Originally Posted by
GearMover
YEP SCREW scheduling is horrible but I don't know of any place that has scheduling that calls and says "hey we had someone call out and would like it for you to show up to take the flight but if you don't want to don't worry about it you just do what you want and we'll work around what works best for you"
Every mainline carrier does EXACTLY that if you're not on reserve. Among the regionals, though, I doubt you'd hear it that often, agreed.
Originally Posted by
sulkair
What will become of us guys who are too old to start over yet still young enough to hope for a shot at a good airline job? Don't know but I'm as discouraged as you are trust me.
You probably have your 1000 TPIC by now, right? If so, I'm not sure why you think its a 'lateral move' or 'starting over' to go to a mainline carrier. Most all of them pay the same, or better, than Mesa FO (what you are now), and you'll have just about as many days off, if not more. Second year income is almost as good as Mesa CA pay at some places, and the rest of them you'll be back to Mesa CA pay by year 3-4, and break even on the whole think by year 5-6 (make back all your losses). You'll have pretty good control of your schedule (due to superior work rules), and even though you may not get Christmas off the first year or two, you'll have much better overall QOL, since you'll have more days off, more time with your family, and less stress while you're working too.
Originally Posted by
Polo
EFB's, nine new airplanes by July, and PBS (Preferential Bidding) are all bonuses that don't happen at other places. . . . Is it the greatest place to be...maybe not, but it sure does have some decent qualities.
PBS is a concession - plain and simple. Name one mainline carrier that got PBS out of bankruptcy. There's a reason that Fed Ex, UPS, Southwest, etc all don't have PBS, and Delta, United, and AA now do. PBS is not a plus, unless you're in the top 10% of your bid category.
EFB's are nice, but I'd rather carry my own charts if it meant I could pocket $10K more (at another regional). The 9 new airplanes - that's good though. While all regionals are in for a rough ride, Mesa does have a good fleet mix and financials to survive the hard times that are likely on the horizon in the regional industry for the next decade.
Of course, most every other carrier can do the same move Mesa did to get in such a 'plum' position: shed all your 50 seaters, all your bad debt, and start over - but keep the same clowns running the show. The race to the bottom continues. Ahh . . . the wonders of bankruptcy in the airline industry.