PHX base info
07-15-2018, 09:11 AM
#13
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Dec 2007
Position: Window seat
Posts: 5,191
Live in PHX? But choose, or forced (PHX base closure) to commute. Spoke with a couple of PHX commuters. Could be 320 CA’s but instead they were commuting to LAX. Sitting 777 reserve and barely flying. Boat, RV, motorcycles. Tough life.
“What about the commute?” “Twenty seven flights. Great weather. A couple of times a month.”
“What about the commute?” “Twenty seven flights. Great weather. A couple of times a month.”
07-17-2018, 05:33 AM
#14
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Dec 2013
Position: A320 CA
Posts: 2,297
Originally Posted by Regionalsuck
Personally if it was me and I was dead set on PHX living. I’d pick SWA if you are military and can get hired because it’s a more stable long term base there. Who knows what AA does in PHX long term. Closing or shrinking will always be a threat in the back of your mind there IMO.
Commuting is absolutely miserable vs living in base. It is not worth hardly any amount of money or widebody to commute long term for the rest of your career.
After a decade of commuting vs now living in base you cannot even compare the QOL difference if you value your kids/family. 30-40 extra hours a month riding in the back of an airplane “if” you can even get on. Which that keeps getting worse and worse every year. (That is a full extra work week a month for normal people). Countless nights in hotels or crashpads living like a homeless rat instead of just driving home because of commuting on days off for early starts/late finishes, reserve, Delayed flights, jumpseat competition, lazy gate agents, maintenance problems, weather, cancelled flights. Extremely long days 16-22 hours+ sometimes trying to drive to airport early, wait for flight, end up on backup flight 3 hours later, then sit on 2-5 hour flight, deplane with rifraff after 30 minutes of them dilly dallying around... all before you even start to work full long 12 hour day. The added stress is unreal.
Commuting is absolutely miserable vs living in base. It is not worth hardly any amount of money or widebody to commute long term for the rest of your career.
After a decade of commuting vs now living in base you cannot even compare the QOL difference if you value your kids/family. 30-40 extra hours a month riding in the back of an airplane “if” you can even get on. Which that keeps getting worse and worse every year. (That is a full extra work week a month for normal people). Countless nights in hotels or crashpads living like a homeless rat instead of just driving home because of commuting on days off for early starts/late finishes, reserve, Delayed flights, jumpseat competition, lazy gate agents, maintenance problems, weather, cancelled flights. Extremely long days 16-22 hours+ sometimes trying to drive to airport early, wait for flight, end up on backup flight 3 hours later, then sit on 2-5 hour flight, deplane with rifraff after 30 minutes of them dilly dallying around... all before you even start to work full long 12 hour day. The added stress is unreal.
Depending on your commute, you might not ever need hotels or crashpads. Commuting at AA, one can reserve the jump seat, which dramatically reduces stress. Additionally, depending on base and equipment, there are trips that start late and end early (which as I understand it, is not the case with a SWA. I could easily never have to use a hotel or crash pad in my current status (I choose to though sometimes, to knock out back to back trips).
Bottom line for the OP, I wouldn’t choose SWA just because PHX could someday close as an AA base. But I wouldn’t be inclined to choose SWA anyway, so I might be biased.
07-17-2018, 09:48 AM
#15
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Jul 2011
Posts: 894
Originally Posted by PRS Guitars
I will concede that, of course, living in base is better. But “absolutely miserable” and “unreal stress” are a bit over the top, at least from my limited experience commuting. Stress wise, compared to my Air Force jobs, I’ll say that I’m happier (and less stressed out) driving to the airport to commute out for a 4 day trip, than I ever was driving to my Air Force job on a Monday morning.
Depending on your commute, you might not ever need hotels or to winter weather cities or reserve. Commuting at AA, one can reserve the jump seat, which dramatically reduces stress.
Depending on your commute, you might not ever need hotels or to winter weather cities or reserve. Commuting at AA, one can reserve the jump seat, which dramatically reduces stress.
If you commute on 2-3 days off per month on average you are losing nearly a month off per year. Over a decade that is almost an extra year you lost out on your family. Nobody ever thinks about these things but the time lost adds up.
Reserving a jumpseat is a nice benefit. Except for on reserve when you don't have the notice to do it early enough. Or on a commute with 50 other people trying to do the same thing as you. Or when you have it reserved but you get in 2 hours late due to flow delays and end up spending the night in the Airport LaQuinta instead of your own bed with family. Then you can't get on any morning flights the next day (your day off) either.
