"winning the lotto"

[slaquer5]

A 36 yo new hire at SWA if he avg's 95 tfp a month will earn right around 6 Million just from their normal paycheck by age 65. That's without profit sharing or 401k.

That might be true but how much is left in the bank 30 years down the road after 3 divorces and several bad investments, from the advice of a pilot.

I Kidd, I kidd. Kind of

 

[Stinkbug]

Pretty much everything:

His numbers on days off and income aren't even close. Most lines have 17 days off, there are usually a few with 19. Even reserve lines have 15 to 16 days off. I'm not going to get into pay, that horse seems fairly dead.

He also misses one of the primary reasons pilots were coming here even when the pay lagged: job security.

The pay issue may be a dead horse for some but I don't spend every waking moment on this board. If a newhire has a decade-plus in the right seat to look forward to, what is his real earning potential? I understand you guys have flexibility in picking up extra trips, but on average will an FO make more than the 150k that clarkgriswold quoted?

 

[GuppyWN]

Actually FWIW I believe you guys did furlough back in the 70's off the 727 is I'm not mistaken. Then again I think I read that or got that info from this board maybe sometime 10 years back so I'm not 100%.

Almost. The company sent the furlough letters but the pilot group stepped in and took a paycut to prevent it. So Southwest has still never furloughed a pilot.

Gup

 

[redflyer65]

"you will finish a multi-millionaire." Technically I guess you will probably retire at 65 with over 2 million in your 401k. But that's a far cry from most peoples' idea of a "multi-millionaire." With 2 million in your 401k you can draw 80,000USD per year during retirement without having to worry about exhausting your principle. A far cry from lifestyles of the rich and famous. If you had four million then you would be approaching the value of the senior pilot pensions that were lost at the legacy carriers 10 years ago. Pre 9-11 legacy pilots were retiring with pensions in excess of 150k/year PLUS B plans worth 7 figures.

IMHO no 21st century US Airline pilot is going to become a multi-millionaire unless they do it on their days off. The fact that SWA is such a standout with these payrates/work rules is a good illustration of what has been lost.

You know Green your absolutely right. I tend to be conservative on any numbers I throw out on here..

I've flown with several senior CA who have 4 mil plus. Not anything that your gonna even be close to at the regionals. 9.3% match with profit sharing has been very good for alot of SW pilots. Of course some cashed in some big numbers off stock options, but that's a whole new thread.

 

[redflyer65]

A 36 yo new hire at SWA if he avg's 95 tfp a month will earn right around 6 Million just from their normal paycheck by age 65. That's without profit sharing or 401k.

I'd say that's kinda like winning the lotto CLARK!

 

[Dude]

Stinkbug,

In short, yes.

There are 5 year FOs making $170K+ and I know senior FOs making $200K.

A five year FO with NO extra flying and 17 days off is making $140.

 

[waveflyer]

Almost. The company sent the furlough letters but the pilot group stepped in and took a paycut to prevent it. So Southwest has still never furloughed a pilot.

Gup

And there it is. Certainly the company has never even attempted to take "hostages"

For this cynical bunch- even the WNers- it may not seem like much- but 20%-30% less- when I'm still doing better than most professional anythings- is ok bc Im usually laughing when I'm at work and pretty happy when I finish a trip-

That's a valuable thing to me that I'll be working to keep Air tranners make it over or not.

 

[jonjuan]

A 36 yo new hire at SWA if he avg's 95 tfp a month will earn right around 6 Million just from their normal paycheck by age 65. That's without profit sharing or 401k.

How long to upgrade your newhire in your scenario?

 

[LearLove]

Almost. The company sent the furlough letters but the pilot group stepped in and took a paycut to prevent it. So Southwest has still never furloughed a pilot.

Gup

see there you, learn something new everyday

 

[ivauir]

The pay issue may be a dead horse for some but I don't spend every waking moment on this board. If a newhire has a decade-plus in the right seat to look forward to, what is his real earning potential? I understand you guys have flexibility in picking up extra trips, but on average will an FO make more than the 150k that clarkgriswold quoted?

Stinkbug,

I don't know the averages, but I haven't made below 150 for several years now. There are a lot of variables involved so please take this data with a grain of salt. I assume 110 tfp per month, IMHO fairly easy to do when vacation months are included. This doesn't include the company 401k contribution or the pilot 401k contribution. Also doesn't include profit sharing or upcoming (potential) raises:

First Officer 110 TFP/mo
$49.19 $64,933.44
$82.99 $109,550.76
$92.40 $121,973.28
$102.00 $134,633.40
$111.73 $147,478.32
$116.61 $153,921.24
$119.71 $158,014.56
$122.85 $162,160.68
$124.23 $163,984.92
$127.43 $168,209.05
$128.84 $170,070.38
$130.24 $171,916.80


Hope that helps.