Originally Posted by
FlyinCat
Most of the “best regional” threads are about which ones have the best work rules, or benefits, or will get you to the majors fastest. Can we talk about which ones are the most fun? Full disclosure, I’m not having much fun right now. Mostly wondering if it’s different anywhere else. And yeah, I get it’s a lot about how you make the best of the situation and your attitude. This can’t be completely unbiased but I think it’s worth seeing what most people’s perceptions are, even if they are subjective.
Overnights?
Routes?
Crews?
Company culture?
I’ll start.
YX
Overnights- I’m told we have overnights in Key West but I’ve never seen one of these in my base. Mostly LGA, YUL, EWR, MEM, STL. About 50% of the trips have an overnight in LGA.
Routes- lots of short legs. EWR-BOS-DCA-LGA. We dominate the northeast. It gets old. I bid for the longer ones when they’re available.
Crews- the captains I fly with are 40% bitter lifers, 40% leaving as soon as they get called and not here to make friends, and 20% people who are committed to doing the job well and actually friendly. Only about 1% of the time do crews hang out together.
Company Culture- this is hard to explain. Training was very stressful, and pilots who have been through more than one training program corroborate this. Company has a very corporate feel. Sometimes I feel like I’m working a minimum wage job with the way we accumulate “occurrences.” I don’t really feel I’m part of a team. Most captains not great at mentoring or even interested in it. Very much feels everyone is out for themselves only.
Maybe my expectations are too high? I wasn’t expecting to want to leave so soon but I can’t wait to get out of here. I’m starting to adopt their attitude, just put in the hours, don’t make friends, wait for the call. I wish it wasn’t like that. Interested in your take on your own regional.
Go to a ULCC and keep your apps updated at the big 3. Spirit has a ton of vacation layovers. Most ULCC’s do because that market is their bread and butter.
Go build flight time flying long easy legs in a 320/737 with a 18% DC retirement fund flying to beautiful sunny weather until your destination airline calls.
The regionals are seeing so much attrition for pilots and FA’s that any culture or friendships made are likely gone in less than a year. YX is not the only regional with unsustainable attrition issues. I think there might be 2 people from my regional new hire class still hanging around. 9 including myself from that class are now at Delta.
It’s actually unbelievable to think half my regional new hire class ended up at Delta in basically 5 years. That was once unheard of, crazy times.