"winning the lotto"

[jonjuan]

Dumbpilot,

What is their tax rate?

and Dental plan?

 

[Dumb Pilot]

Dumbpilot,

What is their tax rate?

What is ours? you might think that you are paying only 30% (plus your State tax of course) on your wage but then you keep paying tax for everything you buy from a house to a toothbrush, besides I have heard the excuses that it is ok for our salaries to be lower because of taxes and that it is cheaper to live in the corner of "boy you got a pretty mouth" st. and "road kill for dinner" ave. all they are is excuses for us not to feel as bad for being the worst paid pilots of all Industrialized nations. Sorry, I just don't believe the excuses anymore

What's happening here WILL soon impact your foreign airline, like it or not.

I disagree, quite the contrary actually right now what you are seeing is an increment in pay world wide and most companies are experiencing a huge deficit in training and recruiting numbers which is driving the salaries upward.

Anyway, sorry for hijacking the luvfest. I didn't mean to belittle the job at SWA I'm just saying that kind of wages should be the norm.

 

[redflyer65]

How about when you walk in the door at Southwest, you will finish a multi-millionaire. Does that count for anything?

17 day off reserve lines. Once holding a line, it's easy to credit 110+ a month. If you do that, your profit sharing is even higher. Great work rules throughout the contract. Blows regional work rules away.

Southwest or Delta, you can't go wrong as a newhire. When you step up to a major airline contract, it's lightyears ahead of anything else. Not trying to bash anyone, but it's the truth.

 

[Jar Jar]

What is ours? you might think that you are paying only 30% (plus your State tax of course) on your wage but then you keep paying tax for everything you buy from a house to a toothbrush...

Just wanted to expand on this:

Federal Income Tax
State Income Tax
IRS Penalties & Interest
Social Security (a tax for those of us too young to ever get any back)
Federal & State Unemployment Tax
State & Local Sales Taxes
Property Tax
DMV Title/Tag Fees
Gasoline Tax
Luxury Taxes
Sin Taxes
Capital Gains Tax
Gift Tax
Telephone excise Tax
Corporate Income Tax (affects the base price you pay for goods/services)

On top of all those, they have guys hiding in the bushes with laser beams who jump out and take your money!

Finally, when you die they take 30-50% of whatever you had left with the Estate Tax.

 

[Wesb737fo]

Delta, JB... Why am I still here ??? How about the so called recession and age 65. Why would I apply for JB and Virgin, when I want to work for AA or UCAL ?

You're serious.......my brother has been at AA for almost 12 years as an MD-88 FO in DFW.....he tells me he may have a hard line this summer.

 

[Whataburger]

12 days off on Reserve?

That is Delta, not SWA.

Our reserve lines are built to have 15 duty periods. The length of each reserve block can be no longer than 4 days, and there has to be at least 3 days off between reserve blocks.

Our average pilot worked 1,235 TFP last year.
Our average line is built to 18 days off.
Who knows how long you'll commute to OAK.
We are upgrading 10yr FOs right now. New pay approx. $180/trip.
If we had 11yr FOs, they would make about $130/trip.
We've never furloughed. NONE after 9/11.
Our company built lines for a few months below our minimum so that we did not need to furlough. They paid us the difference of what the line paid under the contractual minimum.
Annual profits year after year after year after year after year.
Must be willing to work full days for max days off. It is easy to average 7.5TFP/day.
If you're lucky you'll only have to learn ONE more airplane for the rest of your life.
The guys here that are chomping at the bit the most to fly int'l here have not done it before. It's a young man's game. Recently talked to senior UAL int'l Captain. Said the ONLY reason he flyt int'l is because of the bigger pay for bigger airplane. He said he would fly domestic if it would pay the same fleet-wide.
Longest assignment is 4 days. Just had a DAL jumpseater say he was going to be gone 7 days.
If you want 6 more type ratings, want to drink German beer actually in Germany, if you want to wear a uniform with lots and lots of buttons, if you want the glamour of working for a legacy, SWA is not for you. If you want job security, good pay, lots of days off, 10yr upgrade, don't give a damn what type of jet you fly, can have fun anywhere you overnight, don't need to fill up your ego cup with stories of jet-lagged European tom-foolery, SWA is for you.

 

[Green]

Please explain...I hear being hired by SWA is "winning the LOTTO".... obviously this is for new hires." not current guys and gals...

HOW IS...

Commuting to OAKLAND
Sitting in the right seat for 15+
RSV forever
Commuting on RSV
Flying one airplane
Making 100-150k
12 days off
Very little movement
Buying a type rating for 8k


Winning the lotto...

Not a hater, but with all the old guys and gals at the legacy carriers why would you go to SWA ?

It just goes to show how far the aviation profession has fallen (for pilots, maybe not ATC). Compared to flying 767's at Omni for 66/hr or going to work for US Airways under mr. Parker it sure is close to winning the lotto.

 

[LearLove]

We've never furloughed.

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%.

 

[Green]

How about when you walk in the door at Southwest, you will finish a multi-millionaire. Does that count for anything?

17 day off reserve lines. Once holding a line, it's easy to credit 110+ a month. If you do that, your profit sharing is even higher. Great work rules throughout the contract. Blows regional work rules away.

Southwest or Delta, you can't go wrong as a newhire. When you step up to a major airline contract, it's lightyears ahead of anything else. Not trying to bash anyone, but it's the truth.

"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.

 

[Whaler]

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.

 

[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!