Whats with Pinnacle..........

[CrownandCoke]

IMO, what instructing gave me was the ability to make decisions. That PIC time is huge. I didn't realize it at the time, but now when a captain can ask me what we should do, not because he doesn't know what to do but simply because he wants to see what decision I would make, it feels good.

Believe me Rich, I'm not cocky. I know I got lucky to get this job so young

 

[Lear70]

I'm doin good, how YOU doin?

This job is GREAT! Pay kinda sucks, but 1st year pay sucks just about everywhere. Oddly enough, because it put me in a different tax bracket, it was only a $1,000 a month pay diff over 5th year PCL CA pay, go figure. Family's doing great, baby's a LOT of fun, getting more time off, flying a lot with long overnights (14-18 hours is the average), just waiting to see what happens with our contract. It's AMAZING what an improvement in the way you're treated can make on your overall happiness - some of the PCL people probably wouldn't recognize me, I have so little to gripe about here.

Crown, that's great that you recognize the opportunity and learning curve your job provides. Like I said, the majority of the 'Streamers were good guys that, luckily enough, didn't have anything major happen while they were still inexperienced and came to be great pilots and were almost always fun people to fly with to begin with anyway.

I just hope and pray something like 3701 doesn't happen again, this time with people on board, and a major contributor is, again, an extremely low-time pilot in the right seat who might have broken the chain of events before it became deadly... The only CERTAIN way to make sure low-time isn't a contributor is to raise the 121 employment minimums and an ATP is probably the best way I know how to do that in a fair, equitable way.

 

[e=mc2]

Couple points you guys miss.

First, Pinnacle has a bunch of Tools working for them: Captain in the right seat of a plane that crashes, captain going 4 wheeling in MKE, wrong runway takeoffs.

Second, although other places also hire low time pilots the standards for the hiring are different and what happens after they walk through the door is very different. That is the T word. Training at Eagle and others is excellent, and comparing them or others to Pinnacle is like comparing Harvard to North Arkansas School of Ditch Digging. Pinnacle averages a 20% washout rate (for those of you in Memphis means some classes are a lot higher a few lower). No company that wants to make money would tolerate that level of continuous revolving door training.

Make all the remarks you care to, the actions of the pilot group have established your reputation as Tools.

 

[hesborn2fly]

Couple points you guys miss.

First, Pinnacle has a bunch of Tools working for them: Captain in the right seat of a plane that crashes, captain going 4 wheeling in MKE, wrong runway takeoffs.

Second, although other places also hire low time pilots the standards for the hiring are different and what happens after they walk through the door is very different. That is the T word. Training at Eagle and others is excellent, and comparing them or others to Pinnacle is like comparing Harvard to North Arkansas School of Ditch Digging. Pinnacle averages a 20% washout rate (for those of you in Memphis means some classes are a lot higher a few lower). No company that wants to make money would tolerate that level of continuous revolving door training.

Make all the remarks you care to, the actions of the pilot group have established your reputation as Tools.

I suppose you are one of those who washed out. Don't sweat it there is always flight sim. And you could probably even download an RJ in airlink colors and pretend like you passed.

 

[TurboAWD]

e=mc2 is right about one thing... The "training" at 9E is a joke. It varies from barely acceptable to unbelievably bad.

Turbo

 

[Lear70]

Couple points you guys miss.

First, Pinnacle has a bunch of Tools working for them: Captain in the right seat of a plane that crashes, captain going 4 wheeling in MKE, wrong runway takeoffs.

And for every tool, there's probably 100 good guys. That's a pretty sh*tty generalization to make about a pretty large group of pilots.

It's also complete crap, given that every major airline out there who is hiring continues to hire PCL Captains (and F/O's) every single month. Your opinions aren't backed by the HR departments at the majors. That would make you, more than likely, WRONG.

Second, although other places also hire low time pilots the standards for the hiring are different and what happens after they walk through the door is very different. That is the T word. Training at Eagle and others is excellent, and comparing them or others to Pinnacle is like comparing Harvard to North Arkansas School of Ditch Digging. Pinnacle averages a 20% washout rate (for those of you in Memphis means some classes are a lot higher a few lower). No company that wants to make money would tolerate that level of continuous revolving door training.

