Hey everyone!

I'm hear to ask the question that has been asked hundreds of times, I'm sure. "What regional carrier should I go to?"

I know some of the answers such as, "whichever will hire you", "the one with the shortest commute", and "whichever has the best QOL". However, from what I have understood from reading these forums, pretty much the world is my oyster as far as where I want to go. I am about to turn 28 and currently have about 700 hours and will get the remaining to qualify for the R-ATP minimums in a few months. I want to be at a major in 5-7 years, or as soon as possible. I live in Shreveport, LA; a decent size city in NW Louisiana. DFW is only a 3 hour drive away. I'm married and have 2 kids and my wife has a business set up here in town but can relocate anywhere in the CONUS. We aren't afraid to move to base, but prefer to be on a coast if possible OR live one the coast and I can have an easy commute to the base (where can I look up how to commute with each regional?). We wouldn't mind Chicago either.

Here are some of my questions: Should I look at ExpressJet and Envoy sense they are both in DFW? Everything contractually seems okay but with the long upgrade time, is it feasible? Does the PIC time matter that much with the current environment and the projected environment in my 5-7 year time frame? I know things change and that all the majors are going to loose a lot of pilots in the coming decade due to age.

What about other smaller carriers such as Republic, GoJet, Compass, etc.? If those offer a good QOL, decent pay, and fast upgrade times (if PIC is indeed a big deal), which one would be a safe bet?

I am not very well educated yet as to the jargon of the airlines, so please keep the acronyms to a minimum if possible. (Or even better, use the acronym and what is stands for so that I can learn them). Also, any sources that you can give me to self-educate about all this is greatly appreciated.

I appreciate any answers and patience with this question, as this is affecting the future of not only myself, but my wife and kids.

Thank you!