The silence is deafening!!

[furlodpilot]

Its been a week and a half now since it was revelaed there would be a Jan. 12th SWA class. Since then, about 5 fellow poolies have revealed the great news that they have been in fact contacted by LL. It appears that the pool accuracy factor is right on, so where are the remaining registered poolies who have gotten the Christmas gift? i.e the call. I know the CP calls don't go out till Dec. 8th, but I guess its a combination of my curiosity or just sheer anticipation that the pool may finally be getting drained (current poolie#47) that has me making this post.
Once again, congrats to those who have received the call and are on their way to the best job in aviation today. And to those who have received the call and haven't revealed it to the forum, share the joy!! I am sure there are others besides myself who are bubbling with anticipation as the time draws closer to being plucked out the pool and would like to know where they stand.
On a side note, has anyone heard of rumors of uninterrupted classes after the Jan 12th class, or is it still rumored that February will be a month off for the training department? Any insight would be appreciated.

 

[GLIB2]

lighten up Francis.

 

[CoopDog]

Mailman,

Just get our packages here in time for Christmas. You have a job to do. We have one to look forward to.

Everyone is entitled to be excited about their new job. So cut 'em some slack.

 

[BIGBROWNDC8]

Coopdog,

Im not really sure how to respond to your post except to tell you that your comments (just deliver my packages by Christmas) got under my skin... as if you can just dismiss us "freightdawgs" as insugnificant. I respect everyone in this industry and Id expect you to do the same (especially since it appears from your profile that you dont have a senority number yet)

I get the felling on this messege board sometimes, (refer to the previous post) that there are alot of people out there that believe us "freightdawgs" are some fly by night outfit that makes lower than industry standard wages and have no type of retirment or work rules. In case no one is paying attention, here is a glimps of what I do, I average 100 to 150 flight hours a year, Garenteed 75 hours of pay, (13) times a year, its great, I get paid very nicely and dont have to actually wiggle the sticks alot to get it. A fund and B fund, 401K plan and Stocks purchases at a discount. If you want the BEST job stability in the airline industry, industry leading pay, benifits and well (to keep it real), "not always the best but decent" work rules, freight is where its at. Sure Freight its not for everyone, but in the tradition of keeping it real, neither might be say 5-7 legs a day, 3-5 days a week, for the next 20 years.

Sorry to go off, just feel we "dawgs" need to get a little respect sometimes... Fly safe all...

 

[MDP727]

Amen Bigbrown,
Now lets give a big thanks to the real freightdawgs, the folks who fly all the **CENSORED****CENSORED****CENSORED****CENSORED** when everyone else is sleeping with no contracts and no big pay and no a fund and no b fund and no rules at all. Folks that carry haz-mat that ups and fedex dont know exists.
OG of faternal order of sleepless nights

 

[350DRIVER]

but in the tradition of keeping it real, neither might be say 5-7 legs a day, 3-5 days a week, for the next 20 years.

Amen. I flew em once and will Greyhound it before I will ever fly them again. Nothing more than a "glorified" bus in the air. No swa for I.

3 5 0

 

[pipejockey]

I feel I gotta keep it going here.
I couldnt agree with you more BIGBROWN and Mailman.
I'd be curious to know what percentage of pilots would take an SWA job offer over a UA, AA, DA, NWA, US, CO, job offer prior to 9/11? Except for Delta and Northwest who havent accepted concessions YET, and Continental who was at the bottom of the payscales of the big 6 I've just mentioned before all the contract cuts, the others have taken huge concessions in pay and QOL. Why? Because they can't compete with the LCC's operating under their old contracts.

While the LCC's have expanded considerably during the worst time in the industrys history, the big 6 have contracted. The LCC's have taken much of the passenger traffic from the legacy carriers. Passenger traffic that was formerly taken care of by the legacy carriers which provided a very lucrative career for a professional aviator. There is only a finite amount of passenger traffic, and the more the LCC's expand the less of it there is for the legacy carriers. So we will never see the likes of contracts like UA, US had and Delta has (for the time being) if they must compete with the LCC's that come nowhere close to what the big 6 offered 2+ years ago.

Not only that but the legacy carriers will not be able to grow as they once did, creating even less oppurtunity with them in the future. I read on the regional message board all the bickering about the race to the bottom. And the contempt that some have for Mesa and the like....well whats really the difference here with the JB's and SWA's? They are growing at the expense of legacy carriers that once afforded a pilot a wonderful lifestyle and QOL.

