Turbine PIC has been prefered for a long time now. Space shuttle command time is highly regarded as well. Neither however was a requirement untill after 2001 at most airlines.

I could have stuck it out at Horizon Air and hindsight is 20/20, but even if I had I don't think it would have helped much.

Had I stuck it out I could have reached 1000 hours of Dash 8 turbine PIC after perhaps 6 to 7 years at Horizon. I would have been pushing 40 years old by then. My competition was from 28 year old RJ captains from the east coast. I saw them at every interview I went to at Alaska Airlines. I was being aged out of the profession. I thought that my best chance was to be sitting in the interview with 757 PIC time and that is why I went to National Airlines. (they also paid much more) They were even promising a faster upgrade than the best estimate anyone had at Horizon.

I took a risk. I had to. In order to win big we all have to risk big. At the time National Airlines was the darling of the industry. When jump seating on Alaska Airlines the captains were quizzing me on how to get hired there. By my lower 30's I had a new family and raising bills and needs. If my aviation career was going to survive I needed to reach my goals sooner than later. It almost worked too.

Even with 1000 PIC in a Dash 8 it only would have slimed my odds to one in three. Most of my peers are still there grinding a path to and from SEA and PDX. By now they see the writing on the wall and have accepted their fate. Had I stayed I would be among them still and would be less than happy with those results.

Skyhigh