Schedule
 

I’m a corporate guy looking to change jobs. I don’t live at a base currently and I’m in no big hurry to move.
My question is schedules.
What’s a monthly really look like? From what I’ve been able to gather it looks like 14 to 17 days off a month. I’ve also read that it’s more like two on two off. I understand base seniority etc. changes a lot but for a junior F0, what should I expect? With the two on two off scenario commuting would be nearly impossible wouldn’t it?
Thanks

Unfortunately, we don’t use any kind of legitimate bidding/scheduling software. It routinely ignores your seniority and preferences. It’s a complete dog**** and we may soon be striking over it. If we somehow get screwed over, and have to continue using it, I’m going elsewhere. It is not worth it and completely unacceptable.

You can commute to our hub bases like LAS/LAX etc. Unfortunately, since we havent hired recently, our junior bases are PGD, IND and OAK. OAK would be doable, but if your living in a Legacy hub city then almost all our bases are commutable with the exception of PGD.

To expand on this, schedules vary drastically by base. If you want the most days off, best schedules, the trick is getting senior in a small base like IND/OAK with only 1-2 airplanes. If your in Vegas, your not getting many weekends off no matter your seniority as almost all of our flying is Thurs/Fri and Sun/Mon.

So does that mean you are off Saturday and Tuesday and Wednesday?
So there’s no hiring at all?
I’m reading different reports on that. Getting new planes and adding routes I assumed they were hiring. I obviously have no idea I don’t work there.

when Airbus transition stops they will hire.

Traditionally speaking (prior to the addition of the Airbus) yes. As the transition nears completion, more and more bases are switching to a 7 day a week operation. From the sounds of it from senior management, the 7 day a week thing works much better east than west, so west coast bases can expect less Tues/Wed/Sat flying than the east coast bases. With that said, junior pilots can probably expect those days off for a while to come.

We are currently not hiring, but that will change soon. A lot of garbage coming from the company about being over staffed, but everyone knows it’s posturing and not realistic. A CP has openly said that we’ll likely see classes resume in Q4 18.

Quiet morning so I’ll humor you with a novel ;)

I was hired into a large base at the beginning of a large hiring wave. I was on reserve for about 5 months, which consisted of minimum days off and I was called about half the time. I had a lot of single days off, however, I lived in base and wasn’t really trying to avoid them. I actually enjoyed flying a couple days then having 1 day off. Post contract, the single day off issue is partially fixed – 6 days off each month are required to be consecutive (4 off and 2 off, or 3 off and 3 off, etc). I have found that most guys living in base don’t mind single days off sprinkled in. It’s a different story for commuters.

After I escaped reserve, I would average 13-16 days off per month with relatively short and inefficient trips for the first year. However, short trips can be very enjoyable… away from home for less than 5 hours. A few people directly above me were getting 17-19 days off. The second year my schedules were consistently 16-18 off every month with minimal solitary days (maybe 1-2/month, not trying to avoid them). Could I have commuted? Yes, but I wouldn’t have enjoyed my life as much. For reference, at the end of my second year, I was top 20% of FO’s in that particular base and equipment. Keep in mind; I was hired at the onset of a huge hiring wave and lots of movement from right to left seat.

I am now in 3rd – 4th year in a different (less senior) base. I dictate my entire schedule… from more than half the month off consecutively, to not working more than 1 day in a row, and everything in between. If I have less than 18 days off, I screwed up. Average 19-21 off with decent credit. Easily commutable from anywhere on the planet.

The interface of our bidding software is ok; the way it solves is bad. Once you figure out how it solves and you are not on the bottom of the list, it works (there are tricks). That being said, I want new software with traditional solving capabilities.

The question you must ask yourself: Am I willing to sacrifice (move to a base or crash-pad) for a few years to get what I want? Once the Airbus transition is finished later this year, I expect the hiring boom to start again. You may be in a good position to ride the wave.

Thanks so much! I’m seriously considering starting my application process. I love allegiant business model and no overnights!! Nothing is quite as satisfying as spending five days in Oxnard California while my family is at home doing my chores!! Do you have any idea which bases are junior?

