Originally Posted by
Auto29
So as a retiring military guy with offers at both (but can't start until January)...
My main focus is time at home, but when I am working, I don't mind working. At first it will be a two-hop commute to either coast (OAK or EWR), but after about 4-6 months, I'll be moving to within a 3 hour drive of ORD/MDW for family reasons. I know not close enough to sit short call, but close enough to pick up pop-up trips with reasonable notice.
With a 20-year horizon and a pension as a backstop, does this change the calculus any?
Not really, but your seniority would obviously be less at a more senior UA-domicile like ORD. Longer time on reserve, bottom-feeder lines that are built to high credit with at or near min days off for several years. At a junior UA domicile, at current hiring rates, your seniority will rise like a rocket ship and you'll be able to bid min credit (more days off) much sooner. So, drive three hours to work after about a year on reserve for more days, or commute to a better line at a junior domicile. No one can predict what January will look like this far out, though--probably better to revisit what the landscape looks like in 4 months.
Not sure if SWA offers a paid move after probation like United, but certainly keep extending your mil move and get them to pay for it. It's nice to keep that company paid move for the future if you can.