Hello Lori,

I was wondering if there is such thing as "too much" time for a regional? At present i have an ATP, jet pic type, 2900 hours, 1700 multi and 500 turbine. Even the airlines where i have 2 good Internal recs havent called. My goal is to one day work for a major international airline like cathay or emirates.

Please help Lori!

 

It has less to do with your time and more to do with where you are coming from. Regionals have historically been leary of ex or furloughed mainline pilots because they assume, probably correctly, that...
1. He doesn't really want to be there.
2. He will leave as soon as he can.
3. He will spread hate and discontent

With that said if you are corporate/135 type it seems that your times would be just fine in the current hiring climate...they probably just have a lot of applicants.

Regionals will also try to consider your personal situation...some would be more inclined to hire an older experienced pilot who is looking for a permanent home. My company has a wide variety of ex fire, bush, night freight guys who are planning on staying.

Regionals tend to be realistic...they know that many of their new-hires will not stay forever, but they want to at least get their money's worth out of you. If they think you will stay for a few years and upgrade they will probably be happy with that.

While the regional business model actually works better with moderate turnover (they want most of the pilots low on the longevity scale) I don't think any of them are smart enough to try to pick guys who will stick around long enough, but not TOO long. I think they mainly just look for red flags that you might bail quickly.

In your case you probably qualify for DAL and other majors, so that might possibly be a factor but I kind of doubt.

Do you have any internal recs? If not, that is the most likely reason they haven't called. Airlines hire mostly on the "family and friends" program.

 

Hi Rickair,

Thanks.

I have internal rec's and my background is pt. 135 freight and charter. My intention is definitely to get hired and hang around until upgrade. I am hoping that i am not in a twilight zone where I don't have the time for the majors and too much for regionals.

Would recruiters look at a resignation as a black spot, if you didn't resign to go to another flying job?

 

Have your references call HR (or better yet walk in and visit). Sometimes you have to lobby to get an interview.

You should be the ideal guy that regionals prefer. Times are tad higher than average but times are tough right now so they should be used to seeing that. Your experience actually does not make you qualified or competitive for majors so that should not be a factor.

That would depend. You would probably need a good reason other than just being tired of your job...sick family member, spouse relocated for a great job, etc. Otherwise they might question your devotion to aviation. One way around that would do freelance CFI work to keep current.

If you quite because of safety concerns that might be OK with an employer but you have to walk a fine line with that one. A decent employer should be OK with your resigning over legit safety issues, but on the other hand they don't want to hire a whiner.

There will also be the suspicion that you "resigned in lieu of being fired". Sometimes there's no way to disprove this, other than a great reference from that employer.

 

CEFO-

Rick has answered your questions very thoroughly (thanks Rick!) and I'll echo much of what he has said. I suspect the only reason you haven't received an invite yet is that other internal recs are "squeaking louder". Get your friends on the ball - they need to physically visit the recruiter(s) and find out if there is a problem with your application (NOT pushy, but very nicely - we don't want to alienate the one person who holds the key to your future.)

As far as your resignation, there really isn't enough information here to give a "best" answer. Rick has pointed out what the concerns might be - and I agree. If I was reviewing your application I would be asking, "why?" Does the job change make any logical sense? Are you committed to the profession? I would also pay attention to the other job changes you list. How often do you change employment? Watching carefully for any trends to explain your character.

Hope this helps!

 

Ha Ha, I learned that from trying to get an interview with YOU back in the day!

 

It is possible that one or both of your internal recommendations are politically misaligned with management. I had that situation once where I had three captains all recommending me to an airline to no avail. Then years later I applied without a recommendation and was called right away.

I then discovered that two of my recommendations were not well liked and were damaging my chances.

Skyhigh

 

I was using a part 91 guy for a recommendation for several years. I knew he had worked at CAL for a while, and always wondered why he left. I got to thinking one day, dug out the "list" and sure enough, he was on it. Ooops!

 

This is a great point - thanks for sharing SkyHigh. Something to be aware of for sure!

 

If I only knew then what I know now....