You're a little on the far side of cynical, SkyHigh. By your estimation anybody who stays at a good regional like Horizon till retirement has failed. Mind you, our senior CRJ drivers are pulling down $120k/year. Unlike other regionals, we're not an RFP away from extinction. For someone who wants to live in the PNW and not commute, Horizon makes a lot of sense.

Now, I agree that a lot of people who had plans of going to the majors ended up as lifers at QX, so I guess you could say it was a "career killer" for them so far as stopping their advancement in aviation. I wonder, though, whether it was the long upgrade that did it, or simply their priorities changing as they passed into new stages of their life.

For me, going to a major is still a priority. After 3.5 yrs at Horizon, I'm looking at 3 to 4 yrs more before upgrade, and that's pretty incompatible with my goals. That's why I'm making the jump to Compass next week. That said, I really enjoyed my time at Horizon and wouldn't change it even though it slowed down my career a bit.