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Is AW still hiring FOs?

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Old 07-20-2023, 06:43 AM
  #11  
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Originally Posted by ttexrbomb View Post
I would not go with Air Wisconsin even if they hire you. Their recruiters paint a picture of a great place to work and a lot of potential. This is not the case. Here is what happened to me.

I was hired in November, 2023. I was promised a $73,000 signing bonus, to be paid out ($5,000 upon completion of IOE, and $17k every 6 months after that). Well come to find out after I was hired, they "silently" changed that to $5,000 after IOE, then $17k 6 months after you upgrade to captain. So, you'll see that in roughly 2 1/2 years. There are no plans on raising the pay of $60.90, no matter what all the chatter is. I spoke with Dave McAdow, who is a senior team member there. He told me that the official position of the company is to keep the $60.90 pay for FO's and reward upgrading to captain. Air Wisconsin wants a clawback in their next agreement, and they want to reduce the FO pay by 25%. Not really right seeing as others are paying significantly more than that. This company is looking to take the pay back down if they can. So, be really careful if you decide to trust them.

They pitch a 55 day training footprint. It took me over 150 days. So, three months longer than they initially promised. And I was sitting on ready reserve. Luckily I got a job offer paying significantly more, so I resigned and took that job offer. And that was after I paid back over $5,129 for their "training". That is fine, I agreed to it. But they also agreed that I was going to be a FO, and they reneged on that part. Sitting around the airport ready reserve wasn't what I had in mind. I mean fly me half time at least. That would have been fine. But one or two flights a month is what people just coming out of training are getting? I honestly think this American deal is not as lucrative as the United was. And their 8K shows a huge write off. So, they can pitch that the American deal was a good deal? It wasn't.

Training is not for new pilots. If you have 1,000 RATP or 1,500 hours, the training is brutal. It can be done, but the training isn't designed for newer pilots. It is designed for already seasoned 121 pilots.

For your interview, you are responsible for your own hotel room. To interview with them, it cost me $119 for a hotel by O'Hare. Don't most companies provide this to you?

You have to buy your own uniforms. They don't provide those to you.

If you have to do ATR (Additional Training), your pay is cut from the 75 hour minimum to 62 hours. So your pay will be close to $800 less while you are waiting for additional training (which could be up to 6 weeks).

The iPads they give you are 2018 versions. Old, scratched up and the battery life on them isn't want you need. They give you a portable charger that you need to use.

They don't use ForeFlight or Government charts. Instead, they use NavBlue, which is an Airbus company. The only other airline in the world that uses NavBlue is Ryan Air in Europe. You can't use Jeppeson charts, even if you wanted to.

The hotel they put you up at for training isn't designed for extended stay. No microwaves in the rooms and a tiny mini fridge barely large enough to hold drinks or refrigerated food. If you want to microwave anything, you'll need to go to a centrally located microwave and wait in line. The sim hotel in Atlanta is even worse. It is located in a bad part of town. Dangerous at night, so if you have a 4am sim start time, you're calling an Uber because their shuttle doesn't start until 5am. And again, 4am sim, you're missing breakfast which is not included in the room, so the hotel breakfast is $19 a day. I just went to Walmart and bought my own food.

When in training, you will not get a per diem for food. You are responsible for your own breakfast, lunch and dinner. But hey, at least you'll get your $60.90 an hour to pay for it.

My training footprint was this. Indoc and Systems - then a 7 week break for CPT, then 5 week break before SIMS, then a month between SIMS and IOE. They clearly don't have the capacity to handle the training they are hiring for.

Caveat Emptor. I would avoid this airline like the plague.
Sitting reserve and using old iPads is pretty normal for a regional airline.

I think maybe RPA buys your first set of uniforms, and C5 you buy them but get a small stipend to cover over time.

I'm not sure why you think it should be different. In a seniority-based system, you sit reserve until you don't. That's how it works.
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Old 07-20-2023, 09:19 AM
  #12  
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Originally Posted by killbilly View Post
I think maybe RPA buys your first set of uniforms
RPA does give you uniforms every year and Luggage Works roller and 2nd LW crew bag of your choice.

