This is sometimes true, but it's not universal. There's also a lot of "U3" pilots who have years and thousands of hours of 121 PIC time at other airlines, in everything from RJs to 747s.

And "tribal knowledge of Delta procedures"? Delta Procedures are what's written in the manuals and what's taught. We don't need more harping on technedures. And let's be honest. We do a lot of dumb stuff here that no other airline does just because "that's the way we've always done it". A great example is running multiple checklists and verifications to perform a parallel runway change in VFR conditions, and making it so onerous that Delta flights refuse runway changes that other airlines just deal with. DFW, IAH, ORD, DEN, SFO are great examples of this.

I really don't care for the U3 moniker, and I actually think it's borderline discriminatory how we've been branding these guys and giving them one size fits all scrutiny because of it. Yeah, some of them fit that mold, and should be given more attention, but certainly not all. It needs to be based on their actual experience, preparation, and performance, not simply "Years At Delta".

We really need to get away from this attitude that whatever you did before Delta doesn't count.