Spelling and grammar drama aside,

If you are a prospective regional airline pilot comparing regionals and attempting to make the best choice for you, here is some information you may find helpful. Depending on your individual situation, Mesa may or may not work for you.

First, the good. Mesa’s training department is great. Mesa’s pilot group is a great bunch of people. The flying is enjoyable.

Now, the challenging parts. The gap between Mesa compensation and other regional airline compensation (including pay rates, insurance, per diem, retention bonuses, hotel reimbursement, etc.) has grown significantly over the last months. A mere 4 months ago, the gap between Mesa pay and other airline pay wasn’t as vast as it is now. Pilots that made the choice to come to Mesa when it was a more level playing field are now re-evaluating their decision, and some are jumping and starting over at other companies.

The pay is about $21k.
You can possibly make that work if you are single, child or dependent free, debt-free, have substantial savings or retirement from a prior career, a spouse to support you, or are able to live with someone in base in an inexpensive or free arrangement.

There is no long-call as there is at other airlines. What that means is you cannot be at home and fly in when you are on reserve and you cannot be far from your base airport. So if you have 6 days of reserve (common), you need to be in your base (with a 90 minute call out) that entire time. For commuters that often means finding a place to sleep for those 6 nights. Crashpads may be an option for some but be aware they are usually limited to 10 nights per month. So you have to have another place to actually live. Some regionals are paying for up to 4 hotels per month for commuters. Mesa does not.

The majority of the other regionals are now paying an effective first year salary of $45-55k when pay rates, bonuses, insurance, hotel reimbursement, etc. are taken into account. This compares to about $21k at Mesa. And the upgrade times are quickly becoming a level playing field at the regionals with some even offering Direct Entry Captain positions.

Mesa also has a $12k training contract that you sign that says you will pay them back if you leave the company within 12 months of your checkride. You pay them back a pro-rated portion of the $12k. Just something to be aware of.

There are many pilots that wish they had this information when they made their decision. But even 3 months ago, the disparity between regionals wasn’t there. Things have changed drastically over the past few months and the other regionals have substantially raised their compensation. Mesa pilots are now evaluating whether or not to make a change and start over. It is not good for neither Mesa, nor the pilots to go through training, get to the line, and then decide Mesa isn’t the right place for them and move on.

I hope this information is helpful to some. And like I said, Mesa may still be your best option if, for instance, you already live in base. Good luck to all in their decision.