I'll chime in here, as several of you have asked why one would willingly work for a company such as Mesa, let alone someone like JO. I think it might be of value to explain my story, which may lend some insight as to why I chose Mesa. I'll start off by saying that, ultimately, my decision to go to Mesa was one of the worst decisions I have ever made.

Let me just give you an overview of my past situation. After being in the corporate world for many years, as well as being in business for myself, I decided to abandon that career in hopes of becoming a professional pilot (not necessarily an "airline pilot", just a pilot who enjoys their job, and life...flying whatever). At the time, I was 30 years old, and knew absolutely NOTHING about flying, nor the industry (I'm not joking when I say that I didn't know what an aileron was, and thought a United Express pilot was employed by United!).

I knew several pilots in my neighborhood at the time (2 American, 1 United, and 1 Southwest) and was confident that they could best guide me on this career-change. Interested in soliciting their advice, I asked them collectively what one in my situation should do in hopes of launching a career as a pilot. Each and every one of them summed it up by saying "whatever you do, get done with your training, build time, and get on a seniority list ASAP to get PIC time". It didn't take long for me to understand the significance of PIC time (speaking of which, I had never even heard of "PIC" before...again, shows you how clueless I was).

Anyhow, fast forward, I've accelerated my training at a local FBO, was offered a job as a CFI, and was instructing for upwards of a year...full-time. My logbook showed a grand total of 319 hours dual given, and I needed 87 more hours of multi-time to meet the bare minumim that most regionals were requiring at the time...100 hours. Single-engine time was not necessarily the problem, as I knew that would continue to eventually grow, but my flight school required 85 hours of multi-time just to teach in the Seminole. In short, I had my MEI, but couldn't use it! I, along with my fellow instructors, were "pimping" and competing for multi-time everywhere, but were all frustrated by the lack of availability. Mind you, this was back in late 2001/2002, so to say that competition was fierce for time-building opportunities, and jobs, is an understatement.

Given what seemed like a stagnation point, one my neighbors came over to talk to me about a program at Mesa that offered one an interview if they succesfully completed a training program. I recall vividly debating him on pursuing this route as I mentioned that my research showed Mesa to be a pretty rotten place to work. As well, I told him that this sounded like the pay-for-training thing that everyone says to avoid. His thoughts were that this was more like "pay-for-interview", and that he had a friend that had to pay for his MBA in order to get promoted where he worked...so same thing. "Okay, whatever", I thought, "sounds like a twisted analogy, but I'll bite" (no need to say how stupid I was there). Over and over, he told me how important getting a seniority number was, and that Mesa tended to upgrade quickly...and, of course, how important PIC time was (especially, in his views, to a "late bloomer", such as myself) . He put me in touch with a guy that flew with him as an FO that went through this "PACE" program several years back, flew the 1900, and got on with American.

So, I called the guy, got the skinny, and was still not sold. I told my neighbor that I was actually really happy instructing (I found the job itself very rewarding, albeit the pay) and would just do the typical route of getting a freight gig, building time, and then apply to SkyWest (my first choice, for a number of reasons). He asked, again, how I would get the multi-time I needed, and I replied "I don't know, but it'll work out". He didn't seem to like that answer, and gave me that questioning look like "you don't know what you're doing!".

A few weeks later, and I was talking to 3 of the pilots mentioned above at one of our neighborhood BBQ's. The American pilot who talked to me initially mentioned this Mesa PACE program to the two others, and explained to them what the deal was. Unanimously, they agreed with him that someone in my situation should pursue this (for the same reasons he gave me initially...getting a seniority number, quick upgrade, PIC, blah, blah, blah). I guess at that point I felt that I was not in a position to be challenging their judgements, especially considering how "behind the curve" I had been on what I needed to do to get this career off the ground. Obviously, I had aspirations to get to where they were, and felt they probably knew better than I on how to get there.

I remember looking at my computer as I was filling out that appication, and questioning myself...over and over. Asking questions like "you've given up everything (prior career) in hopes of being happy doing what you're doing...why are you going somewhere that people don't seem to be happy?". Other questions came to mind as well, but it seemed like each time they did, my neighbor's face would pop up with that questioning look saying "gotta get that PIC time", or "I know better than you do what you're doing".

A date that lives in infamy...March 2003, and I (somewhat reluctantly) fired that application off...

So, to spare you with more details, I got through the PACE program, and got hired on with Mesa in 2004. My story may at least provide some rationale as to why some people do things that others find completely senseless. If I would have found a site such as this, or talked to regional pilots themselves, there is no doubt in my mind that I would have done things differently.

Many that read this will say that I got what I deserved for not doing better research. And you're absolutely right. I looked at the company itself, and was impressed with it's profitabilty, growth and the fact that Mesa had continued to hire when others weren't. But why I never dug up and read the specifics of the contract is beyond me. I had no idea what "junior assigning" meant, or "segment time", or stuff like that. But I know I would have balked at not getting paid for time you flew (or sat) as well as not getting paid for some cancellations, etc. I shudder to think just how little I knew about this industry, and how mis-informed/aka CLUELESS I was on just about everything applicable to my life ahead as a pilot.

I know that I would be much happier at a place like SkyWest for the same reasons I initially wanted to go there. However, after being at Mesa for 2+ years, and being in my late 30's, I really don't feel that starting over at another regional would be in my best interest. Ultimately, I could be wrong....especially considering that a newhire at SkyWest (or Shuttle, as well as others) may upgrade sooner than I will here. Certainly, they'll be leading a MUCH better life once they do. But for those saying "why do people stay at Mesa?"....it's a bit more complicated than you may think.

To sum it up, I feel that life is all about making decisions based on the information available at the time...and then figuring out later whether or not that was the right decision. If it's not, you learn from your mistake, and try to avoid making the same mistake again. That's exactly what I've done with my decision to come to Mesa. I've realized it was a mistake, am trying to make the best of it (or possibly make a change to rectify it), and learn from it ultimately.

...so there you have it.