Well, AirWiz is calling again. I just got woken up for a call by them, So they are having a hard enough time that they are calling people who previously passed on working there.

 

I was surprised to see some of the concession stuff get voted in also.

Based on regional jumpseaters I have had on my plane the last few months airlines like Republic, PSA, expressjet etc are having trouble filling classes. According to the guys they will schedule a class of 15 or 20 and 3 or 4 will show up.

On the flip side we are getting back a good bit of flying that was farmed out to the regionals after 9/11. In the last few months I have flown city pairs on mainline that we have not seen since pre 9/11.

 

Agree with previous posters. If you're waiting for Netjets, you're going to wait a long time.

 

There has been a pilot shortage for a while, and it has slowly been getting worse and worse. There are guys with more than 5 class DATES for 5 different regionals, all at the same time.

You need your ATPMEL to fly -121.

Good luck!

 

[QUOTE

On the flip side we are getting back a good bit of flying that was farmed out to the regionals after 9/11. In the last few months I have flown city pairs on mainline that we have not seen since pre 9/11.[/QUOTE]


That is good.

 

I made the regional rounds in 2012-13 and I only see only a weak trend in this area, the kind where the top picks among pilot applicants will turn down the previous wage structure offered by the regionals. The rest of the pilots who are all quite eligible as well, are still in oversupply and are being turned down by airlines. There is no serious in the US at this time in my view, although there is definitely a mild boost in recruitment to get the same talent for the same low money. It is not a base pay increase across the board as one might expect in a genuine shortage, rather it is a set of retractable bonuses and other small items of that sort. Classes are a bit thinner by a count or two on average yet most regionals are able to fill between 5-15 people per class every month same as usual.

 

Thanks to all for the helpful replies. I do realize I would need to get my ATPMEL. Just wondered if my overall background (Navy pilots are trained as an instrument-rated airplane pilot first, then transition to helicopters), may warrant some consideration.

As for the regionals - if they are getting desperate enough, I wonder if they would consider employing a "part-time" pilot. My Part 135 helicopter schedule is 7 days on / 7 days off / 7 nights on / 7 days off, much like a NetJets schedule. I know the conventional wisdom would say "no", but I wonder if they may consider working within my current schedule for say, 6 days per month. Why do I even ask this question? Kids to feed, mortgage to pay, etc. That Regional FO pay is...well, you know...

Assuming this is not possible, and I did bite the bullet and fly regionals full time, I do wonder, if I got hired by the majors after a couple years in the regionals, how long of an upgrade time I could expect with all the changes in the industry? If it would be potentially 10+ years as an FO in the majors before making Captain in my mid-50's, it may not be worth it.

As for NetJets, it looks like they do have a hard-and-fast 500 hours Multiengine Airplane requirement. Good to know they consider helicopter time though (I would assume for the TT requirement)

Since I now live near a major airport (PHX), this is the time to consider making this change. Helicopters are fun but they just don't pay like airlines do long term. Unless you fly internationally and are away 6+ weeks at a time...

 

Do I understand 125 hours of FW time? Even your total time is low for the majors right now and I doubt you could even get a regional job with that little FW. If you did, it would be somewhere that would really open your eyes to low pay and abusive work conditions (Lakes, Silver, Mesa, etc).

125 hours FW is basically private pilot level. Yes, yes some folks (including me) respect your helo experience but employers want pilots who have good instincts, and you may not have enough FW instincts.

You'd probably need to start with some sort of 135 work or maybe even CFI to get the FW time up. Maybe bottom-feeder regionals. Maybe.

Majors? No way.

 

I agree with a large number of qualified pilots that will not go to work for the ridiculously low pay of the regionals and other low paying ventures, but has anyone noticed the lack of American/domestic students at the flight schools? Some schools have a ratio of 8:1 or greater, foreign:domestic. This pilot shortage gets made fun of a lot of the time, but based on some of these numbers (cfi transitioning to FO) the shortage may be for real. Based on the pay at this level... I'm not surprised.

 

I can believe those ratios considering the next generation isn't interested in the field or aviation but may be operating your corporation/airline for a paycheck and nothing more.