The last day of Indoc, (last Thursday) OC Miller, (AK’s Boss) came in and talked to the class and gave us some interesting info. Here are some of my notes for those who are interested:
– Average age of the Delta pilot group right now is 57
– In 2014 Delta hired 1000 pilots.
– In 2015 it will be about 980 pilots.
– Over the next 15 years, Delta needs 8500 more just to cover attrition.
– They anticipate hiring at least 700 in 2016. He said this number changes almost weekly, and will likely go up, but as of now RA has approved at least 700.
– He also said about 700 per year is “where they like to be”, and that while it is possible to go over that number, it really puts “a strain on the system”
-Compass flow is over, leaving more slots for guys “off the street”
– Classes will be “front-loaded” in 2016, and then they will likely slow down through the summer months.
-Delta uses a “Tiered” application system. They have been, and probably will be for the next year or so, in “tier 1”
-They have 10,000 Applications on file.
*ALL APPLICATIONS ARE SCORED BY HAND. NOT BY A COMPUTER. *
*THERE IS NO WAY THEY CAN SCORE ALL APPLICATIONS WITH THE PERSONNEL THEY HAVE *
*”THE ONLY APPLICATIONS WE HAVE TIME TO LOOK AT RIGHT NOW, ARE THE ONE THAT ARE RECOMMENDED “INTERNALLY””*
(this holds true for everyone in my class. We all had someone send an “Internal Recommendation” in for us. That is, NOT the Airline Apps. way, but directly to the interview team.)
– Once you get scored, you are totally on your own. Even RA”s personal blessing does not effect whether or not you get the score necessary for the interview.
-Once your app has been scored, they WILL NOT score it again for 12 months. (they just don’t have the resources)
-The recommendations associated with Airline Apps, are only looked at right before the interview. (does not help you GET the job once you get to the interview)
– If you get the “fix-it” email, then you fix whatever they asked you to fix, and you don’t hear back…that means you didn’t meet the cutoff score. Try again in 12 months.
Things that were mentioned as hurting your score:
– moving violations
-low GPA
-too long to finish education (more than 5 years)
-lose points for “online degrees”
-Delta pilots can recommend multiple people each year, but only once per year for each applicant.
– Financials at Delta are really good. i.e. 5 Bln in debt, as opposed to American at 22Bln.
– 21% on Profit Sharing this year.
– Delta makes 7% more RASM than competitors.
– Pilots should be more concerned about debt in prospective employers, as that translates into company stability.
– Greatest threat to the industry is the ME3. Not competitors.