Originally Posted by
Police2Pilot
After 15 years in law enforcement (our pension is in a bad way so I've decided to pursue my dream of flying) I'm going to interview at Envoy. Im in my mid 40's so I've got to make it to a major, probably within the next 5 years, to have any chance of a livable retirement so I'm sort of pressed on time I guess. Perhaps I should just finish my LE career and then take what little pension I will have and start flying in my early 50's and just sit at a regional and build seniority and enjoy it (if a regional can be enjoyed at all?)
I've chosen Envoy because I live in the DFW area. I've read a lot of this thread but can use some help. I don't understand some of the terminology. I know there has to be something good about Envoy. As for the bad.. things are bad in every industry, every company everywhere. If you want some real negative things go check out some police forums. I have some questions for Envoy pilots and maybe they can also tell me the good things they like and why they joined the company? Or, if it really is that bad, why (and I have read a lot of this thread so I have an idea.. quality of life is a major issue). If they could work at any regional carrier which one would it be?
My questions..
Does reserve time influence upgrade time or is that based solely on seniority and not flight hours? Or a mixture of both?
Are the projected reserve times still current? I saw 8 mos for CRJ at ORD, 2-3 mos for 175 a145 at DFW.
If that's not correct, which air frame has the shortest projected reserve time?
How does scheduling accommodate pilots in the military regarding deployments or drill weekend? Do deployments affect seniority?
Did Envoy furlough any pilots during the last recession in 2008? I have a feeling we are headed for another one.
I don't understand the required rest periods between flights. I've heard that most regional airlines are horrible at this, so I'm guessing Envoy is no different. How is it REALLY at Envoy?
What are my chances of getting DFW right out of the gate? I'm not too fired up about commuting on reserve. I'll do it if need be, but not exactly my first choice.
When a pilot starts in one airframe, can he/she switch to another? If so how? Do you automatically get put on reserve again or does your company seniority help keep you on the line?
What in the world is "junior manning??"
If someone could take some time and give me a little help I would be grateful.
Does reserve time influence upgrade time or is that based solely on seniority and not flight hours? Or a mixture of both?
Nope. Upgrade time is based on seniority only. First in the door, first to upgrade. There is a flight time requirement...3,000 I believe. But it's not a problem for any of our upgrades..so it shouldn't be a problem for you.
Are the projected reserve times still current?
Reserve times change monthly. There is no way to predict exactly what it will be for a particular pilot in a particular seat at a particular base. What we can see is that it is much shorter as we move forward compared to where it was a year ago.
How does scheduling accommodate pilots in the military regarding deployments or drill weekend? Do deployments affect seniority?
You are given military leave just like any other industry. Your seniority doesn't change...you are simply on leave until you come back.
Did Envoy furlough any pilots during the last recession in 2008? I have a feeling we are headed for another one.
Most airlines furloughed in 2008...off the top of my head I can't remember if Envoy/Eagle did or not. I don't believe so..but someone correct me if I'm wrong. I remember we furloughed about 20 in late 2011 during the AA bankruptcy, but those guys were recalled a few months later.
I don't understand the required rest periods between flights. I've heard that most regional airlines are horrible at this, so I'm guessing Envoy is no different. How is it REALLY at Envoy?
FAR 117 governs this...it's a Federal law so airlines have to comply. No choice. The long story short of it is that pilots are required to have a minimum of 10 hours of rest which includes 8 hours of "sleep opportunity". That last part is open to interpretation. In any case, the shortest overnights at Envoy are built with a buffer of sorts. Off the top of my head I know PBC (Puebla, Mexico) is right at 10:30...I think that's one of the shortest if not the shortest. Most overnights are over 15 hours of rest...some 30+ hours which means you get a day off at the overnight city.
What are my chances of getting DFW right out of the gate? I'm not too fired up about commuting on reserve. I'll do it if need be, but not exactly my first choice.
Pretty good. There are two aircraft in DFW, the E145 and E175. We hire into both...so you should be good. Worst case you can base transfer to DFW within a few months.
When a pilot starts in one airframe, can he/she switch to another? If so how? Do you automatically get put on reserve again or does your company seniority help keep you on the line?
You can switch airframes one of two ways. First, you can bid whatever your seniority holds AFTER your seat lock is up. I believe the seatlock for new hires is one year. OR, you can get displaced from one aircraft to another. It's a bit complicated, I know. Let me know if you want me to go deeper into this answer. In any case, your seniority doesn't change. Remember that your seniority at Envoy is your hire date...that never changes. That governs everything you do for the rest of your time here. So even if you were to switch to a new airplane or new base...you would be senior to whoever was hired after you and junior to whoever was hired before you...regardless of how long those other people have been on that plane or at that base.
What in the world is "junior manning??"
That is when you are extended into a day off. Lets say you are flying on Monday and Tuesday is your day off. Scheduling calls, you answer, and they tell you they are junior manning you into an overnight returning tomorrow. So you would work a flight (or flights) on what was originally scheduled to be your day off. That is junior manning. When that happens, you get extra pay and/or an additional day off in return. Normally, junior manning is relatively rare. Recently we have been short staffed on E145 Captains so they have been getting junior manned to a degree I have never seen. FOs are sitting pretty as staffing is good. There are a couple of very large waves of E145 Captains about to hit the line in the next few months, so that should ease the current staffing issue. I believe E175 Captains and FOs are pretty well staffed with few junior mans...but again someone correct me if I'm wrong.
Good luck...let us know if there is anything else we can help with. Hope to see you on board soon!