I will offer a slightly different perspective. I was hired much later in a period of steady hiring. I already lived in a large senior base. I spent the first year commuting to a junior base with a fairly easy commute. I only spent A month or two on reserve and dropped as much as I could get away with and picked up trips in the base where I live. I had varying degrees of success with that, but if you stay on open time, you can do a decent job of reducing the number of days that you have to commute. After I year, I barely made it into the base where I live when the hiring stopped. So, I have been on reserve (except when I volunteered to TDY) for 7 months now. I will probably be in reserve for at least another 8 months. Some months, I fly my butt off on reserve, but most months I get called out half the time or less. I tend to prefer flying over reserve, so I usually still pick up as much as I can to fly more and make more. So I average around 7 or 8 days off a month, but I also usually have another 7 or 8 days that I don’t get called out. So I am home 15+ days a month. Other than the one month I chose to TDY, I have spent 5 nights on the road this year, and 3 of those were for training. This schedule beats my previous 135/91k lifestyle by large margins.


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An even different perspective..
Hired right before hiring stopped, was promised hiring to resume in a couple months (eye roll). Moved to junior base, staring down the barrel of involuntary TDY month after month after month. Then was displaced out of said base subsequently and forced to just wait for a spot to open back up to get back in (with no hiring and little if any movement). If the company gets its way and doesn't hire again for years then jumping ship to do 4 days again will be vastly superior to being TDY'd involuntarily for half the year. Hopefully hiring resumes at some point but if its slow then be cautioned your experience could be similar

Sucks being junior... hopefully they get their sh@t together soon and do the right thing.

Sorry

Sure would be nice to have something in the contract to limit the amount of involuntary tdys in a year. Going to be hard to attract and retain people if you're away from home months at a time. Could always hope they keep vbd. That would be a win for those who want that lifestyle and keep those who want to be home at home.

Tell that to some of the "junior" CAs with 4 digit employee numbers in SFB that have been TDY'd for 5 months out of the last year.

Yes, they definitely need to get their sh@t together.

That sucks. I won't be disrespectful like justwatching and say sucks to be junior, but in your shoes, I'd consider spirit. Their contract blows ours away now, and they are still growing, getting new planes. Until Maury retires, this company isn't going anywhere. You may realistically be stagnant for the next 2-3 years the way things are going here. If you're at the bottom of this list, you really have nothing to lose by leaving, and a lot to lose by hanging on.

What kind of override pay do you get for TDY, if any? per diem I assume?

Per Diem is it.


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How was I being disrespectful? I was being sympathetic. It does in fact suck to be junior at this and any airline. If by the amount of complaining you do is any comparison, you should agree. I realize you're old and angry at all the kids, but dude... enough already.

A different perspective here. I'm a senior FO in a larger base. I bid minimum hours. I work only Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. In my base, Tuesday is a low flying day, only a handful of flights. Occasionally I can't get Tuesday so I instead work M-W-Th. On average this works out to 11-12 days of work per month.



Since I live in base, having a single day off here and there is just fine with me.

Living in base would rock!! I’m not sure if I want to move and then get bumped and have to move again. Corporate has been good to me but the schedule or lack there of is sometimes brutal. We are a small company and taking off is hard especially when you work 100-125 days a year!!

Amazing how a couple of years’ difference can create vastly different situations. I would like to think that your experience is the exception, not the rule.

That really blows. Hang in there, it’s worth it.

Was hired back in 2016 and am pretty senior FO in a junior base. Get 14 or 15 days off a month and bid morning trips. Home by 1pm usually and of course home every night except for training. Secret is to live in base and be 5 minutes from the airport. Hope we hire and grow again so the junior ones could get a similar experience.

Junior FO in a living in a senior base, mostly reserve and the occasional composite line. Mostly it’s a struggle to get 3 bump’n gos in 90, but I live within my means and am 15 mins from the airport. Lots of fun to be had 1.5 hours from the parking lot. Most guys are kind enough to give you 24hr heads up if your going to get called out... The key to happiness at G4 at any seniority is moving to your base.

