I was hired with 1000TT. Another in my class has 1612TT, another has 1700TT, and the last is a retired Delta pilot of 32 years. They say you can apply with 500TT, but haven’t seen that yet. Just remember that as an FO you are taking a seat that a revenue passenger could sit in, so I would think they would want to upgrade you as soon as possible to get you out of the seat, (eg. the more time you have the better when you apply so you can upgrade faster).

Contracts are now between 12-15 months once you reach Captain, as they pay for your ATP-CTP and want some guarantee that you won’t jump ship after you get your ATP.