Armyguy...Gone flying is spot on if you are hiring on to Delta as a stepping stone. We are substandard and new hire bases are less than desirable( but aren't they at every airline for new hires?). I think he misses the mark with his negativity if you are gonna be at Delta for a longish career....say maybe 5 years or longer. A coupla or 3 thousand dollars for the first month is chump change depending on your perspective. There are a whole host of pluses and minuses for every carrier. I would focus on your time horizon( which you didn't provide) so anything "newhire" depends on your time horizon perspective.

If you can find any carrier that has the bestest and mostest in every section, I'd go there....otherwise there are tradeoffs. Long term commuting is the most onerous part of the job. Pay is secondary....all the other stuff kinda evens out.

Pay during trainig doesn't even rise to a measurable metric . It is insignificant as are uniform pay/ allowances.

JMHO