NO company that hires low-time pilots has a good enough training department to substitute for experience.

If you even TRY to argue that it does, it will only add to our already-low opinion of you.

Make all the remarks you care to, the actions of the pilot group have established your reputation as Tools.

And your actions in posting such virulent stream of bull******************** have firmly established YOUR reputation at a Tool here on Flightinfo. Well-done. :erm:

 

[PCL_128]

some of the PCL people probably wouldn't recognize me, I have so little to gripe about here.

If you're not griping, then what do you talk about in the crew room? This is a completely foreign concept to me.

 

[Lear70]

If you're not griping, then what do you talk about in the crew room? This is a completely foreign concept to me.

I *knew* I wasn't going to get away with saying that without someone jumping on it... LOL

It's not perfect, but such a VAST improvement that it's easy to ignore the contract negotiation problems that plague us just as much as you guys (about the only downside I've found so far).

One of these days the honeymoon will be over, but for now...

 

[No one]

Couple points you guys miss.

First, Pinnacle has a bunch of Tools working for them: Captain in the right seat of a plane that crashes, captain going 4 wheeling in MKE, wrong runway takeoffs.

Second, although other places also hire low time pilots the standards for the hiring are different and what happens after they walk through the door is very different. That is the T word. Training at Eagle and others is excellent, and comparing them or others to Pinnacle is like comparing Harvard to North Arkansas School of Ditch Digging. Pinnacle averages a 20% washout rate (for those of you in Memphis means some classes are a lot higher a few lower). No company that wants to make money would tolerate that level of continuous revolving door training.

Make all the remarks you care to, the actions of the pilot group have established your reputation as Tools.

Just out of curiousity, what perfect airline do you work for, Einstein?

 

[Rook]

I suppose you are one of those who washed out. Don't sweat it there is always flight sim. And you could probably even download an RJ in airlink colors and pretend like you passed.

:beer: Big Ups, hesborn. L70? Howthahellareya?!

 

[de727ups]

"I think that UPS used to use something like an AST years ago but I don't know for sure"

Yes, they did, in 1990. They have big using big sims for years, though.

 

[Lear70]

ROOK! My brutha from anotha mutha... Still kickin it live in D-town?

When you coming down to be social and all that? Having ourselves a BLAST down here!!

 

[CrownandCoke]

Make all the remarks you care to, the actions of the pilot group have established your reputation as Tools.

so based on the actions of a couple pilots, I am stuck at Pinnacle the rest of my life?

I guess I've accepted my fate...

 

[Charty]

Not-the-Mamma!

What show was that? You fly around the NW side of Cuba?

 

[Salukipilot4590]

Uh, while I do think there is a lot of BS ragging on 9E guys, let's just be clear:

None of what you said above makes you a good pilot, or a professional. You certainly may be (most likely, even). But the above doesn't mean jack. And while there are many pilots with lots of experience that don't know their head from their a**, experience is still valuable. Expecially when you only have 200-1000tt. I remember some Gulfstreamers talking about how they didn't want to "waste their time" flight instructing. Let me tell you, flight instructing is not a "waste of time". Not saying you need 2000 dual give, but 300 hours of it sure will give you a new perspective.

I'm just saying, don't get too cocky.

Turbo

He|| I've only got about 100 DG and I see flying in a completely different light! Flight instructing is the best thing I have ever done for myself, abeit in a 141 environment. I still have a LONG way before I feel I should apply for a 121 operator though.

 

[Top Gum]

It's also complete crap, given that every major airline out there who is hiring continues to hire PCL Captains (and F/O's) every single month. Your opinions aren't backed by the HR departments at the majors. That would make you, more than likely, WRONG.


This is true... For the past three months my captains have been hired by majors. Two went to FEDEX and one to SWA. I here that the FEDEX training dept has had good luck with PCL guys. It is great to actually see the majors hire so many of our guys.

My class adj. was 3000. I had 1600 hrs.
There is some low time hiring but I don't personally know of any.
7 months reserve.
My guess is 3 1/2 years to upgrade
Yes, the training dept is bad but they are working very hard to improve.