Originally Posted by
Akutan Bandit
MSP and other small bases are typically out in the evening, sleep at crew apartment, then return home the next morning. The schedule is similar to Ameriflight's, but the company is nothing like it. You won't be faceless and nameless at Bemidji, and their management are pilots. This is a quality company and a growing one. Additionally, Signature Flight Support purchased Landmark and spun-off Encore Air Cargo to Bemidji so the route structure and airplanes are expanding. You could start in the Queen Air and progress to a Metro.
Flew an outstation-based 99 route for Bemidji for almost two years. Company culture was great, but as the other posts say, UPS feed is UPS feed. Pay was good, not great, QOL was decent, and there's something to be said for having the CP and DO both on speed dial and actually having them hear you out with concerns or questions. The schedule grinds on you, but if I needed day(s) off, usually they'd work with me to accommodate.
The company did care about keeping the airplanes safe and airworthy. I was never pressured to not write up squawks, but carrying a few deferrals between inspections wasn't uncommon. Stuff by and large got fixed, and usually on the 99s the weak point items were avionics-related. As they continue their push to go glass cockpit on the Queen Air those kinds of problems will drastically decrease.
The flying is tough. Winters are unforgiving, and yes, you will spend more than one evening out in the cold de-icing your own airplane with a portable fluid dispenser. You'll get a healthy respect for airborne icing, and approaches to near minimums to semi-contaminated runways are routine. You will also be the most proficient IFR pilot you have ever been in your life, and that's an experience I wouldn't trade for the world.