CommutAir Rumors and Info
03-04-2018, 04:35 PM
#4921
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Dec 2016
Posts: 171
I left Commutair last year (for obvious reasons to people who read this thread) and I come here every once in a while just to see if anything has improved. Sadly it seems to be getting worse. For gods sake, please keep these threads informative and a little less trollish.
03-05-2018, 07:34 AM
#4922
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Oct 2009
Posts: 741
Originally Posted by Busdriver91
I left Commutair last year (for obvious reasons to people who read this thread) and I come here every once in a while just to see if anything has improved. Sadly it seems to be getting worse. For gods sake, please keep these threads informative and a little less trollish.
03-05-2018, 08:36 AM
#4923
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Jul 2008
Posts: 161
Originally Posted by Montcalm
Starting initial training on March 5th. Has anyone recently gone through it? I'd like to hear some of your experiences. CommutAir provided very little information regarding the timeline, process, etc.
I read somewhere that it's fairly new training facility.
I read somewhere that it's fairly new training facility.
03-05-2018, 06:16 PM
#4928
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Jan 2018
Posts: 312
Originally Posted by the apprentice
As I am at home having breakfast this morning I received a phone call from my new future employer. With a class of 7 and my soon to be departure that will put it at a net gain of 6.
03-09-2018, 09:05 AM
#4929
New Hire
Joined APC: Apr 2017
Posts: 3
Long Read; Waiting Longer Will NOT Help
Originally Posted by Sink Rate
SOS: Management and Pilot Association
Are you reading this message board? Regrettably, pilot morale is getting lower every day. (And pilots are leaving) Abusive management tactics under the guise of “operational necessity” is ruining good faith. Pilots are your assets and are your best recruiters.
The time to change the path is NOW. Stop the “fixation” on the problem(s) right in front of you, step back and be a strategic management team. Long-term fixes take time and strategic thinking to implement.
Rumors of downgrades: If these come to pass during the aircraft displacement, it will be the most damaging management misstep in the last 3-years. Growing airlines don’t downgrade. Potential new hires can look over past missteps by management, I don’t think they would over look this. Don’t downgrade.
1. Institute a FO pay rate of $50/hr
2. Bonuses are not required if market leading payrates are instituted
3. To staff 61 aircraft you are going to need street captains in the coming months (Run the numbers proactively), create a program now. Don’t downgrade.
4. Captain pay parity would have avoided many problems in the coming weeks and months.
5. New programs for pilots approaching ATP mins; needed to be in place months ago. Start them NOW, don’t wait, you need your share of new pilots from the market place. CFI, MIL, Etc.
6. Work Rules; C5 is shooting itself in the foot. Work with the pilot group to create meaningful work rules and incentivize for coverage. Look at your peer groups, pilots are jumping for joy at other airlines to pick-up open time when its voluntary and they make a little extra money. We need Chief Pilots and Management that care about their pilots/employees, that care about making the airline a better place to work NOW (not tomorrow), so pilots actually stay, and that provide real incentives to bring on new pilots.
Are you reading this message board? Regrettably, pilot morale is getting lower every day. (And pilots are leaving) Abusive management tactics under the guise of “operational necessity” is ruining good faith. Pilots are your assets and are your best recruiters.
The time to change the path is NOW. Stop the “fixation” on the problem(s) right in front of you, step back and be a strategic management team. Long-term fixes take time and strategic thinking to implement.
Rumors of downgrades: If these come to pass during the aircraft displacement, it will be the most damaging management misstep in the last 3-years. Growing airlines don’t downgrade. Potential new hires can look over past missteps by management, I don’t think they would over look this. Don’t downgrade.
1. Institute a FO pay rate of $50/hr
2. Bonuses are not required if market leading payrates are instituted
3. To staff 61 aircraft you are going to need street captains in the coming months (Run the numbers proactively), create a program now. Don’t downgrade.
4. Captain pay parity would have avoided many problems in the coming weeks and months.
5. New programs for pilots approaching ATP mins; needed to be in place months ago. Start them NOW, don’t wait, you need your share of new pilots from the market place. CFI, MIL, Etc.
6. Work Rules; C5 is shooting itself in the foot. Work with the pilot group to create meaningful work rules and incentivize for coverage. Look at your peer groups, pilots are jumping for joy at other airlines to pick-up open time when its voluntary and they make a little extra money. We need Chief Pilots and Management that care about their pilots/employees, that care about making the airline a better place to work NOW (not tomorrow), so pilots actually stay, and that provide real incentives to bring on new pilots.
Regrettably, things have continued to move in the wrong direction in recent months. Line pilot morale is not improving and the Company has continuously failed to recruit new pilots in meaningful numbers. (And pilot attrition remains a serious issue.)
Great improvements have been made operationally with the drawdown of the DHC-8 aircraft fleet. Reliability has consistently improved month-over-month and the company seems more focused. Now is the time in keep this positive momentum going. Enact meaningful and substantial reforms in regards to your pilots now, protect the future of your airline’s operations.
1. Institute a FO pay rate of $50-60/hr Or Jet Captain Rates on Day 1
2. Cancel New Hire Bonuses, these are expensive and gimmicky
3. Implement a Street Captain program
4. New Pilot hiring programs need to be implemented NOW. A. Military Rotor Transition Program (fully funded fixed wing training, these hires will be worth it and will stick around), B. Cadet Program (for new hires nearing R-ATP minimums, fund remaining flight hour requirement as necessary, get these folks on property now at CommutAir) Put all conditional hires on United Non-Rev Benefits and pair them with a pilot mentor.
5. CPP: Allow for United Interviews prior to the start of new hire training, for highly qualified candidates. (i.e. Former/Current Part 121 or Military Pilots) These highly qualified pilots have many options, allowing them the option to interview with United allows them to choose employment at CommutAir.
6. A full court press is required on recruiting pilots from Metropolitan State University of Denver. 90% of these United CPP pilots should be coming to CommutAir. CommutAir has the ability to get them to United Airlines MUCH faster than the other partner carriers. CommutAir should have month socials with those flight school students, on site interviews should be conducted, conditional hires should be given United Non-Rev Benefits, and pair them with a CommutAir pilot mentor. Students there should know CommutAir recruiters by face and name.
7. Engage your pilot association NOW. Open section 6 negotiations NOW. This process is not slow or drawn out. Both sets of interests are mutually aligned. Both parties need a successful airline and the sooner this is realized the sooner staffing will not be an issue. Saving dollars now is not worth risking larger revenue streams in the future.
8. Pilot Quality of Life is your pilot attrition problem. (a) Remove the requirement to check-in from the crew room phone. (This is unnecessary and frankly insulting to pilots) (b) Stop operational extensions (actively tracking and reducing is a good first step) these one-off events do an indescribable amount of harm to pilot morale. Pilots today have choices and management has made their choice to lose pilots by utilizing operational extensions. (Exit surveys will/would verify this.) (c) Reserve: Airport standby should be limited to 4-hour blocks OR paid for each hour of airport standby assigned (i.e. 8-hour block = 8 hours pay credit). Utilize short-call.
03-09-2018, 04:09 PM
#4930
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Jan 2015
Posts: 403
Originally Posted by Sink Rate
3. Implement a Street Captain program
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