 

[WrightAvia]

Amen BIGBROWNDC8.

 

[juan2go]

GET A LIFE FOLKS!!!

"Freight Dogs", "Glorified Bus Drivers"........Aren't we all just pilots trying to make a living and take care of our families?

I'm glad that not everyone on this forum wants to fly for the same company, and that those enjoying a nice spot on someones seniority list are proud of their company and their working conditions. Funny how we like to get pumped up with pride and go on about how great "our" job is. And you know, that's the way it should be, if you're fortunate.

Cheers to those that are where they want to be, and good luck to those that are still trying.

Thanks for listening.

 

[AF757Pilot]

CHILDREN!

I have said it here as much as I say it at home to my daughters: CHILDREN! Don't make me pull this computer over!

I think all of you are being overly sensitive.

furlodpilot was just stating an opinion. Opinion's can't be wrong.

Coopdog was not trying to be mean or disrespectful (My opinion, which can't be wrong remember). I thought his comment was funny, and I do have the utmost respect for the UPS and Fedex drivers out there. I spent a great deal of the last 4 years at UPS doing 757 training (AF Contract training) and they are OUTSTANDING! We all need to lighten up A LOT and quit looking for a fight. Juan2go has it right. Pride is running your mouths to much (IMHO).

I'm sorry if my opinions stated above have hurt any of your overly sensitive feelings.

AF (ex)

 

[Beerme]

Amen. I flew em once and will Greyhound it before I will ever fly them again. Nothing more than a "glorified" bus in the air. No swa for I.

3 5 0

You must mean "flew em once" from a pax viewpoint because by looking at the aircraft you've flown in past, your hardly qualified to know what it's like to "fly them" from the front end.

If flying as a pax compares to Greyhound, pax have no one to blame but themselves...you get what you pay for.

 

[PTinbound]

Bigbrown,

In Coop's defense, it seems like you may be putting words into his mouth here that he really didn't say. He's unemployed, and I'll probably be unemployed before my class date, so please understand that we are very excited about the very best opportunity in aviation that is AVAILABLE TO US. Fact. My opinion, the best opportunity period (for many other than financial reasons), but perhaps that's just the Kool-Aid talking. I can't or won't ever say anything bad about UPS except this: Good luck trying to get on there! The fact is, while the hard pay and bennies are better at UPS, it's darn near impossible to get on there for an average joe who doesn't know 16 people there and is related to the CEO. So in the real world, with SWA hiring about 400 next year, this becomes the more realistic hope for many. Anyway, I really don't think Coop meant to dismiss anyone as "freightdogs" in a bad way, I think it was more of a "you can be excited about your job, and I can be excited with mine" statement. Anyone here who wants to put down Fedex or UPS clearly is speaking out of ignorance.

And speaking of ignorance, Pipejockey is about to earn a hollowed place among flightinfo's greatest, right up there with Mr. Lowembr. Sure, Pre 9-11, there were a lot of people who went to the big 4 over SWA, and several others who actually quit SWA to go to them. They were merely chasing the biggest paycheck and didn't see the big picture. Ask them now if they regret that decision.
Then, in 2002, while the other majors were taking concessions, SWA got a big raise and continued to expand. While I don't have exact figures, I'd be willing to guess that by 2005 SWA will employ some of the best paid 737 drivers in the country (next to DAL). Add to that all of the other non-financial good things about SWA, and I ask you: Now who is leading the race to the bottom? I've been working for a big 4 feeder, ALPA member, for almost 6 years now and my job has never been more insecure. No thanks. You are correct that the LCC's are growing at the expense of the legacy carriers. Their legacy's leadership rules with an iron fist, pitting one employee group against another, and one regional against another or against mainline. They rule over their employees with fear and intimidation. Work for less or I'll give your job to someone else. Now the folks at SWA and Jetblue know that people don't respond well to that. It's not a good way to get a loyal, productive employee. Whether it's out of the goodness of their hearts or just fantastic business sense I don't know or care (though I think it's both), but they know how to treat their people well. And they do!