I've heard of these mythical easy commutes from small town USA but in 5 different domiciles worth of commuting from big cities or hub to hub, I have never had an easy low stress one.
The stress comes from the extremely long days the commute causes on both ends of trips and missed time at home. Or having to work at 10am on a Monday but unlike driving to work Monday morning like everyone else, you are having to leave Sunday afternoon at 2pm on your limited days off. Also, Instead of no big deal as delays build up throughout the day (for the local living pilot). Your stress is building all day on day 4 as you watch your last commute flight home vanish because the rampers are screwing around, maintenance is taking forever, weather is building....... and you know you are going to also lose a day off before the next trip as well due to an early sign in. SO now you are home for 1 full day instead of 3. I could keep going for hours. Commuting SUCKS.
After having lived in base and commuted for many years. There is not even a value you can put on the difference in QOL. It's astronomical. I get wanting to live in certain areas. I have done it myself, but the QOL hit to do it is HUGE. There may be some super cush commutes, I just have never had one. If you absolutely must commute, commute East to West or stay in the same time zone. That helps. I did a 5 hour transcon commute at one point from the West which made me want to quit this profession every day and probably took years off my life. Attempting to Sleep on the floor of the Airbus cockpit or jammed into a middle seat for 5 hours plus drive and airport appreciation time before and after flights, then have to work all day. Awful.
Last edited by RyanP; 07-17-2018 at 10:17 AM.
07-17-2018, 10:34 AM
#16
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Dec 2013
Position: A320 CA
Posts: 2,297
RyanP,
Sorry to hear that, maybe someday, I’ll feel that way, but right now the benefits of keeping my kids in their schools, outweighs the benefits of moving. I have commuted for 4 years, to the east coast and west coast, on long call reserve and short call reserve. During that time I also commuted to my AF job. Yes, you lose some time at home, but I have already factored that into my decision to commute, so I don’t dwell on it, which is key. Also, I don’t lose nearly the amount of days that you did. I commuted to the east coast from DEN, 1 night early 4 times last year, always made it home. So lost 4 partial days off. This year, I’ve only done it once and that was because I picked up a trip that paid a lot more but started early (worth it to me). Believe it or not, I actually enjoy the commute often. I like decompressing on the flight home. I enjoyed driving to my AF job and listening to books. That said, I’ll consider moving to base when my youngest goes to college, probably commute half the year, live in base half.
I’m not trying to thread drift here, but the OP is military and needs to hear all sides of the commute issue (even though this commute is only theoretical at this point, since we have a base in PHX...). A potential commute (that may never materialize) would be low on my decision matrix.
Sorry to hear that, maybe someday, I’ll feel that way, but right now the benefits of keeping my kids in their schools, outweighs the benefits of moving. I have commuted for 4 years, to the east coast and west coast, on long call reserve and short call reserve. During that time I also commuted to my AF job. Yes, you lose some time at home, but I have already factored that into my decision to commute, so I don’t dwell on it, which is key. Also, I don’t lose nearly the amount of days that you did. I commuted to the east coast from DEN, 1 night early 4 times last year, always made it home. So lost 4 partial days off. This year, I’ve only done it once and that was because I picked up a trip that paid a lot more but started early (worth it to me). Believe it or not, I actually enjoy the commute often. I like decompressing on the flight home. I enjoyed driving to my AF job and listening to books. That said, I’ll consider moving to base when my youngest goes to college, probably commute half the year, live in base half.
I’m not trying to thread drift here, but the OP is military and needs to hear all sides of the commute issue (even though this commute is only theoretical at this point, since we have a base in PHX...). A potential commute (that may never materialize) would be low on my decision matrix.
07-17-2018, 12:23 PM
#17
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Nov 2016
Position: 6th place
Posts: 1,826
Originally Posted by RyanP
I guess you haven't had the luxury of commuting very long or on popular commutes. Or certainly on reserve, hub-hub or into any bad weather seasons because I have had the exact opposite experience commuting. It has always been a nightmare. Probably losing at least a month or more per year commuting minimum on time off when I could've been sitting at home instead with family. Even if you are lucky and have nice commutable schedules for the most part and only end up commuting on 1 day off per month, that is still nearly 2 weeks per year lost with family. That is a good scenario commuting for someone senior enough to hold those schedules and gets lucky with low commute competition, plus no delays ever to make you miss the last commute flight home and perfect weather, no cancellations ever. Not to mention no redder than red trips so you can trade at your leisure into commutable luxury.
