Pm me directly if you like. I have lived in TPA for 20 years and been doing this commute to Ewr for the last 2 ish and JFK/LGA for a lot longer.

I won’t sugar coat it , from TPA it’s very rough! Pretty much can’t rely on our own flights. Jetblue has 2 a day to EWR that most guys use as their back up which is often used. I don’t get left behind on our (United) flights too often but it’s not great to rely on them. Last min changes happen all the time . Including a very few who list for the jump seat at the last minute . Another issue we have VERY often out of TPA is the lack of International connections, when there is Flow restriction to EWR orlando and FLL are often given the go and TPA’s get delayed further cause we tend to have way less connecting people originating from TPA compared to say orlando. Less concern

From guys I fly with Orlando seems to be a way better commute . Seeing as you have UAL, SWA, NK and JB who all do the route so many more choices plus 756 on the united side which we only get seasonally in TPA . Way more flights to choose from in MCO but also a lot more commuters live there.

As mentioned feel free to reach out for more info , hope it helps.

On top of all the above , you’re senior to me. Plenty of reason for me to steer you outta TPA ☺️