Clue32

Apply to Atlas, interview successfully, get an offer (probably for the 737 or 767), then make your decision. It is better to have the option of saying, "Thank you for the opportunity but I have decided to accept a different career offer," than to have no option and continue to wonder.

Use your time between applying to Atlas, receiving an offer,and actually starting indoc to research your options and develop a game plan.

You may actually find out that having us pay for your ATP and Boeing Type rating, flying one or two legs a day with tremendously skilked and professional crews, sitting in a warm and comfortable flight deck with free catering, staying in mostly really nice domestic hotels, having 13 to 20 days off a month, not having to worry about commuting or crash pads, earning a 12% DC towards your 401k and making $97 an hour, etc etc etc is way better than continuing to slug it out at Ameriflight or wherever it is you are at.

Apply now, decide later.

Geronimo4497

I fail to see the 'bad spot' you are in.

You are approaching 1200 TPIC in an aircraft that is filling your 'bag of experience' with invaluable lessons and skllls. Assuming you are relatively low on total time?

United may, or may not, hire you at their discretion if hiring is still a thing in about a year.

Atlas may, or may not, hire you after completing a similar process. Does Atlas still do an interview/hiring program with Ameriflight?

Try to go someplace you would be content to stay at if the music stopped playing......the world can get real fair real fast.

Someday, maybe sooner than you think, your 'bag of luck' may very much appreciate being supplemented by your current, and growing, bag of experience.

Best of luck, and fly SAFE.

tripodd

True, I think that might be the plan for now. Right now I am trying to gather as much information as I can, please feel free to share any other resources other than this forum!

Question: With the current hiring trends, how many years does it take to get an offer from UA or DL while at Atlas?

'Bad spot' only because I am in a company where I am out 14-15 hours for 5 days a week, where the job itself can REALLY suck. But leaving the company would mean I am ditching a CJO from a legacy airline.

dera

A CJO year out is worth nothing.
A heavy type rating and 121 jet experience is always worth something.

If legacies are hiring, you'll do better with 121 time.

These are historical facts.

tripodd

Maybe I am ignorant, I am just trying to understand. Why do you say that a CJO worth nothing 1 year later?

dera

Because if a company is not hiring, the C falls off and renders the JO part useless.
Or if they change their criteria, and so on and so on. There are hundreds of worthless CJOs from 3 years ago. Every legacy has a history of flushing their pool. Southwest did that for covid.

CJO is worth nothing.

LurkNowitzki

I would take the Atlas offer if it's on the table and figure it out later. I work in 135 cargo as a lowly SIC and I'm fortunate to have the job but still would not stay one second past ATP mins honestly (and we use 2-man crews WITH autopilot). I have read up on the Aviate thing and it is enticing to have the <4mo guaranteed class date with no interview but the way the market seems to be for ATP rated pilots these days I still would take the first 121 job I could get.

The only reason to stay in your current spot, to me, would be if UAL was your #1 and only. For example you really wanted to live in DEN or IAH for the long-term. If any legacy is your goal, as it is mine, I would not slog it out for a year or more with SPIFR in bad WX with those duty times. The only guy I know who is at UAL right now started at Envoy and couldn't get the flow to AA so he got poached by UA straight into the 73 and now is on the 77.

A third option, if you didn't want to leave Aviate but still wanted to get out of your current gig, might be to apply to JSX or a UAX carrier? I know you would basically be resetting the clock but at least you keep that class date in the back pocket. But overall I still think the Atlas thing is the way to go based on these facts.

Elevation

This comment got my attention:
"Bad spot' only because I am in a company where I am out 14-15 hours for 5 days a week, where the job itself can REALLY suck. But leaving the company would mean I am ditching a CJO from a legacy airline."

A lot of us flew single pilot night 135 work. I did canceled checks and UPS feeder freight in turbines, for example. If you think your job today sucks, you'll probably be climbing the walls to escape this place only a year or so in. Rolling delays and involuntary extensions are common here. I'd just say be honest with yourself about what's important to you. If you aren't going to be happy getting stuck here, you're going to be miserable having turned down your CJO.

astray

You are out of your mind if you think Atlas, or any 121 carrier for that matter, gets close to the workload of PNW 135 single pilot ops. This is by far the easiest job any of us has done.

Elevation

I'm not saying we have a similar workload; I'm saying if he thinks his job sucks, he'll wind up thinking this job sucks. I did Great Lakes single pilot 135 for years. I agree this job is easy. If being gone a lot is a problem, or schedule predictabiltiy is important for a person, it may be best to hang out and take that United Job. If you like 135 work, this is probably a good airline for somebody to come to.

I was trying to say this airline is a good place for people who love 135 work because of the type and variety of flying that we do. If you think 135 work sucks, you may be more of a United, Delta type of person. I guess I wasn't very clear.