Originally Posted by
mattisawesome
dudes...I'm not to the airlines yet but I'm thinking this is a good thing. My plan is to fly 135 operations until I can get on with a major. I have seen too many guys get stuck at the regional levels plus I know the 65 thing has potentially lengthened upgrade times. However, the baby boomers are going to be retiring in droves and they make up a large percentage of pilots. There will be jobs eventually...so it's all good y'all. it's all good.
Not to burst your bubble but unless your extremely well networked, the FAR 135 pipeline to a major is a hard battle that needn't be fought. Mind you, if the pay at the 135 level is keeping you married, then you might reconsider my statement.
It isn't impossible to land a "Major" job by that route but it is certainly much more difficult. For instance, there were only 3 corporate guys in my class of 25 at my major. These corporate guys were mostly 91 and one was 135. The rest of the class was divided up between military and regional pilots.
Why is working at a regional helpful? Well, for one thing, your friends from your regional will be moving on someday and they'll remember you. They might even write you a letter of recommendation or sponsor you for employment. At the least, some of your regional contacts will fill you in on the inside scoop at their airline. Plus, it's easy networking. At a regional, everytimg you have a dinner with your crew, you're networking. Play nice, do a great job and who knows where you can end up.
It worked for me...