Would You? Fractional Or Reg @hm

[ductleak]

Hey, here is one for you to ponder and debate --

If you were given the chance, would you pick a regional based at home, a fractional based at home, or stick it out at your current regional that you have been with for 11 months? (commuting)

I have the chance to go to a home based regional and the chance to go to a home based fractional! My choices have become more complex... I also could just tough it out and keep commuting! (not likely)

Input greatly appreciated...

 

[JetCapt69]

Tough call

That is a good question. Having been in the regionals, commuting really is a big pain, especially if you are lower on the seniority list and can't get good lines with decent time off.

Is the regional at home an established, safe company? I had a friend that took the "regional job in the backyard" and a month later the company folded.

Ask yourself these quesitons:

Pay. How is my pay going to be affected? More, less, just the same?

Benefits. How are my benefits going to change, better or worse?

Quality of Life. A job at home will improve your quality of life (no brainer there).

Frac or commuter? If you have job offers at both, I would look at the schedule. Your schedule will probably be much better at a fractional, at least the major fracs. No reserve, no phone calls on your days off, usually a set schedule so planning vacations, days off, etc. are much easier.

I was flying a nice jet at a regional when I made the jump to fractional flying. I was even about to make jet captain, but decided the pay, benefits, schedule, etc. were much better at the frac than the airline. 9/11 has made fractional flying much more appealing to those that can afford it, the airlines are slow in hiring and movement has been and will continue to be slow at best.

If you are single, then it is all up to you. If your not, it would be a good idea to sit down with the wife and discuss the pros and cons of both worlds. My wife likes my schedule much better than the regionals and my quality of life is 10x better.

You're in a good position right now, good luck with your decision.

 

[Heavy Set]

If you want to fly for a fractional, wait for Netjets to restart active hiring or go to Flight Options. I would not jump to FlexJet - unless you were offered a seat on the Challenger 300 - now that's a nice airplane... Seriously, wait for Netjets to start active hiring.

 

[fuzzydice]

Not really sure why you offer this advice... Heavy Set.

If I lived in a Flex domicile, i'd definitely consider the company. Movement at all the fractionals has slowed considerably, and time to upgrade isn't counted in months anymore, much less 1 or 2 years.

Flexjet FO's make more money than Netjets. Yes, the CL300 is a sweet machine, but for FO's, it pays the same as a LR45, LR60, or even the CL604.

I'm not sure what progress is being made in your contract negotiations, so forgive me if I speak out of turn here... but I would consider Netjets to be on the verge of some possible labor problems.

Just some things to consider... pros and cons to either place.

 

[Heavy Set]

I know a number of people at Flexjet. They are not happy with three main issues: upgrade time (two guys have been Lear 60 FOs for 4 years), scheduling (now seniority scheduling that is very unfavorable toward low seniority pilots - and Ductleak would be junior for quite some time) and lastly very few pilot bases/gateways (only 4-5 places total - not much flexibility even if you want to move back to Dallas).

Heck, if you could start on the 300/604, live in your dream location (Dallas in this case) and somehow get a decent schedule (although not likely being junior), then great job. Something tells me that is far from certain.

At Netjets, you can still live in Dallas (or 20+ other gateways), fly great equipment (Citation X or G200 or Soveriegn or F2000 wouldn't be too bad), eventually have a 7/7 schedule (if that is your preference) and move up reasonably quickly given the intro of the Beechjet fleet this year. Sure, the movement might not be so fast, but it probably would be faster than Flexjet. Plus, at least you have the "potential" of a good Netjets contract coming up - it's possible...

I know pilots at Flexjet and at Netjets. The Netjets guys are all happy and the Flexjet guys tell me they wish they had chosen Netjets earlier in their careers (one Flexjet guy has his stuff in with Netjets and hopes to change soon).

I wish him luck with his decision. Just remember, patience is a virtue...

 

[Bandit60]

Your absolutly right about the fo's at flex. I happen to know one of those guys that is an LJ60 FO for 4 years. He is a great pilot and could fly circles around most, but he never gets a chance to show his skills because they dont swap seats. I feel bad for him.

 

[Heavy Set]

One of my Flexjet friends was offered a Netjets position but took the Flexjet Lear 60 FO position instead. Had he gone to Netjets, he would be a Citation Excel or X Captain by now instead of just accruing Lear 60 FO time... He is not very happy.

 

[toa2mdt]

the decisions is yours to make,

depends on which regional, upgrade pay and if they are wholly owned??

if i am offered a position at FLOPS this week i will be going. i have been commuting for 3 years for a regional. been here for 6. schedules suck. i am always travelling on my days off so essentially i am doing at best 5 or 6 on and 2 or 3 off. i cannot plan a vacation at all. we dont get our schedules for the next month until about hte 20th of this month! how can you plan any family time with that?

121 time is a great asset if you plan on going to a major, but who is hiring? WN, F9, TZ, HP and what ever jetBlue is?

just my thoughts, thats all

mjm

 

[Heavy Set]

IF you get offered a position at FLOPS or Netjets, go for it. Personally, I would wait for Netjets (I would love to fly a Citation X - I understand the Swift guys fly it for FLOPS).

 

[fuzzydice]

Great stuff... everyone has to figure out what's best for them.

Only thing I saw in the replies was about seat-swapping. Flex let's FO's sit in the left seat. It's been policy for a while, and it's been my personal policy for a lot longer.

The guys are typed and qualified, so to me it doesn't matter what seat they sit in. Not like there's much of a difference in a Learjet. This is, after-all, just hyped-up Part 91 flying.... soon to be 91k, I guess.