I'll post this here since there are too many Mesa threads already.

The following was posted to the Facebook group "Future Airline Pilots of America". You can head over there to read the original.

Here is the post:

Envoy has been getting a lot of new hires lately coming from other airlines. Especially from Republic from what I hear but I recently got a call from an old friend of mine jumping ship from Mesa. He's within a few months from upgrade there but now believes he will do better at envoy as he is now becoming aware of many Mesa captains who have their 1000 PIC turbine and are being turned away from interviews being told that the company won't hire Mesa pilots. This is something I tried very hard to convey here at the inception of this group. It seemed at the time to fall on deaf ears as most people I interacted with couldn't get over the shimmer of low upgrade times.

I remember years ago being at a flight school where the school and all of the students clung to the false pretense that a quick upgrade with 1000 PIC turbine was your "golden ticket" to go to any mainline airline you desired. I think for the most part that is still floating around today. This industry has stalled significantly in the last twenty-plus years because of that mentality, leaving experienced pilots stuck at regional airlines for one to two decades. There are still many who have 15,000-25,000 hours TT with thousands or tens-of-thousands of hours of PIC turbine fighting over a competitive rush to the mainline jobs. Working for a substandard airline with substandard bases, pay and contracts do not guarantee you anything except having a frustrating job for a long time. That quick upgrade won't get you out of there any sooner and only threatens your life, career and will probably be a frustrating waste of time for you in the long run.

The run to fly newer and larger airplanes for less pay IS beyond a shadow of a doubt the main fuel feeding the machine that has been diminishing this career for decades. Please consider that when you make decisions that are what is "best for your family". More so now than ever as many regionals are flying Embraer 170-190s that share the same type rating as the 190s currently operating at American and may soon be at United as well. Your pay cuts will affect future pay negotiations at mainline on the very equipment that you are now more likely to spend some time flying when you get there. Regionals have for some time been operating more than 50% of the US domestic flights. That makes this a significant influence n the future of this once great and now much less so career path that you likely want to succeed in.

As always I highly recommend to research companies by speaking with as many experienced veterans of that company as you can. This forum is an excellent place to help you do that. Choose a reputable airline with good training and a good livable contract as you are always statistically certain to work there longer than the recruiters and flight schools will try to tell you. Base locations are also a very important factor for your quality of life with that company as commuting is one of the most frustrating factors of the airline pilot lifestyle. However, keep in mind that base locations shouldn't completely drive your career path as all airlines are known to close and open bases on occasion. It is a factor but don't make it your only factor.

I truly hope some of you find this helpful. I wish clear skies and big paychecks for all of us!

Thank you for your time,