Gilligan13

Don't do it, if you think airlines are stable you're sadly mistaken. I don't understand why everyone talks about the money. So what if you make 180K to be a bus driver compared to 200K. The benefits will be worth it.

Spike from flyi

I wholeheartedly agree with Gilligan13. 15 years ago, or so, many airline captains at the legacy carriers would advise me to quit the guard when I was commuting to drill on their flights. They said, I could make more by picking up trips, and that the risk of being mobilized was just not worth it. Now I'm very glad I didn't listen to them. They all had their precious defined benefit retirement plans stolen by greedy bosses. I subsequently got enough active duty for a full-time military retirement. I have the medical benefits for myself and my family,and a check that hits every month, like clockwork. Now I can afford to do this job. Don't quit at 15 years. You will regret it. You have the protection of the law on your side. Five years will pass very quickly.

rickair7777

x2. After the BK shakeups at the legacies, I had no fewer than three major airline pilots working for me in the reserves as JO's. They were all older and would have been senior to me in the military but had dropped out after they got their legacy jobs. Now they're back after ten years of gapped service trying to finish up.

Probably better to just stay in and finish rather than realize you screwed up and try to get back in later, in an unknown budget environment.

Yes, it does go by fast.

Spike from flyi

Only an imbecile, or a company shill would assert that airlines do not dicriminate against guard and reserve members!

http://www.airlinepilotforums.com/ca...nks-fedex.html

rickair7777

Lighten up francis. Sounds like you may have found a company which has a hard spot for reservists. As a reservist, senior officer, and former CO, CSO, & XO, most airlines do not discriminate against reserves in my experience (and the experience of most of my peers).

That's not to say they don't require occasional education as to the rules but in the grand scheme the airline sector is a lot better than the white-collar world...I imagine you haven't tried the latter.

I don't expect the company to grant me sexual favors as a reward for military service. I just expect them to follow the rules (and recognize the right answer when told). I won't be nominating them for any employer recognition if that makes you feel better.

I'm also not surprised that the airline lobbysist would seek to change USERRA, but I'm not too worried...that's probably going to be an uphill battle for them until congress and the public forget 9/11.