Originally Posted by
Mesabah
Regional flying is never going back to mainline at any price. The savings on the longevity reset alone is enough to justify it. Plus management gets a great picture of how their future employee is doing in the 121 world. Low pay rates are simply icing on that cake.
Actually, it's happening already. Look at the routes you guys are doing on the 717. Those were DC9 routes back in the late 80's and early 90's. Then, later in the 90's we saw them transition to the CRJ. At UAL, we are decreasing UAX block hours and increasing UAL block hours and putting 737's and Airbuses on routes that have been flown by RJ's for the last 10-15 years.
Go to the "pilot factories" like Riddle and you see that there is no back-fill for the attrition. The trend will continue with block hours returning to mainline. Will it be 100% back to mainline? Not in the near future, but eventually it will.
Originally Posted by
Mesabah
Also, the history of regional flying is clouded by ALPA propaganda, DALPA never sold the flying, they sold the paint job.
It is fact, not spin, that indeed DALPA was the first to allow outsourced jet flying under the DL code to be done by other than DALPA pilots. These CRJ's were intended to "open" new markets, in exchange DALPA secured work rules, retirement, etc and couldn't be bothered with "regional jets." Before they knew it, RJ's were replacing the DC9's and 737-200's on certain routes......you know the rest of the story.
Soon enough, because mainline carriers were all envious of the contract quality the DALPA pilots obtained, most were willing to part with scope for the improvements. Since then DALPA has continuously relaxed gauge to be outsourced.......yet again, you know the rest of the story.
However you want to phrase it, DALPA was at the forefront of outsourcing flying they once did.