What SHOULD Regional Airline Pilots Make?

[Always deferred]

Some questions I've been kicking around with some old pilot friends. Been generating some interesting discussion. Curious to see the responses here.

What would the payscale have to look like for you to consider yourself "adequately" compensated?

Now, say you've just been asked to take the reigns of your company as CEO. Phew, finally someone who "gets it!" A pilot, not some Harvard MBA bean counter. First order of business...How much of a raise do you give your crews to make them happy?

But wait...Your shareholders are barking at you to lower your costs. "We think you're paying your pilots too much!" Your major airline partner is considering submitting RFPs to find new Regional feeds. Now your mechanics and flight attendants and rampers want raises.

What do you do?

 

[kf4amu]

Competitive pay and work rules plus a little extra for goodwill. More importantly be nice and treat your employees as assets not liabilities. It will be returned in spades.

 

[Max Q]

We decide what is adequate by applying for the job in the first place.

Apparently, current pay is adequate. We can't fix this problem. The only people that can fix this problem are the ones who have chosen other career paths.

 

[badog]

fupm

Some questions I've been kicking around with some old pilot friends. Been generating some interesting discussion. Curious to see the responses here.

What would the payscale have to look like for you to consider yourself "adequately" compensated?

Now, say you've just been asked to take the reigns of your company as CEO. Phew, finally someone who "gets it!" A pilot, not some Harvard MBA bean counter. First order of business...How much of a raise do you give your crews to make them happy?

But wait...Your shareholders are barking at you to lower your costs. "We think you're paying your pilots too much!" Your major airline partner is considering submitting RFPs to find new Regional feeds. Now your mechanics and flight attendants and rampers want raises.

What do you do?

flight crew base pay year one
ca = $2.00 per revenue seat per hour
fo = $1.50 per revenue seat per hour
fa = $1.00 per revenue seat per hour
2% pay increase per quarter
perdiem $1.00 per hour domestic $2.00 per hour international
pay up .

 

[callowayhd]

look at the dc9-10 pay rates pre deregulation, that is what 76 seat pay should be today.

 

[Jetjockey]

Not qualifying for food stamps would be a step in the right direction.

 

[Jar Jar]

The pay at the regional level will not be resolved so long as the 'major' partner has the ability to switch out subcontractors without the customer knowing the difference. ASA today, GoJet tomorrow - the customer doesn't know and doesn't care.

Colgan 3407 shows that major airline partners are not willing to take responsibility for the consequences of their regional partner's failures, but the majors are absolutely willing to reap the rewards of reduced costs that are produced by those same failures.

The American public is too naive as a whole to understand that when they buy a ticket (for example) on United.com they are in fact going to be riding on GoJet airlines which is absolutely an inferior product in many ways. However, if it was illegal for an operator to subcontract its routes this whole problem goes away.

 

[Flyby1206]

The pay at the regional level will not be resolved so long as the 'major' partner has the ability to switch out subcontractors without the customer knowing the difference. ASA today, GoJet tomorrow - the customer doesn't know and doesn't care.

Ding ding! We have a winner. Those Harvard MBA CEOs knew what they are doing when it came to the outsourcing/whipsaw game. We as regional carriers dont have an identity or brand name like the mainline partners do. Therefore, we are expendable because another third party can fill our shoes and fly under the banner of a mainline carrier.

Without that brand/identity we have zero leverage. And regionals that have tried to create their own brand name (Indy, Expressjet) have failed.

 

[barondriver]

Re-regulate? Wipe out the WalMart of the airlines, then we could all be paid at "G-Whatever" making more than 100k? Dunno..

 

[bri5150]

flight crew base pay year one
ca = $2.00 per revenue seat per hour
fo = $1.50 per revenue seat per hour
fa = $1.00 per revenue seat per hour
2% pay increase per quarter
perdiem $1.00 per hour domestic $2.00 per hour international
pay up .

So a 900 Captain should make around $150k year one? Seems a bit excessive. (ducks for cover).

 

[Jetjockey]

The pay will get better when ALL flying is done in house, by the mainline seniority list.

 

[badog]

doh!

So a 900 Captain should make around $150k year one? Seems a bit excessive. (ducks for cover).

HAHaha shame on you!
There you have it!
No more 70 / 90 seats at a regional as they are main line a/c anyway right?
Unless you like being a sub contractor for the legacy for inferior wages?
Solves both problems at once doesn't it.
Find out how much of the the ticket price pays your wage and go from there.

 

[bri5150]

HAHaha shame on you!
There you have it!
No more 70 / 90 seats at a regional as they are main line a/c anyway right?
Unless you like being a sub contractor for the legacy for inferior wages?
Solves both problems at once doesn't it.
Find out how much of the the ticket price pays your wage and go from there.

So, I think my math is right. $150k the first year. 2% raises EVERY QUARTER means that a 900 captain would be over $200k by year four or damn close. I am sorry, that is not realistic or economical.

 

[MooneyPilot]

Easy : $50,000 FO
$100,000 captain
Starting

 

[kf4amu]

So, I think my math is right. $150k the first year. 2% raises EVERY QUARTER means that a 900 captain would be over $200k by year four or damn close. I am sorry, that is not realistic or economical.

1000 hours of flying/yr... 200/hr...90 seats/hr = roughly $2.20/hr per seat/hr

So a full flight on a 90 seat aircraft for 2 hours = $3.32 per passenger for the Capts salary if the flight is full. Load factors are 80 percent today, so increase that 3.32 by 20 percent to reflect a per purchased seat cost and you're at about 4 bucks a flight per passenger.

 

[ex j-41]

$35,000 for Captain and F/O. Base Pay for being away from home for 150-200 days/year.
Then $50/hr Captains for 50 Seat Airplanes, $70/hr for 70 etc...
And the F/O's get 60% of that.
Per diem is whatever the cost of a starbucks coffee is. If they raise thier prices $0.10 then our Per Diem goes up that amount.
And
If you get a gay f/a. Per Diem doubles.
Two gay guys and it tripples.
Same goes for the other two G's.

 

[flighttrainer]

FO:40k to start
CA:80k to start

FO:60k top end
CA:120k top end

Enough money to live a decent lifestyle if you choose. Many factors come into play whether or not you stay at a regional. If we are gone 4 full days away from family we should be compensated for it.

 

[bri5150]

FO:40k to start
CA:80k to start

FO:60k top end
CA:120k top end

Enough money to live a decent lifestyle if you choose. Many factors come into play whether or not you stay at a regional. If we are gone 4 full days away from family we should be compensated for it.

That is something I can get on board with.

 

[ex j-41]

FO:40k to start
CA:80k to start

FO:60k top end
CA:120k top end

Enough money to live a decent lifestyle if you choose. Many factors come into play whether or not you stay at a regional. If we are gone 4 full days away from family we should be compensated for it.

Bingo!!!!!

There is more to being an airline pilot than flying airplanes.

 

[Whydoitry]

FO:40k to start
CA:80k to start

FO:60k top end
CA:120k top end

Enough money to live a decent lifestyle if you choose. Many factors come into play whether or not you stay at a regional. If we are gone 4 full days away from family we should be compensated for it.

Starting pay yes, the end pay no, unless you are talking about just min guarantee at 70-75hrs.