Air Cargo Carriers
01-02-2012, 07:11 AM
#12
Line Holder
Joined APC: Dec 2010
Position: LR-45/CE-525/CE-550
Posts: 61
Originally Posted by FlyJSH
(for the record, I have no experience with Air Cargo Carriers except for a buddy I met who tied down next to my 208)
"To be honest I wasnt too impressed at the panel interview portion, everyone seemed like they didnt want to be there and the head of training was chewing tobacco and spitting it in a cup sitting right next to me...I mean if you need a chew that bad, take a break! In a interview, you have to be kidding me"
Congratulations, you just need to get fitted for your double breasted uniform. You already have the "these people are below me" attitude required for the old school Delta.
Have you ever been to a national union meeting (I'll guess no)? They are held in the afternoon and several of the freight guys are nodding off. Why? Because the rest of the world works when the sun is shining and freight dawgs don't. At a prior company, we did all of our training from sunset to sunrise to insure the new hire knew what he was getting into.
If it were up to me, every pilot would fly boxes (or haul jumpers, tow banners, or be the company president's b!tch). It teaches one that we are not just a bunch of 9-5ers: we will be away from home, work crappy hours, and miss little Billy's soccer game (Waaaa!).
This job requires a bunch of sacrifices. Some of us understand them and are willing to make them. But the crybabies and homebodies that only see "I will be making a zillion dollars and have free travel" have torn down the industry because they thought they found a shortcut.
Professionalism has many definitions. Chewing Tobacco isn't in my definition (assuming he hits the spittoon).
By the way, many 121 companies won't be able to tell you which base you will get.... some won't even be able to tell you which airframe.
"To be honest I wasnt too impressed at the panel interview portion, everyone seemed like they didnt want to be there and the head of training was chewing tobacco and spitting it in a cup sitting right next to me...I mean if you need a chew that bad, take a break! In a interview, you have to be kidding me"
Congratulations, you just need to get fitted for your double breasted uniform. You already have the "these people are below me" attitude required for the old school Delta.
Have you ever been to a national union meeting (I'll guess no)? They are held in the afternoon and several of the freight guys are nodding off. Why? Because the rest of the world works when the sun is shining and freight dawgs don't. At a prior company, we did all of our training from sunset to sunrise to insure the new hire knew what he was getting into.
If it were up to me, every pilot would fly boxes (or haul jumpers, tow banners, or be the company president's b!tch). It teaches one that we are not just a bunch of 9-5ers: we will be away from home, work crappy hours, and miss little Billy's soccer game (Waaaa!).
This job requires a bunch of sacrifices. Some of us understand them and are willing to make them. But the crybabies and homebodies that only see "I will be making a zillion dollars and have free travel" have torn down the industry because they thought they found a shortcut.
Professionalism has many definitions. Chewing Tobacco isn't in my definition (assuming he hits the spittoon).
By the way, many 121 companies won't be able to tell you which base you will get.... some won't even be able to tell you which airframe.
Thanks for your words of wisdom. I was trying to help, with a insight to the interview, which was what the OP was asking for...
01-12-2012, 08:25 PM
#15
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Dec 2007
Posts: 216
Originally Posted by JetSpeed10
Apply! They are hurting for pilots so I believe they will look at anything. I know a captain who works for them.
01-17-2012, 08:10 AM
#17
New Hire
Joined APC: Jan 2012
Posts: 6
I worked there several years ago so you may find fresher info but I seriously doubt what I'm going to tell you has changed much:
QOL and morale are low, turnover is high. You will fly stinky, old, worn out freight planes full of god knows what to some of the more backwater destinations you could ever think of. Planes will break frequently; they will be fixed less frequently. You will fly in weather that you never thought possible. Arriving late is completely unacceptable. You will grow to dislike the sight of the sun and daytime flying. All of this BTW, is SOP in the 135 cargo would.
At ACC, the good news is: The checks always clear and they don’t have a history of laying people off. You cant say that about many 135 cargo outfits. And you get to fly the SD3, the Irish Concorde. Anybody can fly a round plane; it takes a real pilot to fly a square. Seriously, the Shorts is a great first multi turbine. Easy systems, slow ref speeds. Pretty tough to get into too much trouble, with that thing.
The bad is: ACC used to be the "Best of the worst", from what I hear; it has now slipped back toward the middle of the pack. I hear the company is struggling financially. (Which one’s aren't) I also hear that the airline side of the business has been in bad shape for some time and the end of the Iraq contract has really hurt the company overall. (That is at least "third-hand" info, so take it for what it's worth.)
It's true, you wont know where you will be based until ground school is over or almost over. This is due to their route structure and will likely never change. The big difference between this situation and the regionals is, you can’t commute. You work Mon night thru Sat morning (most routes). Good luck jump seating home and back in 48 hours. BTW, if you don’t get back in time for work Monday night, you'll be fired. If you go there be willing to move to any of the bases. (Don’t know what they are now but rest assured, you won’t find too many "garden spots") Beckley, WV comes to mind.
