I got the $5000 bonus in 2008 when I was hired, not worth it IMO. I kept it tucked away in the bank until my contract free'd up the money in case I jumped ship (18 months if I recall correctly). AE's future looks bleak and if you have the option to go elsewhere I would as a new hire. I went to Eagle because I only had two options and Eagle was the better of two evils. And if you think you can just get hired, take the money and run, AMR will crawl all over you to get their money back, they love to prove a point.