Originally Posted by
Randolph
Thanks for all of the great feedback guys, I appreciate it. I know commuting sucks, which is why its a tough decision. The reason I narrowed it down to TSA and AE for now, is that I don't want to instruct until 1,000 hours total for skywest. Otherwise I'd be apply there in a heartbeat. Shuttle America sounds great, but the odds of getting the E170 AND an ORD base seems like a long shot.
Odds of S5 are probably better than 1 in 3. Most of the hiring is at RW and S5 right now since that's where the growth is. ORD is fairly senior, but I haven't heard of any trouble to getting to an S5 base quickly. The only base in the RAH system that seems to have a delay is DEN since anyone west of the Rockies wants to go there. Also, if they don't offer you what you want (and you are dead set on ORD above all else), get the interview practice and walk away. I know people who lived in base at Eagle who came to commute to RW. They are making more on first year pay here than on second year reserve at Eagle.