Originally Posted by
JohnnyBekkestad
Any of the east coast bases are going to be similar when it comes to upgrade times.
DTW-ORD-MSP-ATL and even DFW will be the most junior, there has not been much movement into ATL in a very long time.
ORD is the biggest domicile, with travel benefits on DL, UA and AA (As well as DFW).
Any of the other ones will only be UA and DL.
Im in ORD and i fly mostly on AA 700.
QOL is going to be different from person to person.
Depending on where you live you might not be able to get to a certain domicile in time for a show time. Or get home after a trip. And now you just lost two days off. Best is to live in base.
When i started at OO, i was based in DTW and living just outside West Palm beach i hated my commute. I could fly over to Europe faster and easier than getting home to Florida.
Then you need to look at what you want to achieve, fly a lot/little. Upgrade fast or enjoy days off.
Do you have family commitments (wife/husband/kids), perhaps you are a single parent in need to do locals or standups. Then ORD is a horrible base as that goes really senior.
Thanks! As of now, it seems more beneficial get as much flying done as possible to get to the upgrade and eventually minimums for advancement. However, I would still like to have time at home for a family so I definitely see the point for getting a good schedule and living in base. Any thoughts on commuting while on reserve? I know it has the reputation of being one of the seven deadly sins, but is a 1 leg commute to somewhere like ORD as difficult as some make it out to be?