If you commute on 2-3 days off per month on average you are losing nearly a month off per year. Over a decade that is almost an extra year you lost out on your family. Nobody ever thinks about these things but the time lost adds up.
Reserving a jumpseat is a nice benefit. Except for on reserve when you don't have the notice to do it early enough. Or on a commute with 50 other people trying to do the same thing as you. Or when you have it reserved but you get in 2 hours late due to flow delays and end up spending the night in the Airport LaQuinta instead of your own bed with family. Then you can't get on any morning flights the next day (your day off) either.
I've heard of these mythical easy commutes from small town USA but in 5 different domiciles worth of commuting from big cities or hub to hub, I have never had an easy low stress one.
The stress comes from the extremely long days the commute causes on both ends of trips and missed time at home. Or having to work at 10am on a Monday but unlike driving to work Monday morning like everyone else, you are having to leave Sunday afternoon at 2pm on your limited days off. Also, Instead of no big deal as delays build up throughout the day (for the local living pilot). Your stress is building all day on day 4 as you watch your last commute flight home vanish because the rampers are screwing around, maintenance is taking forever, weather is building....... and you know you are going to also lose a day off before the next trip as well due to an early sign in. SO now you are home for 1 full day instead of 3. I could keep going for hours. Commuting SUCKS.
After having lived in base and commuted for many years. There is not even a value you can put on the difference in QOL. It's astronomical. I get wanting to live in certain areas. I have done it myself, but the QOL hit to do it is HUGE. There may be some super cush commutes, I just have never had one. If you absolutely must commute, commute East to West or stay in the same time zone. That helps. I did a 5 hour transcon commute at one point from the West which made me want to quit this profession every day and probably took years off my life. Attempting to Sleep on the floor of the Airbus cockpit or jammed into a middle seat for 5 hours plus drive and airport appreciation time before and after flights, then have to work all day. Awful.
If you commute on 2-3 days off per month on average you are losing nearly a month off per year. Over a decade that is almost an extra year you lost out on your family. Nobody ever thinks about these things but the time lost adds up.
Reserving a jumpseat is a nice benefit. Except for on reserve when you don't have the notice to do it early enough. Or on a commute with 50 other people trying to do the same thing as you. Or when you have it reserved but you get in 2 hours late due to flow delays and end up spending the night in the Airport LaQuinta instead of your own bed with family. Then you can't get on any morning flights the next day (your day off) either.
I've heard of these mythical easy commutes from small town USA but in 5 different domiciles worth of commuting from big cities or hub to hub, I have never had an easy low stress one.
The stress comes from the extremely long days the commute causes on both ends of trips and missed time at home. Or having to work at 10am on a Monday but unlike driving to work Monday morning like everyone else, you are having to leave Sunday afternoon at 2pm on your limited days off. Also, Instead of no big deal as delays build up throughout the day (for the local living pilot). Your stress is building all day on day 4 as you watch your last commute flight home vanish because the rampers are screwing around, maintenance is taking forever, weather is building....... and you know you are going to also lose a day off before the next trip as well due to an early sign in. SO now you are home for 1 full day instead of 3. I could keep going for hours. Commuting SUCKS.
After having lived in base and commuted for many years. There is not even a value you can put on the difference in QOL. It's astronomical. I get wanting to live in certain areas. I have done it myself, but the QOL hit to do it is HUGE. There may be some super cush commutes, I just have never had one. If you absolutely must commute, commute East to West or stay in the same time zone. That helps. I did a 5 hour transcon commute at one point from the West which made me want to quit this profession every day and probably took years off my life. Attempting to Sleep on the floor of the Airbus cockpit or jammed into a middle seat for 5 hours plus drive and airport appreciation time before and after flights, then have to work all day. Awful.
tldr some people can’t handle commuting. Some can. It’s what you make of it.
07-17-2018, 01:05 PM
#18
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Mar 2014
Posts: 3,091
Originally Posted by RyanP
I guess you haven't had the luxury of commuting very long or on popular commutes. Or certainly on reserve, hub-hub or into any bad weather seasons because I have had the exact opposite experience commuting. It has always been a nightmare. Probably losing at least a month or more per year commuting minimum on time off when I could've been sitting at home instead with family. Even if you are lucky and have nice commutable schedules for the most part and only end up commuting on 1 day off per month, that is still nearly 2 weeks per year lost with family. That is a good scenario commuting for someone senior enough to hold those schedules and gets lucky with low commute competition, plus no delays ever to make you miss the last commute flight home and perfect weather, no cancellations ever. Not to mention no redder than red trips so you can trade at your leisure into commutable luxury.
