Originally Posted by
DAL 88 Driver
[Sigh] The current average MD-88/MD-90 rate for a 12 year Captain is $163/hour. Assuming the average MD-88/90 Captain flies MD-90's half the time (I'm being generous there) and gets paid for 80 hours per month (960 per year), that results in a W-2 of $156,480. It has been stated (and backed up by numerous examples) that the average SWA Captain makes
over $230,000/year. To bring our 12 year MD-88/90 Captain up to just slightly over $230,000 will require a 50% increase to the current rate under the current circumstances.
Doesn't sound like "voodoo economics" to me. Sounds to me like pretty straightforward math.
I believe the average SW pilot works on average more than 80 hours a month. I would say 85 would be more accurate. That includes reserves. This has been said, and bears repeating, that the $230,000 is an average. They are able to pick up to the max of 100 hours a month, and a lot do. Not all, probably not a majority, but a lot.
They have 15 days off on reserve, but there is no long call. It's all short call, and they don't get credit for the days they don't get used. But here's the thing, if a guy is on reserve 15 days, he flies 15 days. If he's on reserve 16 days, he flies 16 days.
They get incredible productivity out of their pilots.
And believe this, if DALPA went to the company and said let's get rid of ALV, it would be done tomorrow. And my happy butt and at least 1,000 of my fellow pilots would be on the street.
You need to adjust the number of hours by at least 85 to make it a reasonable comparison, and probably more.
Now having said that, I still want a fat raise.