the same person under different screen names. Hey guys, don't take the brown acid Rum

You mean afternoon departure to stay two days and leave early in the morning.

Another mini-vacation! WOOT!!!!!!!!!!!! My hotel room is the size of a PHONE BOOTH. CRJ got the bridal suite or something but not me.

LOL

But wait? If CRJ and I are the same person why is his room different from mine? Hmmmmmmmm....

 

[LegacyDriver]

Im going to go on record and say I love rumrunnr78. But then again I love myself!

If you love Rum then you have to love me also since we are all three "the same person." LOL

 

[Way2Broke]

How can you spend the time and money to become a 121 pilot and so quickly hate it?

I offer the classic......

First of all not everyone spent all that time and money to become a "121 pilot." Even if they did many pilots found out that they spent too much money to become a "121 pilot" because they can't afford those student loan payments on low regional wages. They were sold lies by schools and now have to deal with it.

When it comes to offering "a classic"... classics deal with the past and I believe this poster asked about his future. The cute little song offered up ATRs and Jetstream as regional aircraft. Live in today. CRJs and ERJs rule the regional world.