I agree! And on another perspective: Was hired in 2015, upgraded on the Airbus before the second year pay came, got a +400% bump on the hourly rate. Have consistently managed 13-16 days off even as Captain. Bidding high flying trips in a junior base then bidding Reserve/Composite in senior bases. Beach time, Surf & Brunch everyday.. and if get called, go sight-seeing and get back to the beach before Happy Hour ends. Never miss Taco Tuesday, events or live concerts, if you're into that sort of thing.

Just like the man said, key at G4 is to move to the Base. And to the new hires, Hang in there...definitely gets better.

At G4, you live well, sleep well, feel well & get paid well to fly an airbus for a few hours every once in a while.

Take care of the 'one life' we got!

Um, just no...


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Friggen millennials. Bet he came from Skywest bruh.

Why? Because he enjoys his job?

I love mine too! I've never been more than 30% up the list in my base. I average 14ish days off on my initial award, one month of reserve in a year and a half since I hit the line. Two nights away from home in that time (not counting training). Depending on my bid for the month, 90% of the time I am either home in time for a late lunch or I have breakfast with the kids.

I'm about as far from millennial as you can get and I can't think of another 121 airline with a better quality of life (for me).

Of course, all of this is dependent on living in base (and not being a negative, unhappy person by nature).

Now, if we could just fill those holes in the CBA...

You forgot to say "RayOfSunshine". :rolleyes:

Has it ever occurred to any of you that if we brag in public about how great our lives are, and people keep knocking the door down to come here, management has ZERO motivation to improve said CBA?

Smarten up, people. We just passed a strike vote for christ sakes. Pull it in.

the same applies to the hundreds of posts on how little you get called on reserve and the 7 pilots per frame bs. #theyrewatchingus

Exactly. You all are acting like a bunch of amateurs. Back the EXCO.

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I don't think we should be outright lying to people interested in coming here and telling them that the QOL is terrible in base when it really isn't. However, "voicing an opinion" as we could call it in this instance, that pilots don't get used often on reserve isn't something that we should openly broadcast on here as well given the current situation. I think a PM would work better in addressing specific QOL questions like this...at least for the short term.

I think the people bragging about that are in for a rude awakening anyway. I was on reserve for a long time after I upgraded and it was miserable. I got called in a lot, involuntary TDY, and sent to other bases for days at a time. The company knew and accepted that they would be fat during the transition. Enjoy the good times now cause once the transition is over they are going to tighten everything up. Of course for me that means lots of VFN money, but I have a feeling some of our junior pilots are going to see a whole different company.

All airlines are always short of Captains, at least from what I've seen. There are always surplus FOs though.

Just got the interview there and I have a few questions.
1. I’m about 1.5-2 hours from LAX, is that doable or is it insane?
2. lAX still junior for FO’s?
3. When is the current contract up?
4. What are the typical show times and releases in LAX for pm and am shifts.

Thanks in advance

1. Reserve callout is 90 minutes. We have guys that live 1.5-2 hours away and even some donit on reserve, but that means that drive closer for there Reserve shift.
2. The bottom few slots in LAX typically go junior, but we haven’t hired in 7 months, so it will be interesting to see how it shakes out. I would plan on spending the first few months in PGD if you come here and then you will be pleasantly surprised if you get something else faster.
3. There is another 3 years in the contract.
4. Early flights typically start between 5 and 6:30 and late flights start between 11:00 am and 3:00 pm. There are exceptions, but that will get you in the ballpark.

Face to face interview? When?

No, just the “let’s move forward” email.

What all did that email say? Are we still doing video interviews?

This is what the email they are sending out says-

"Thank you for your interest in a career with Allegiant. We are rapidly transitioning our fleet and foresee many opportunities for the future.

We have reviewed your background and qualifications for the role of First Officer and would like to move forward with your application once additional class dates become available.

Over the next few months, you will receive communication regarding our transition, hiring events, and Allegiant’s growth. Once class dates are available, you will be notified of your next steps within the interview process.

Should your situation or interest in joining Allegiant change, please be sure to inform us so that we may update your application.

We look forward to talking with you soon!"

- I haven't heard anything since receiving that email a few weeks ago, but they're obviously building up a pool of applicants.

Pretty big jump from reading that to posting here that you have an interview.