Mesaba's upgrade WAS 5 years until the announcement of the CRJs. It has been steadily been falling to under 5 years (I think 4 and a half years as of the last award) and WILL continue to fall. How much? All depends how many CRJs we get. We're getting 15 confirmed and 20 on option, which is most likely to be excercised at a later date. As long as there are new airplanes showing up on property, upgrade times will continue to go more and more junior.
But when a company stops receiving new aircraft (i.e. Pinnacle this Fall), your upgrade and movement up the seniority list is based solely off attrition and since only a few "big airlines" are hiring (Continental, FedEx, AirTran?, SWA) attrition will be small, not like the good ol days of the mid to late 90s. upgrade times will go from 1 to maybe 3 or 4 fours.
Sure PIC is great, but make sure you have a seat at the right airline when the music stops. This industry has proved to be one of the most predictable and unpredictable. Who woulda thought legacies like Pan Am would have vanished? TWA? Life may always be greener on the other side, but if your airline liquidates because of mismanagement (which is out of your control), you're SOL. good luck!
Last edited by CRM1337; 05-16-2005 at 06:02 PM.