Totally agreed. I've been told lots how great the Mesaba 401k is but lets really look at it... 25% match for the first six years... then 50 % match for the next 5... then 75% for the next five and 100% for years 16-20 and 125% for 20 plus... I don't know why they left off the Gazillion percent match for years 30+.... maybe because it would have blown their cover.... "Yes lets offer them 125% match at 20 plus years...that only encompasses like 15 guys total and the rest of them will see the carrot and say GREAT!!"
And that's before we even talk about the fact that it doesn't vest for 5 years.... so if you leave before five years the company match is.... 0%.
A previous airline of mine offered 1.5% defined contribution... meaning you got it without putting in anything... and THEN they matched.
Mesaba's 401k is 1000% better than colgan's since they had 0% match, but it's not hugely better than Pinnacle's and it certainly isn't "industry leading" It's just ok.