Yeah I feel much better now.
How is that a stretch? If the goal is to go to a regional, upgrade, move on, then Great Lakes might not be a bad choice.

If you're looking for somewhere to spend the next five years, which could be a real possibility, then Skywest is a much better choice than the afore mentioned.

So yeah, in that context, it makes more sense to compare Great Lakes to Compass, Mesa, TSA, etc.

Don't get confused with the shiny jets. It doesn't matter where you get the time, if that's your goal. There is a much higher percentage of pilots from Great Lakes working at Legacies and Majors now than any other regional. The recruiters don't care where you got your time.

And at Lakes, at least you'll really learn how to fly. And you'll have the opportunity to get a LCA letter.

But this is no knock on Skywest. It's a good place to work. And you'll definitely have a better QOL at Skywest than you would at any other regional.

You just have to figure out what's important to you. And that might mean working somewhere else because of the bases.