Originally Posted by
galaxy flyer
Having been an ART in the last big boom, prior to 9/11, there are probably units where the only way to become a TR, is to be an ART first. That was happening back then. I helped a friend's son into a unfit, he was an ART for about three months before going to a legacy air line.
GF
Ironic. I had to trough for years as a TR in order to compete for an art job. Ended up quitting the unit for an AGR job at a de facto remote location. Like people said here, gotta take care of the family.
The idea of walking into an ART job as an external applicant was generally nowhere near my experience. This is in a time period of no airline hiring mind you (the lost decade circa mid to late 00s). Funny how things pendulum like that.
These days as an AGR I agree, if your goal is the airlines, the opportunity cost of getting locked in and having to punt on an airline offer is high. I'd merely trough as a TR and wait for an ART job. You could always request a curtailment as an AGR but things are starting to get testy on that front around here. No guarantee they'll release you and now you burned a bridge with a major airline. The ART is the perfect airline staging job. Pays/retires worse enough compared to an AGR that makes it improbable you'd wanna do that crap until 60, but it's easy enough to work your TR portion into one job and it's easier a job to chuck when the airline comes calling. First world problems indeed.
Watch when the hiring apogees how getting full time jobs in the reserves become air tight again. Timing and luck.