If you commute on 2-3 days off per month on average you are losing nearly a month off per year. Over a decade that is almost an extra year you lost out on your family. Nobody ever thinks about these things but the time lost adds up.
Reserving a jumpseat is a nice benefit. Except for on reserve when you don't have the notice to do it early enough. Or on a commute with 50 other people trying to do the same thing as you. Or when you have it reserved but you get in 2 hours late due to flow delays and end up spending the night in the Airport LaQuinta instead of your own bed with family. Then you can't get on any morning flights the next day (your day off) either.
I've heard of these mythical easy commutes from small town USA but in 5 different domiciles worth of commuting from big cities or hub to hub, I have never had an easy low stress one.
The stress comes from the extremely long days the commute causes on both ends of trips and missed time at home. Or having to work at 10am on a Monday but unlike driving to work Monday morning like everyone else, you are having to leave Sunday afternoon at 2pm on your limited days off. Also, Instead of no big deal as delays build up throughout the day (for the local living pilot). Your stress is building all day on day 4 as you watch your last commute flight home vanish because the rampers are screwing around, maintenance is taking forever, weather is building....... and you know you are going to also lose a day off before the next trip as well due to an early sign in. SO now you are home for 1 full day instead of 3. I could keep going for hours. Commuting SUCKS.
After having lived in base and commuted for many years. There is not even a value you can put on the difference in QOL. It's astronomical. I get wanting to live in certain areas. I have done it myself, but the QOL hit to do it is HUGE. There may be some super cush commutes, I just have never had one. If you absolutely must commute, commute East to West or stay in the same time zone. That helps. I did a 5 hour transcon commute at one point from the West which made me want to quit this profession every day and probably took years off my life. Attempting to Sleep on the floor of the Airbus cockpit or jammed into a middle seat for 5 hours plus drive and airport appreciation time before and after flights, then have to work all day. Awful.
If you commute on 2-3 days off per month on average you are losing nearly a month off per year. Over a decade that is almost an extra year you lost out on your family. Nobody ever thinks about these things but the time lost adds up.
Reserving a jumpseat is a nice benefit. Except for on reserve when you don't have the notice to do it early enough. Or on a commute with 50 other people trying to do the same thing as you. Or when you have it reserved but you get in 2 hours late due to flow delays and end up spending the night in the Airport LaQuinta instead of your own bed with family. Then you can't get on any morning flights the next day (your day off) either.
I've heard of these mythical easy commutes from small town USA but in 5 different domiciles worth of commuting from big cities or hub to hub, I have never had an easy low stress one.
The stress comes from the extremely long days the commute causes on both ends of trips and missed time at home. Or having to work at 10am on a Monday but unlike driving to work Monday morning like everyone else, you are having to leave Sunday afternoon at 2pm on your limited days off. Also, Instead of no big deal as delays build up throughout the day (for the local living pilot). Your stress is building all day on day 4 as you watch your last commute flight home vanish because the rampers are screwing around, maintenance is taking forever, weather is building....... and you know you are going to also lose a day off before the next trip as well due to an early sign in. SO now you are home for 1 full day instead of 3. I could keep going for hours. Commuting SUCKS.
After having lived in base and commuted for many years. There is not even a value you can put on the difference in QOL. It's astronomical. I get wanting to live in certain areas. I have done it myself, but the QOL hit to do it is HUGE. There may be some super cush commutes, I just have never had one. If you absolutely must commute, commute East to West or stay in the same time zone. That helps. I did a 5 hour transcon commute at one point from the West which made me want to quit this profession every day and probably took years off my life. Attempting to Sleep on the floor of the Airbus cockpit or jammed into a middle seat for 5 hours plus drive and airport appreciation time before and after flights, then have to work all day. Awful.
He's the same type of guy that calls finishing at 8am on day four working the whole day when in reality they are mostly three days (look at the TAFB).
Hands down the biggest benefit to living in base is bidding reserve and picking up premium or OG trips.
Buy Gogo and/or join a Gogo cartel and get stuff done on your commute.