I think he was more upset they lied about his bonuses and he had to sit ready reserve (airport 10-14 hour shift). And the training delays. RPA does not have RR or training delays.
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Old 07-20-2023, 05:18 PM
  #13  
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Originally Posted by Bricky View Post
RPA does give you uniforms every year and Luggage Works roller and 2nd LW crew bag of your choice.

I think he was more upset they lied about his bonuses and he had to sit ready reserve (airport 10-14 hour shift). And the training delays. RPA does not have RR or training delays.

Republic doesn't have training delays because they're pursuing legal action against people who want to move upwards in their careers on their own timeline and not Republics.
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Old 07-20-2023, 06:16 PM
  #14  
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Originally Posted by prex8390 View Post
Republic doesn't have training delays because they're pursuing legal action against people who want to move upwards in their careers on their own timeline and not Republics.
Just wanted to correct what was written.

Fwiw, your saying Republic is wrong for acting in it's own best interests - but your fine with new hires acting in their own best interests.
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Old 07-21-2023, 06:53 AM
  #15  
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Originally Posted by ttexrbomb View Post
I would not go with Air Wisconsin even if they hire you. Their recruiters paint a picture of a great place to work and a lot of potential. This is not the case. Here is what happened to me.

I was hired in November, 2023. I was promised a $73,000 signing bonus, to be paid out ($5,000 upon completion of IOE, and $17k every 6 months after that). Well come to find out after I was hired, they "silently" changed that to $5,000 after IOE, then $17k 6 months after you upgrade to captain. So, you'll see that in roughly 2 1/2 years. There are no plans on raising the pay of $60.90, no matter what all the chatter is. I spoke with Dave McAdow, who is a senior team member there. He told me that the official position of the company is to keep the $60.90 pay for FO's and reward upgrading to captain. Air Wisconsin wants a clawback in their next agreement, and they want to reduce the FO pay by 25%. Not really right seeing as others are paying significantly more than that. This company is looking to take the pay back down if they can. So, be really careful if you decide to trust them.

They pitch a 55 day training footprint. It took me over 150 days. So, three months longer than they initially promised. And I was sitting on ready reserve. Luckily I got a job offer paying significantly more, so I resigned and took that job offer. And that was after I paid back over $5,129 for their "training". That is fine, I agreed to it. But they also agreed that I was going to be a FO, and they reneged on that part. Sitting around the airport ready reserve wasn't what I had in mind. I mean fly me half time at least. That would have been fine. But one or two flights a month is what people just coming out of training are getting? I honestly think this American deal is not as lucrative as the United was. And their 8K shows a huge write off. So, they can pitch that the American deal was a good deal? It wasn't.

Training is not for new pilots. If you have 1,000 RATP or 1,500 hours, the training is brutal. It can be done, but the training isn't designed for newer pilots. It is designed for already seasoned 121 pilots.

For your interview, you are responsible for your own hotel room. To interview with them, it cost me $119 for a hotel by O'Hare. Don't most companies provide this to you?

You have to buy your own uniforms. They don't provide those to you.

If you have to do ATR (Additional Training), your pay is cut from the 75 hour minimum to 62 hours. So your pay will be close to $800 less while you are waiting for additional training (which could be up to 6 weeks).

The iPads they give you are 2018 versions. Old, scratched up and the battery life on them isn't want you need. They give you a portable charger that you need to use.

They don't use ForeFlight or Government charts. Instead, they use NavBlue, which is an Airbus company. The only other airline in the world that uses NavBlue is Ryan Air in Europe. You can't use Jeppeson charts, even if you wanted to.

The hotel they put you up at for training isn't designed for extended stay. No microwaves in the rooms and a tiny mini fridge barely large enough to hold drinks or refrigerated food. If you want to microwave anything, you'll need to go to a centrally located microwave and wait in line. The sim hotel in Atlanta is even worse. It is located in a bad part of town. Dangerous at night, so if you have a 4am sim start time, you're calling an Uber because their shuttle doesn't start until 5am. And again, 4am sim, you're missing breakfast which is not included in the room, so the hotel breakfast is $19 a day. I just went to Walmart and bought my own food.

When in training, you will not get a per diem for food. You are responsible for your own breakfast, lunch and dinner. But hey, at least you'll get your $60.90 an hour to pay for it.

