What made you want to work there before you got hired?

I wanted to live and work in the State of Alaska. I saw Alaska as a major, no different from all the other majors, except that it allowed me to live where I wanted and work without commuting. The ANC base also had a reputation of being hard core professional "Arctic Eagles". Guys who were very very good at flying the Arctic and Southeast. In my youth, I wanted to be a part of that. I wanted to learn, I wanted to be the best that I could be in my profession, surrounded by a bunch of hard chargers who made the hard stuff look easy.


What makes you stay?

Seniority. Just like all of us. This industry is not a free market. Once a guy gets a few years in, he is literally trapped. I am way to long in the tooth now to start over. I did not really understand this concept when I was a young man trying to get a major airline job. Today, if I could take my seniority with me and just slide over to Delta - I probably would, but that's just fantasy. Reality is, young folks need to choose wisely because you will be married to your company for your entire career. Sure, some will spend a year or two here and then move on, but the vast majority will stay. If you are going to come to work here, just be cool with the fact that you work for a second tier airline and you will never have what Delta, American, United and Southwest have.


What does Alaska have that other bigger/better airlines don’t?

Really not much except a couple of desirable (in my opinion) bases. Between ANC, SEA, PDX and LAX there is something for everyone who wants to live on the west coast. If you are a guy from the deep south or the east coast, then this company really has nothing to offer you. I've never worked for another major so I really have no idea what the culture or work environment is like at other places. I can tell you that Alaska has a good group of pilots with very few bad apples.


Can you talk about anything positive?

This is a hard question. The short answer, right now, is no. The reality is that Alaska requires through it's business model that I work harder for less reward than the pilots of other legacy airlines. I subsidize the profit margin. I help them make record profits and they keep it without sharing, simply because they can. I can't leave because it is not a free market and I am way to old to start over. Pretty much sucks, but it is what it is.

BUT... this is a stretch but it is the only positive thing I can think of... this management is so ruthless, so greedy, so conservative, that chances are good that I will always have a pay check. Granted, it will always be lower than market, but at least it will be something. At least it's better than working for Frontier or Spirit or some other second tier airline that may or may not be around for a guys entire career.

I imagine that there may be some reading this who take issue with a few of my positions. Just know that I am not a company guy. They get what they pay for from me. I am not a cry baby, a coward or a yes man. I am a realist. I take care of my crew, my passengers and my jet. I give them nothing extra and I take from them everything I can. That is exactly what they deserve. It's just business.

 

Well said Sir

 

Yes of course. And there have been times I’ve been embarrassed for sure. However, most of the time, when the system fails there’s usually an individual that makes a difference in a customer’s experience to help make it better. That’s true at a lot of places as well.

 

Thank you. Well said.

I’ve been around the AirGroup for over twenty years. In that time, I’ve learned to distrust management, but I love my coworkers. I don’t think there are more than half a dozen I don’t want to see again.

I’m glad to work in a place where we all work together, whatever the boss man’s sayin’.

I’ve had other jobs. I know life could be a hell of a lot worse.
Above all, take care of your crew, whatever the conditions.

 

What Mudhen and others said...

But to stay away from negative or repeating...

They have good technology/ nice jets, and operate the jet well. Pretty adaptive to new procedures and it makes the job nice.

Smaller size allows them to make changes these changes faster.

 

A 737 is nice jet? Maybe in 1965

 

I think they were going for well maintained, clean, with technology to make the job easier. Yes the 737 is a quirky hybrid of 1955/2005.

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

 

The 727 was 1965 technology and my favorite from late '80s til I bailed off of it in '94, from the Arctic to Acapulco and every North/South city in between.

Hate the 737, which is why I look forward to switching to the A320 out of SFO.

Wonder what my seniority would be ?

 

No no...you have it all wrong, the Airbus is a very scary flying computer, stay away. The navigation display only has headings 330 through 030, then skips all the way to 130 through 220, then skips all the way back to 330...it’s kind of complicated. Essentially 030 to 130 are a no fly zone and 220 through 330 likewise...circling is near to impossible. It is out to get at every move, especially that person next to you in the right seat, gotta watch them like a hawk. If I was you, I think I would just stay put.

 

To each their own; I have flown both the A320 series and the B737 series aircraft. I prefer the 737 hands down.