If you get on one of the higher flight time routes, you can build time quickly and upgrade or move on. Also, be ready to sign a non-prorated training contract. They take this very seriously and have gone after pilots who didn’t pay.
Typical 135 cargo stuff, there is a reason very few people stay with this kind of flying for more than a year or two. My time there was very valuable. I'm happy I did it, but even happier I got out.
Good luck to you
BTW, In my opinion, Chewing tobacco during an interview is incredibly unprofessional, and the fact that the CP and/or HR person didn’t stop it tells you something. 135 Cargo or not, If I'm expected to be in a suit, you shouldn't have a dip in. Have some respect for the other people in the room. Not to mention what a disgusting habit that is in general. Just my opinion.
QOL and morale are low, turnover is high. You will fly stinky, old, worn out freight planes full of god knows what to some of the more backwater destinations you could ever think of. Planes will break frequently; they will be fixed less frequently. You will fly in weather that you never thought possible. Arriving late is completely unacceptable. You will grow to dislike the sight of the sun and daytime flying. All of this BTW, is SOP in the 135 cargo would.
At ACC, the good news is: The checks always clear and they don’t have a history of laying people off. You cant say that about many 135 cargo outfits. And you get to fly the SD3, the Irish Concorde. Anybody can fly a round plane; it takes a real pilot to fly a square. Seriously, the Shorts is a great first multi turbine. Easy systems, slow ref speeds. Pretty tough to get into too much trouble, with that thing.
The bad is: ACC used to be the "Best of the worst", from what I hear; it has now slipped back toward the middle of the pack. I hear the company is struggling financially. (Which one’s aren't) I also hear that the airline side of the business has been in bad shape for some time and the end of the Iraq contract has really hurt the company overall. (That is at least "third-hand" info, so take it for what it's worth.)
It's true, you wont know where you will be based until ground school is over or almost over. This is due to their route structure and will likely never change. The big difference between this situation and the regionals is, you can’t commute. You work Mon night thru Sat morning (most routes). Good luck jump seating home and back in 48 hours. BTW, if you don’t get back in time for work Monday night, you'll be fired. If you go there be willing to move to any of the bases. (Don’t know what they are now but rest assured, you won’t find too many "garden spots") Beckley, WV comes to mind.
If you get on one of the higher flight time routes, you can build time quickly and upgrade or move on. Also, be ready to sign a non-prorated training contract. They take this very seriously and have gone after pilots who didn’t pay.
Typical 135 cargo stuff, there is a reason very few people stay with this kind of flying for more than a year or two. My time there was very valuable. I'm happy I did it, but even happier I got out.
Good luck to you
BTW, In my opinion, Chewing tobacco during an interview is incredibly unprofessional, and the fact that the CP and/or HR person didn’t stop it tells you something. 135 Cargo or not, If I'm expected to be in a suit, you shouldn't have a dip in. Have some respect for the other people in the room. Not to mention what a disgusting habit that is in general. Just my opinion.
01-17-2012, 03:13 PM
#19
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Jan 2008
Posts: 380
The bad is: ACC used to be the "Best of the worst", from what I hear; it has now slipped back toward the middle of the pack. I hear the company is struggling financially. (Which one’s aren't) I also hear that the airline side of the business has been in bad shape for some time and the end of the Iraq contract has really hurt the company overall. (That is at least "third-hand" info, so take it for what it's worth.)
Cheques always clear and they don't have a history of laying people off
The tobacco chewing guy is actually one of the better people they have there.
Last edited by SD3FR8DOG; 01-17-2012 at 04:41 PM. Reason: Error
01-18-2012, 09:59 AM
#20
New Hire
Joined APC: Jan 2012
Posts: 6
I remember hearing about thoses layoffs and firings, and you are right they were questionable at best, from what I heard. The CP who pulled that job was not liked or respected by the pilot group, for good reason. I have no info on the current guy.
What I meant was they dont have a history of mass layoffs, like after loosing a contract, etc. This isn't uncomon in the 135 cargo world. If they loose a single route they are big enogh to absorb 2-3 pilots until they find a place for them. That typically wont take long considering the high turnover.
The ties are required by UPS, I believe. (this gives you some insight into what a pain in the a-- customer UPS can be) So when the guys who were flying into the SDF hub everynight got them, so did all of the other scheduled run guys.
It's not fun loading #6,000+ of freight in a shirt and tie. I cant confirm this, but I have heard some load and fly in street clothes, then change upon arival in SDF.
What I meant was they dont have a history of mass layoffs, like after loosing a contract, etc. This isn't uncomon in the 135 cargo world. If they loose a single route they are big enogh to absorb 2-3 pilots until they find a place for them. That typically wont take long considering the high turnover.
The ties are required by UPS, I believe. (this gives you some insight into what a pain in the a-- customer UPS can be) So when the guys who were flying into the SDF hub everynight got them, so did all of the other scheduled run guys.
It's not fun loading #6,000+ of freight in a shirt and tie. I cant confirm this, but I have heard some load and fly in street clothes, then change upon arival in SDF.
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