Originally Posted by
Denver
You know what I am thinking. Starting this all at the age of 41, Skywest could be the only regional out there worthy of finishing a career at. Good pay for Instructors/Check airmen etc. Good pay after about 10 years in the Jet, etc. Heck you could loose your medical and still have a chance of staying in the company in a non flying position like interviews or sim instructor after enough seniority gained.
How many out there are lifeing it at Skywest? How many plan to?
Especially seeing that if the majors suck everyone up in the next 10 to 15 years guys of my age may have a much better career at a company like Skywest than moving on or trying to move on at the age of 50 and starting all over at the bottom again.
I agree with your viewpoint that if you were to hang your hat at a regional, SkyWest would be the place to do it.
The problem is, the regionals are not in control of their future. They are essentially contractors at the mercy of the majors. Delta has already proven how ruthless they can be, but they all really share the same objective. To find the lowest priced regional feed available.
If your company suddenly becomes top heavy, therefore too expensive, they will find a way to kill you off and find a lower bidder. This is where you see the tragedy of 15 year Comair captains sitting in the right seat of a GoJet CRJ700, the N number of which is already in their logs books.
If you're in your early 40's, you essentially have around 25 years left in the business. That's ample time to climb the ladder at a major, and plenty of regional F.O.'s are getting hired at Spirit and Virgin right now. I'll bet the retirement age is much higher than 65 - 10 years from now too.