Originally Posted by
MidnightHauler
So where else can an inexperienced, 1500 hour (25 hour multiengine) pilot, straight out of flight instructing in 172s go straight into jets, receive a type rating at company cost, get paid in training, and make close to $45-50 their first year, with the chance of upgrading to captain in a year or two? NOWHERE! I've flown part 91 and 135 jobs before coming here and trust me....people coming here to get experience aren't getting screwed. Most other companies don't pay quarterly bonuses either. Don't believe me....fine. Quit and go fly freight. Better yet, try to get on flying a corporate Gulfstream or Falcon without 5,000 hours turbine pic.
What are you talking about? All of the other regionals offer similar career progression now with pilots being hired with the minimums and upgrading as soon as they hit minimums also. The industry has changed since you started in it. The days of 8 year upgrades and needing way more then the minimum hours to get a regional job are long gone. This is the new norm. (I've been a commercial pilot since 92' as well and have seen a few changes). Flight instructor to Legacy will run 3-4 years in the future and that will be the norm. The paying your dues with crappy jobs for a decade+ is over.
Where SkyWest lacks, and we definitely have kept up, is pay, flow, or a guaranteed interview program. That's a fact. Doesn't make SkyWest a bad place, but we sure aren't at the top of the regional industry or competitive anymore. When you compare us to others, we're about the lowest paid out there right now. Our 5 year deal just isn't keeping up with a rapidly changing industry. (And no wonder management came to us early with such a long deal.)
I've no problem with someone doing what's best for themselves. If management can't pay enough to keep new pilots here it shows a problem with the pay scale that needs to be addressed.