Originally Posted by
V1Rot8t
I have a class date with RAH, and in the meantime I’ve been looking more and more st Skywest. I’m 35 yo, and some suggest I’m going to prolong my chances of making it to a major by going to Republic vs somewhere like Skywest on the CRJ. Upgrade times are project at 2-2.5 at RAH vs 1-1.5 at Skywest. I would be commuting and would need either ORD, DFW, or ATL to make it doable for me. Any thoughts are appreciated.
I'm in the same situation as you. Keep in mind:
-YX training is more backed up than you estimate. I'm going to indoc oct 30, expecting to return to IND around mid January/early February. If your indoc date is December you can expect training to begin in March or later.
-OO will train you faster and upgrade you faster, so an upgrade ASAP puts you as a reserve captain in junior bases. Expect to be too junior to hold ORD, DFW or ATL as a captain.
-Can either airline get you directly to your base on company metal? If so, your commute will be much easier.
-OO has two fleets and tons of bases, meaning more opportunity to check boxes like instructor, check airman, chief pilot.
-YX contract will be amendable sooner. OO seems to only give improvements to match competitors' contracts. If YX gets a new benefit in 2020, OO might get the same benefit only if staffing problems arise.
FWIW I chose to keep the YX date. My priorities are avoiding junior manning and flying a good contract, hoping for improvements in the near future.