My training footprint was this. Indoc and Systems - then a 7 week break for CPT, then 5 week break before SIMS, then a month between SIMS and IOE. They clearly don't have the capacity to handle the training they are hiring for.

Caveat Emptor. I would avoid this airline like the plague.
Not saying AW is the best regional to work for but you just sound bitter.. First off, It's a contract that you signed and clearly didn't understand. Want to blame someone? I'd read the name inked on said contract. Ready reserve is horrid but if you know how to bid, not sure how you got stuck on it for months especially with an extended training envelope? Sounds more likely you really didn't know how to avoid it... NavBlue is different than others use but works just as good as anything else. Are you seriously complaining about a regional airline not giving you brand new ipad? It's pretty clear to me that you weren't a great fit and I'm glad to hear you are exercising an opportunity elsewhere. Just not sure why you're still slandering AW after they gave you the type rating that likely got you hired at your current job?
Also, I have interviewed at 3 airlines (one at a legacy) and never have they paid for my hotel. That isn't exactly industry standard...
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Old 07-21-2023, 12:10 PM
  #16  
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Originally Posted by Bricky View Post
Just wanted to correct what was written.

Fwiw, your saying Republic is wrong for acting in it's own best interests - but your fine with new hires acting in their own best interests.
Republic can do whatever they want in their best interest. But ultimately they need the pilots and pilots aren't required to go to the republic.

If a steakhouse decided they wanted to serve horsemeat instead of beef, doesn't mean people are going to eat there. It's all the same principle. They can both do what they please, but one end of the party has more of a choice than the other. And judging by the lack of training delays, it says something about what pilots want.
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Old 07-22-2023, 11:34 AM
  #17  
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Originally Posted by prex8390 View Post
Republic can do whatever they want in their best interest. But ultimately they need the pilots and pilots aren't required to go to the republic.

If a steakhouse decided they wanted to serve horsemeat instead of beef, doesn't mean people are going to eat there. It's all the same principle. They can both do what they please, but one end of the party has more of a choice than the other. And judging by the lack of training delays, it says something about what pilots want.
Judging by the number of new hires I think it's the opposite of what you think.

The last months classes were approx 8, 4, 12, 14. No training delays because Republic built there own training center and hotel. Bought there own ERJ175 full-motion sims. 8 of them, that aren't shared with outside airlines. No training delays because the pilots are flying. Not as much as before COVID but we're almost 50-50 on captains so we're ramping back up.

Also funny that getting paid $90,000 year one plus a $25,000 bonus is the horsemeat in you story. Yes, we have to upgrade to captain but we will make about $150,000-200,000+ each year.
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Old 07-22-2023, 02:20 PM
  #18  
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Originally Posted by Bricky View Post
Judging by the number of new hires I think it's the opposite of what you think.

The last months classes were approx 8, 4, 12, 14. No training delays because Republic built there own training center and hotel. Bought there own ERJ175 full-motion sims. 8 of them, that aren't shared with outside airlines. No training delays because the pilots are flying. Not as much as before COVID but we're almost 50-50 on captains so we're ramping back up.

Also funny that getting paid $90,000 year one plus a $25,000 bonus is the horsemeat in you story. Yes, we have to upgrade to captain but we will make about $150,000-200,000+ each year.
Found Bedford account. Do you really think the reason republic doesn't have training delays is because they have a hotel and some sims?

Ask AA how they're doing then.
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Old 07-22-2023, 03:41 PM
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Originally Posted by prex8390 View Post
Found Bedford account. Do you really think the reason republic doesn't have training delays is because they have a hotel and some sims?

Ask AA how they're doing then.
Lol

Ok why don't we have training delays and are hiring?

If you have some tea about AA spill it.
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Old 07-23-2023, 03:07 PM
  #20  
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Originally Posted by Bricky View Post
Lol

Ok why don't we have training delays and are hiring?

If you have some tea about AA spill it.

Because a new hire class of 4 isn't exactly keeping up with attrition? Legacies classes are almost double the amount RAH did in month weekly. Average size is about 60 every Tuesday.

so yeah of course they're hiring. And a class of 4 says people would rather go to Mesa.
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