One quick thing: a lot of people have mentioned days off/work harder but on fewer days/etc.

That's definitely true, but with the inefficiencies these days I've noticed that it's taking md more and more time to recover after every trip. It's all well and good to have 17-18 days off vs. 14-15 days off, because those extra few can't be discounted, but when you're so dog tired after every single trip of 12+ hour duty days and 11 hour overnights, it really does start to affect your days at home.

Your first day back after a pm where you get in at 3am every day, or that last day before going to work to wake up every day at 3am, severely impacts your time at home. If you have kids, it's hard to get back on their schedule when you have to keep your circadian rhythm at least somewhat close to your work schedule so that you don't work yourself into an early grave. As an am guy, I used to bounce back after getting home around 2pm on day 3 by the next morning. Because our ams are getting back close to 5-7pm now, my first day back is now the next day, for which I am generally wrecked. And my last day off, I have to be in bed by 6 to try to get to sleep by 7 for my 3am wakeup call on day 1, which definitely puts a damper on family time after school that day.

A 3 day still isn't quite as bad as a 4 day, but it's also not what it used to be. I definitely wouldn't say it's cut and dry that the 2-3 extra days at home that you get at swa are black and white 2-3 extra days at home. I do wonder just how much better our system is over the 4 day 4 leg trips they have at the big 3. I could get all my YouTube and TV watching out of my system on my overnights rather than getting distracted by that stuff at home. Maybe that's just the entitled millennial in me.