07-17-2018, 01:38 PM
#19
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Jul 2011
Posts: 894
Originally Posted by PRS Guitars
RyanP,
Sorry to hear that, maybe someday, I’ll feel that way, but right now the benefits of keeping my kids in their schools, outweighs the benefits of moving. I have commuted for 4 years, to the east coast and west coast, on long call reserve and short call reserve. During that time I also commuted to my AF job. Yes, you lose some time at home, but I have already factored that into my decision to commute, so I don’t dwell on it, which is key. Also, I don’t lose nearly the amount of days that you did. I commuted to the east coast from DEN, 1 night early 4 times last year, always made it home. So lost 4 partial days off. This year, I’ve only done it once and that was because I picked up a trip that paid a lot more but started early (worth it to me). Believe it or not, I actually enjoy the commute often. I like decompressing on the flight home. I enjoyed driving to my AF job and listening to books. That said, I’ll consider moving to base when my youngest goes to college, probably commute half the year, live in base half.
I’m not trying to thread drift here, but the OP is military and needs to hear all sides of the commute issue (even though this commute is only theoretical at this point, since we have a base in PHX...). A potential commute (that may never materialize) would be low on my decision matrix.
Sorry to hear that, maybe someday, I’ll feel that way, but right now the benefits of keeping my kids in their schools, outweighs the benefits of moving. I have commuted for 4 years, to the east coast and west coast, on long call reserve and short call reserve. During that time I also commuted to my AF job. Yes, you lose some time at home, but I have already factored that into my decision to commute, so I don’t dwell on it, which is key. Also, I don’t lose nearly the amount of days that you did. I commuted to the east coast from DEN, 1 night early 4 times last year, always made it home. So lost 4 partial days off. This year, I’ve only done it once and that was because I picked up a trip that paid a lot more but started early (worth it to me). Believe it or not, I actually enjoy the commute often. I like decompressing on the flight home. I enjoyed driving to my AF job and listening to books. That said, I’ll consider moving to base when my youngest goes to college, probably commute half the year, live in base half.
I’m not trying to thread drift here, but the OP is military and needs to hear all sides of the commute issue (even though this commute is only theoretical at this point, since we have a base in PHX...). A potential commute (that may never materialize) would be low on my decision matrix.
Living in base for me has been like a whole different job. More like a part time job actually with infinitely more flexibility in bidding, scheduling, making more money or less as you please, sitting home on reserve and playing golf or fishing instead of sitting in a crashpad with 40 other dudes in NYC snoring and leaving a mess of the place.
Personally as a commuter I wanted to quit nearly every week and hated the job. As a local, this job is so much easier and less stressful, it's hard to even explain to people on the outside looking in. Whenever trash trips puke out in the monthly bid results, I can drive to work either way. When my trip finishes delayed at midnight, I drive home instead of sleep in a chair at the airport like a hobo until next day flights start departing. Reserve at home is time off, not omg can I make it to work in another state or am I going to be living like a poor college kid in bunk beds at some rat hole crashpad for the week.
"Maybe" commuting to some cushy long haul schedule is a great gig. Those choice schedules are VERY senior and take forever to attain in the right seat. They take an entire career to ever even get to near those in the left seat, if you ever get there, assuming you are young enough.
I just can't in good conscience recommend a permanent commute to anyone ever when that topic comes up. I would recommend a job as a manager at Home Depot before that. Lol. Saying that, this talk is all just a guess anyway because none of us line rats know what PHX does long term. Maybe it explodes and is an ultra junior mega hub, not likely... but you really never know what this airline management will do from quarter to quarter. I actually like PHX, just wouldn't personally at this time even consider the move there and take on a huge risk of it actually staying around and being stable for the long haul. I just read the same news, rumors, quarterly reports, listen to what the company says VS what they actually DO over the years and then speculate just like everyone else here though. So don't take my word for it!!
Last edited by RyanP; 07-17-2018 at 02:07 PM.
07-17-2018, 03:49 PM
#20
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Dec 2007
Position: Window seat
Posts: 5,191
Not commuting is the best. No doubt about it.
But then you get to hold a G4 seat. Things change. Pay and quality of the trips. Guys suddenly commute for the G4 long haul trips if their base doesn't have G4 flying.
The OP is talking about hypothetically having to commute from PHX to LAX. Guys doing that commute say it's easy. Major factors are the number of flights and the number of days with good weather.
But then you get to hold a G4 seat. Things change. Pay and quality of the trips. Guys suddenly commute for the G4 long haul trips if their base doesn't have G4 flying.
The OP is talking about hypothetically having to commute from PHX to LAX. Guys doing that commute say it's easy. Major factors are the number of flights and the number of days with good weather.
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