Originally Posted by Cozmo

Sorry if there's a FAQ somewhere. I couldn't find it.

I have been a commercial pilot for about 15 years, and lately I've been greatly encouraged to check out the airlines. I have 5,000+ hours, 4,000+ multi turbine, and I have a pretty good job that I'm nervous to leave despite the numerous potential benefits that a good airline job would provide. My caveats (below) pretty severely restrict my options, and United is really my first choice of those.

My caveats:

- I don't want to move
- I can't afford a huge year 1 pay cut ($85/hr is doable, $40/hr is not)

My questions:

- How bad is life with a long distance commute? Are crash pads really that bad? A big commute essentially adds 2 unpaid days to your work hitch, right?

- What determines what base you get initially? What factors influence that? Do I get any say at all? (EWR and SFO would be long trips for me, and if I understand correctly, that's where most new hires go.)

- How long can I expect to be at one of those bases, assuming I don't get the one I want?

- What is the pay for new hires during training, and how long is it?

- How does flying on reserve work? How many days are you on call? How far away can you be?

- What determines what equipment you are assigned to? Excepting pay differences, is life in any one plane significantly better or worse than life in another?

- I know what a 401k is, but what is A/B/C? Some kind of matching?

- I saw another thread recommending Emerald Coast for interview prep. Is it assumed that everyone does this at this point, and are you at a major disadvantage if you don't?

I know this was a lot, thanks for making it this far.