Tuna –
I wanted to reply to your post, for the simple reason that I have already traveled a bit of the road you are considering, and hope I can give you the benefit of my experience.
My bona fides: Retired AF, Dec 2012…3800 TT, 2500 PIC, 1400 IP…KC/RC-135, T-6A, MC-12W, typed in B-707, BE-300, B-737…now, after one year at a Regional, 4200TT and CL-65
My path: I started my apps one full year before retirement. I attended a FAPA Regional Job Fair and WAI. I did Emerald Coast. I had one Regional contacting me every few months, while I was still nowhere near available. Finally, they called while I was on terminal leave. I interviewed and was hired…I’ve been here just over a year. I’ve been keeping my apps up to date faithfully. I received my first (and so far only) call to an interview at a Major in Dec 2013…waiting on words.
BLUF: It all depends on what you want out of life.
Regional vs Contract: At the time I retired, I had recent (one year prior) deployed experience in the MC-12. I loved the mission, and I’m sure Dynamic/CAT/L3 would have loved to have me. Sure, I could make $600/day, but I’d be right back to being deployed months at a time.
My personal decision was that I wanted to make my break with the military clean and irrevocable. That chapter of my life was over…it was time to move on.
QOL: As you well know, every assignment is what you make of it. My experience flying at a regional has been largely positive…a good company with good people. Reserve sucks, but it sucks everywhere and is a fact of life. The pay sucks…can you survive the first year supporting your family on $20K? Your retired pay helps tremendously…still, this first year cost me nearly all my cash savings. Second year pay has me treading water, but holding. It depends on your situation…
The biggest LL on QOL I would say is this…being deployed for weeks or months and home for months or years is what you’re probably used to. At the airline, you’re deployed every week for most of the week and home sometimes just long enough to do laundry. It is an adjustment, not just for you, but for the family. But, you adapt…
How would a Major view you…jet vs turboprop: I guess it depends, but I think it also goes further than that.
1. You are a retired military aviator, which says you are a product of (arguably) the best training there is. You’ve been places and done things in airplanes others simply haven’t. You’ve also held other responsibilities and positions of leadership, and no one can doubt your reliability, your dedication, or your ability to get the job done. You’re also a Veteran, and there are certain advantages to companies that hire Vets.
2. Currency is important…depending on where you go, they want anywhere from 100-200 hours in the last year or two. Flying something is better than nothing…you probably don’t take a hit either way (jet/turboprop). Part 121 experience, I think, is a bonus…it shows that you’re dedicated to this career path, gives you valuable experience, and gives them the warm fuzzy that you understand how the airline business works and know what you’re getting into. I know some guys who have already left the industry…it just wasn’t for them.
3. THIS IS A FACT, not an opinion…I have been told directly by both a recruiter and a Chief Pilot at a Major airline who have looked at my resume that they view “making the tough decision” to work at a Regional “very favorably”, and they view military guys who will not even apply to a Regional “very unfavorably”. The quotes are intentional…these are the exact words they used. I know a number of retired guys in that second group…they view a Regional as beneath them, would rather do a sim gig (and fly 0 hours), and expect a Major to call them cold. Oddly, they all seem to come from the same background…
What IF:…
…they call you for an interview while you’re deployed? I know a guy this has happened to…he explained his situation…they offered to “keep him in mind”…he has not (yet) been contacted again. It’s a risk you take…
…I get a call from a Major while I’m in training at a Regional? One, you arrange to get to the interview without interrupting your training schedule one iota. Having jumpseat privileges helps out a lot here. Two, you continue in training/employment until you have a no kidding job offer. THEN AND ONLY THEN do you make your intentions known to your current employer. If you’re still in training, you can probably quit right then…no sense in their spending any more money on you (I’ve had a buddy in this situation). If you’re on the line, your contract probably requires two weeks notice. If the Major offers you a class date within that time frame (which they probably won’t…professional courtesy), you take it, inform your current employer, and realize you’re burning a bridge. But, they can’t court martial you, and they can’t kill you.
FWIW, at my INTERVIEW the guy told me that “we know a guy with your experience is not here for a career, and we’re OK with that”…I don’t think they will hold it against you for seizing the obvious opportunity to move on to better things, as long as you do so professionally and IAW guidance.
Also, I know you have a very high sense of loyalty to your unit, as do I. The word I’ve learned on this forum is that this is not the military…this is business, you are a skilled professional, and you have the right to take your skills to the company that suits you best. If you take a job today, and your dream job comes along tomorrow, take it without hesitation. That’s the nature of the game, and everyone knows it.
Again, it all depends on what you want out of life. I have made the choice to live in one place and not chase airlines/domiciles so my wife can finally have “her house” and my kids can have stability in their high school years. As a result, I suck up the pain that is commuting. Decide what’s most important to you, realize that it is a blessing to work in an industry that gives you such flexibility, and move forward boldly.
And, finally…remember that every unit, every company, every online forum is probably about 98% good folks and 2% tools. The tools readily identify themselves…learn to recognize and avoid them, consider all points of view, and make your own judgments.
Good luck!
YAP