Originally Posted by Avroman

Neither, because the process has been hijacked by HR peeps.... Who has acquired a Master's degree, who has plenty of community service, who has management or 121/135 instructing experience, who has any other "OTHER" boxes checked besides being a basic pilot? Unfortunately things are shifting to "the well rounded candidate" Sorry I don't give a damn if my pilot can speak Spanish and Yiddish, knows all the Microsoft Office programs, was enlisted in the Navy for 8 years, volunteers at the homeless shelter, and can file a TPS report with one hand if he can't land a plane at DCA with a 15 knot crosswind in a 700ft overcast ceiling. But that's the kind of thing that HR peeps are looking at... they aren't judging flying first, they are judging the person's character first and their job skills after, if at all.

I've been told by 2 majors that letters of rec are great, but won't be looked at until the interview (SWA) or at all (Delta) because they don't want undue influence put on the selectors/interviewers.