 

[AF757Pilot]

Back on the Road

Now to get this thread back on track: There may be fellow poolies that do not want to announce anything until they let their current employer know of their departure. That won't happen until after the "official" calls come next week from the CP. So, you may find the pool draining more the next week or two. Keep in mind that CE750driver (#20 on the un-official list) has been called. That is great news that they reached so deep in the pool to fill a class of 20.

AF

 

[Beerme]

....... the others have taken huge concessions in pay and QOL. Why? Because they can't compete with the LCC's operating under their old contracts.

Again, wisdom spouted from someone whose time is in single engine Cessna's. PPLLLZZZZ.

The reason why the carriers you listed have had to take big pay cuts is mainly because of managements bad decisions. Wasting millions on trying to start up a fractional jet operation, trying to merge with USAir, starting own LCC operating out of your own hub to compete against yourself, buying TWA, etc, etc, the list goes on and on.

And once again, it's the employees who are asked to step up and sacrifice in order to save the company from mgt's bad mistakes. And once again, we have to listen to ignorant people like you mouth off about "Death to the legacy carriers!!!"

Let me ask you...how is Joe Blow going to get to Tokyo from Podunk, USA after all the legacy carriers go under? He won't even have commuter service outta Podunk. "Oh, well, the LCC's are getting RJ's to fill in the gap." OK, then do they fly 737's or A320's to Tokyo from mainland? "Oh, well, then they'll get 747's to do that." After doing all that, what do you have?

Looks like a legacy carrier to me!

 

[CoopDog]

Sorry, but I had no idea that the freight guys were so in tune the doings of the poolies at Southwest.....or cared.

First of all, let's get one thing straight. I don't dismiss anyone here on this board as "insignificant," especially the freight guys. I have more respect for you guys than you think. Why would you think you're not respected anyhow? Never did understand that.

That said, I'm not going to criticize any pilot on this board for getting excited about his or her job. And it just gets "under my skin" when someone else does. Most of us here are here because we're either furloughed, unemployed, or looking to move to a better job. That's what we're doing on the Majors-Interview Board.

If you're happy at your current job at your dream airline, what are you doing here in the first place? It's an interview forum.... It's no place to start criticizing one another. What's so difficult about reading a guy's post about his excitement about his new job and just letting it go? Most people are here because they are looking for encouragement, information, and the friendly banter that is exhibited on this board....not all the other BS. Just try the General forum if it's BS you want (seems to be plenty of that there).

My basic point in responding here, to summarize, is to just let a dog have his day....don't kick him when he's down. If he's excited about his job, let 'em say his thing, and send him an "Atta Boy" or just move on.

I apologize if I got under anyone's skin....never my intention.

Coop

 

[HOUMAN]

Wow, talk about hijacking a thread!!

Anyways, I believe that "Fredman" on the SWA poolie list will be in the January class. I have only heard it through word of mouth and can't confirm it.

Also, has anyone posted the SWA aircraft delivery schedule for 2004 yet?? Thanks everyone for keeping the thread on track.

 

[SWAbigdaddy]

Being a 2nd year guy at SWA, I would leave for FedEx or UPS in a second. I would run not walk. I left a job that i loved looking for that greener grass. I'd rather fly a plane full of boxes that don't complain than fly around a plane with three boxes that complain all the time. I know guys here at SWA who were at FedEx or UPS, just woundering if there many SWA guys that left for UPS or FedEx. I need more in my life than these multiple domestic legs week after week. The biggest news here since i started is the winglets on the 737s. Now everyone thinks they fly a bigger airplane. WOW. Everyone feels the LUV, by management giving nothing, then giving just little so you feel like got something. If they were to give us something like crew meals which are standard at other airlines, I think everyone would just cry and bend over for thanks.

Just venting! Think twice before leaving a job you love for that greener patch of grass.

 

[Vladimir Lenin]

wow, so not everyone at LUV is brainwashed to heII and back

 

[pipejockey]

Why should Vladi be working on any ratings? Maybe he doesnt want any more ratings or perhaps he just started flying recently. I'm no rocket scientist but I bet you had 200 some hours at one point in your life. I'm always surprised at how freely the personal insults come when some people just voice their opinions on this board.

 

[SWAdude]

bigdaddy,

I think you were the miserable puke I flew with last week. You are certainly in the minority.

Don't worry. You try hard enough you can get a job somewhere else so you can take your misery over there.

I've said this once and i'll say it again, some here at SWA would be happier at lets say AA. I know from experience that some just love to hate their jobs.