What Would You Do ?

[flybynav1965]

i was in the same boat, and decided to try to get on with a major. at skywest, i was a 10yr guy, enjoying holidays off, and pretty much the pick of schedules. i honestly thought i'd retire there. but, after much discussion with my wife, i elected to at least try, knowing that i'd never look back saying "i should have applied at..." thankfully i passed muster at LUV, and i'm thrilled to be here. now, i'm at 3rd year pay, making more than a 10 year captain.
but, there is something to be said for flying at a smaller company, at a smaller domicile. i always knew who i was flying with, about their life, and their was a natural bond that grows after flying with someone multiple times over the course of years. that is gone flying at a huge company like LUV. that being said, the quality of life, work schedules, pay, and efficiency make the decision a no brainer.

good luck on your career.

NAV

 

[Chairman]

Spend the next 5 years getting yourself in the position to make the move. You won't know if it was right or wrong until the day you retire. I left 100k Regional Captain job for 26k at UAL. I thought I was in the begining of the next hiring wave being in one of the first few classes run in 7 years. Age 65 passed, and oil when through the roof. Now I am enjoying a very long furlough. Not bitter because made sure we were set up financially with low overhead if things hit the fan to buy us enough time to find something else. Not sure if there will be much of a job to go back to but I made the decision with my wife together. As we will when the recall comes, back to first year pay to commute to ORD. Good luck Either way

 

[stb]

Look back at the other regional airlines during the time when you were hired by your current airline. How many of those are out of business or severely smaller today?

Regional airlines have the same business problems as legacy's, but the regionals are also at the mercey of the major airline they feed. (Comair, Atlantic Coast, ExpressJet) In addition, regionals airlines are low bidding to feed the major airlines. Who would have thought Mesa would have 50+ airplanes looking for a flying feed.

Send out the apps, get the interview, get hired then decide. I'm sure you wont look back.

 

[igneousy2]

Be selective - but go!

I would be in my 11th year at Eagle now..instead, I'm furloughed from my airline...and the truth is...I would STILL rather be furloughed from Alaska than be a Captain at Eagle. The pay potential is obvious, especially for someone in there 30's. What others have said is true...a major on the worst day is still better than a regional on the best.

It's not just the schedules either...

The dispatchers are better, the rampers are generally better, the flight attendants...okay never mind.

Additionally, even though there are ******************************-bags at every company, and not that there aren't any great pilots at the regionals...but there is a HUGE leap in average experience and knowledge when you make the jump. You learn a lot more by flying with a 25,000 hour Captain that has seen some things flying then you do with a 500 hour liability in the right seat.

And...if you are interested in doing something on the side...the ideas have gotten way better. Subway franchise owners, McDonalds owners, apartment buildings, commercial real estate, Trailer parks, web design consultants, antique car leasing to movie studios, fishing charter, house boat rentals, mortgage brokers...There are a lot of pilots - none seem to be posting on this board - that have really turned flying into a hobby...there seems to be a lot more of them at Alaska then at Eagle.

 

[spacecadet1]

Remember as a kid at those Thanksgiving gatherings when you had to sit at the little kids table? And you wondered what it was like to sit with the adults? Well now is your chance. Don't f--k it up!

 

[PHXFLYR]

I don't know. Having sat at both "tables " during the course of my career, I would say that sitting at one or the other was "six of one and half dozen of another ",especially with the cut in pay, benefits and in most cases the elimination of the pensions for future new hires that the legacies experienced over the last several years. But if youre the kind of pilot that has to define your self-worth by the size of the airplane you fly ,then by all means ,go for it.....


PHXFLYR

 

[glasspilot]

This is the single most depressing thread ever. "Come on over. It was your goal as a kid right? Sure the pay and retirement are gone and we're worked to the bone...but it's what you used to want...right?"

and..."I'm a 10 year regional Captain. I made the move and am all the better for it. Sure I'm furloughed now...but it's still way better"

Why don't you all just stab yourselves in the throat? Do you realize what you've become? I swear to God!

Pathetic!!!!

gp

 

[CLARKGRSWOLD]

And how is being furloughed way better than making 85k ?

 

[General Lee]

And how is being furloughed way better than making 85k ?

You could be hit by an airport tug tomorrow and die too. 85K is good pay, but you will make that by year 3 at a Legacy, and then go up from there. Think of it this way. Your wife wants new boobs. On your salary, you can afford 1 now, and then another later. At a legacy after year 3, you can buy her 2 new boobs, so other people can look at them while you are on your 10 day trip to Asia (where you will be looking at other boobs). Overall, going to a legacy will give you as many boobs as you want, while you turn into one while eating first class meals across a big ocean. It's a lot better than 5 or 6 legs a day to places you have already been to hundreds of times. EXPAND YOUR MIND A BIT.


Bye Bye--General Lee

 

[Pocono Pilot]

OMG, I am soooo laughing at anyone who leaves a $100k plus regional job to get furloughed at a major and says they made the right move. LOL yeah right. Try again Alex, for $100. LOL

Serouisly, is everyone on this topic braindead?? LOL.