Getting with a "good" regional is a pretty funny statement. I guess a lot also comes down to what your goals are. Realize that many of the regionals you stated have higher minimums and are much more competitive to get on with if and when they actually start hiring for some of them. Do you really want to instruct for possibly an extra 2 or 3 years to get on with a "good" regional or would you rather get hired with a "bad" regional, prove you can pass training, get year under your belt, and then make a decision to stay put or try for a "good" regional. Also, the "good" and "bad" regionals may look very different by the time you are actually ready to start heading into the industry so be flexible. I would say, with an exception of a few airlines, any airline with a base that you can hold and want to live in would be a good one. QOL is going to be better living in base no matter what airline you work for. Battling for seats on full airplanes is no fun and no matter what you think, there is people senior and with higher priority commuting from any city you may try to commute from. I relocated to DTW after commuting for a month and a half and it is way better to live in base. DTW, even the most dangerous city in the country which what the USA Today rank it as a week before I moved, has good, safe, and fun places to live. In all, pick a regional based on what you want, not what other people want. Don't chase pay because its not worth it. Lastly, don't narrow down your choices too much because you need to get hired first.