Originally Posted by
SSlow
Yes, highly qualified applicants do go to AA.
Still doesn't change the fact that their pilot group is severely disfunctional.
As far as AA pilots coming to Spirit? Of course not, but that doesn't mean AA is head and shoulders above everyone else.
Not trying to start a fight, but I know quite a few south florida based pilots who during this last hiring boom chose to commute to DL/UA over driving to AA in Miami.
The disfunction is mainly from multiple bankruptcy mergers and everyone getting screwed at some point. Most of them will be retired within the next 5-10 years and it will all be American hired pilots. On a day to day basis, you don’t notice any difference. The average captain age is probably 10-20 years older than at Spirit, but mostly everyone I’ve flown with is cool.
AA has its warts, but it’s a lot better than Spirit in nearly every way, outside of schedule flexibility.