Originally Posted by BSOuthisplace

I agree with your first paragraph. The second, not so much.

Airlines like Mesa and GoJets have existed for ages and will continue to exist for the foreseeable future. Their very existence is dependent upon their ability to churn pilots through the operation and spit them out to a major airline job quickly, and they do this quite well. I can't tell you how many younger mainline pilots I've run across with the same story. They spent 2-3 years at a **** hole like Mesa or GreatLakes, quick upgrade, 1000 tpic, and they make the move to the majors. Meanwhile I'm sitting here with 4k+ hrs in the right seat with upgrade just now in sight. Guys at Envoy, XJT, AirWisconsin probably have similar stories.

Lesson is don't get comfy at a regional. The road ahead will be littered with the grave stones of various regional airlines as our corner of the industry consolidates. I'm willing to bet airlines like PSA and Mesa will be around till the end. There are always those willing to sacrifice QOL for the quick upgrade and movement to mainline, and once at a major no one cares where you came from as long as you didn't cross a picket line.