Been lurking long enough to know posts like these attract ridicule. But what’s the more attractive route for a pilot from a regional.. if you still harbor hopes of going legacy

 

Where would you rather be stuck when the music stops?

 

Im sure I won’t be miserable at either. But I wonder if there are current pilots who’ve moved in either direction and willing to share their experiences and thought process.

 

I can’t speak for other ACMIs, but Atlas/Southern has been losing tons of crew members who left here to go to ULCCs.

 

I'm at Omni, have a bunch of friends at LCCs. I would guess that for the majority of guys, maybe 70%, the LCCs are a slightly more attractive option. Obviously, as with all things, it depends on personal preferences. I'm single and childless, so being gone for long stretches is no great hardship, and I enjoy travelling the world. I do have apps out, but at this point, I would only make the jump to two or maybe three carriers. And that window is closing as I accrue seniority here. If we weren't owned by ATSG, it might have already closed, but I just can't find enough confidence that they won't find a way to screw up a good thing to give up quite yet.

I should add that Omni is a bit different from the other ACMIs, as far as I can tell. We fly a lot less and we get 117 rest, so this is a great job if you're kinda lazy. Of course, because we fly less, we also make less than guys at Kalitta, for example, with similar seniority.

The guys who seem happiest at LCCs seem to me to be either committed short-haul guys who can't sit still for a 12 hour trip or guys with families, which only seems reasonable.

 

I left a regional for an ACMI, got furloughed, and several years later ended up at JetBlue. Would have rather skipped the middle steps...
Ive met several former ACMI pilots at JetBlue, all happier to be here, including one Atlas captain who is happier here as an FO.

 

And those that live in a LCC domicile.

 

I'll bite. AA, United, Delta, SWA, UPS, and FEDEX. You would only go to 2 of them? You would rather fly for Omni then four of those. And the window is closing? Are you 64 years old? Or did you hit your head?

 

Very much appreciated. Plenty of things to consider. Long haul international is something I’d really enjoy. I’d go if Kalitta called... 15 days away is a lot more bearable than 17 days at Atlas/Southern

 

I mean this with the utmost sincerity, but how do you know long haul international (for 15 days) is something you’d enjoy?
Have you done it? It’s fun, but it’s also crazy boring and mind-numbingly fatiguing when you’re not doing a simple United out and back to DUB from EWR. It’s rough on you. Add in a family or even a girlfriend to that mix, and it’s tough on people. 15 days on the road flying through 31 time zones isn’t healthy. You become a zombie. I’ve done it. For years.
Im not saying don’t go to Omni, have a buddy there, I’m just saying be realistic and don’t romanticize it.