I'd say more like 30% of our pilots commute, at least here in Florida anyways. They manage to pull it off I guess, I don't know how.

The most junior base is actually called the "home basing," as you've probably read about its a floating base where they put you where they need you for the month (our flying changes quite a bit from season to season depending upon the base). FL is the most common spot, but in the summer time there's a seasonal base in MYR and LAX that goes junior. I've also seen home basing vacancies pop up for IWA and LAS a couple times, but it usually goes to the most senior people bidding the home base. The positive is that you get a hotel covered so you don't need a crash pad.

The negative again though, there's no guarantee of a commutable schedule unless your pretty senior, so its been called the homeless base. They like to junior man a lot here also so that can mess with you getting home also.

 

If you are concerned about our instructors out to fail people, I have never found that to be the case. I just finished AB training about 6 months ago and the instructors seemed to care and try their best to get everyone through training. I know of several people that needed extra sim sessions and there was never an issue with getting one and everyone passed when I went through. I had two new hires in my systems class and they never seemed to indicate that they felt that anyone was out to fail them. The thing about our training department is that you had better be able to self study. But if you have a good study group and can look through a book to answer questions you should get through without much problem.

If it helps the last class that went through were all Airbus with 3 757 guys, no one to the 80. I do think FL is the best bet for base for all new hires since that is where all the growth is here. As I tell everyone, I wouldn't consider coming here unless your willing to move to one of our bases. I could only imagine that commuting with the schedules I have seen would be difficult.

My suggestion is don't come here thinking a type rating is going to get you your dream job. Come here with the expectation that you are going to be here for many years, and if the call comes from your dream airline after only 6 months then lucky you.

 

What is the average upgrade time in FL that is not hom based?

 

For someone hired in 2014 or someone hired today?

Past performance is not indicative of future results.

Bear in mind we went from around 350 pilots to 550 pilots in just over a year. These low upgrade times are for those at the front of the wave.

Many of us were hired during an 18 month upgrade. We upgraded after six years.

 

So all schedules are out and back in all stations? No 3 or 4 day trips? I'm guessing those that commute enjoy alot of crash pad time.

 

Doing Apple out of PIT? Isn't Xtra doing that already?

 

Starts in 4th quarter. Probably underbid Xtra.

 

Yes, if you read through this thread it's been covered. The only exception is the 757 stuff from LAS/LAX to HNL which involves an overnight, but that's going away in 2017.

 

If you commute you'll be in the crash pad virtually every night so you need a true crash pad - if you try and hotel it you'll go broke.

Really, unless you're maybe #1 or #2 in base commuting is really difficult. The business model is built around peaks and valleys so the flying varies widely by day of the week and by month. Example of this it's common for nearly everyone to have to work fri. & sun. and almost everyone to be off sat. So you're gonna have 4-5 occurrences per month of one day off. This is not like other airlines where you trade or use the bid sheet or take PTO and work out a 5-on 5-off schedule.

Like everyone says, read the thread, you can come here and have a pretty good QOL if you put yourself in an aircraft/base that gets you senior as fast as possible compared with, say, you come here and bid Airbus IWA or take upgrade as soon as it's available - you'll be junior and getting TDY'd for quite awhile.

 

I have read the thread. I guess I could have phrased the question differently.. I should have said... is the schedule still an out and back. I'm originally from LV and have watched them over the years.