That example amy work in the civilian world, but in the military, its totally different. Yes, the military promotes progresion. For one thing, if a guy just stayed in his position for 20 years, ther ewould be no room for new soldiers. Secondly, the military is about leadership. Thats the nature of the job. When you are a new private out of basic you are taught to take over for your squad leader if he gets killed. I guess you wee comming from an AF pilot perspective. Well, the Air Force isnt an airline. Youare an officer first and a pilot second. The Chief of Staff of the Air Force probably flies minimally if at all anymore. When he became a 2LT he was groomed to be a leader and thats what he rose to be As with other commanders. The culture of the military is that of leading and progressing from wher youare. A lot of civilian jobs dont have that mindset and thats cool but youcant compare the military to civilain workforce.

But to answer your question about the regionals,somebody told me (because obviously I have no idea) that regionals dont want you to stay ther efor a career. They want you to come in, build your time and leave. Its epensive for them to pay a 20 year Captain. They would rather see you leave.

Now, personally I wouldnt mind making a carer at a regional airline. $75-90K is not bad too me.