Jiggawatt

First-time poster here. Military, retiring early 2018. For family reasons probably going to move to PDX area. Applying everywhere, but Delta would be great due to SEA domicile. I know first step is getting hired (and then being able to bid SEA), but I'm trying to do some expectation management.

House would be 2:45ish from SEA. Assuming I would sit long call from the house, and drive up for short call. Hoping someone can help me understand pros and cons of this kind of situation:

- I assume driving to work (even a 3-hour drive) is far preferable to fighting for a jump seat, not having a car, missing last flight home, etc. So why do I see some people on forums talk about living in Portland and catching PDX-SEA shuttles? I feel like I'm missing something.
- Would this be a situation where I would want to get off reserve as quickly as humanly possible? i.e. how miserable is reserve going to be? I'm assuming the cap of 7 monthly short calls would help prevent driving to SEA too many times per month?

Thanks so much for the information provided on these forums, it's an awesome resource.

sailingfun

Everyone has different personal opinions on flying verses driving and other issues. You will probably find you do a mix of both depending on day of the week and length of the trip. Personally I would drive but I like driving. I don't think you will find reserve that bad however if hired in early 18 reserve will quickly be a choice in SEA as the new gates start coming on line and more expansion hits. Short call maximum is 6 or 7 per month depending on the reserve limit. The average number of short calls used to be just over 3 per pilot. That has changed for some bases and categories as a few pilots have chosen to ignore short calls leading to operational issues. The push from the company is more shortcalls and a few large long vacations.
Keep in mind that you don't have to drive to SEA for shortcall. You only need be approximentaly two hours away in normal driving conditions. Most guys on your situation would find someplace closer to drive to and hang out within a 125 miles or so of SEA.
PDX to SEA is a fairly easy commute. Just make sure you live on the Washington side of the river!!!

Sputnik

One of the glories of this job that is so hard to comprehend for a military guy is how much personal choice is available. 3+ hour drives on I5 can get old fast. If you have confidence in JS skills you can maybe get home earlier. Or maybe it would be lower stress for you to know your car is waiting for you in SEA.

Some folks like RES. Not many of them are commuters. Again, you'll figure out the answer for you.

Category and manning dependent, can possibly avoid short call by yellow slipping (volunteering to be first for flying).

Originally from the 'Couve (and still not a fan). But taxes are significantly different depending which side of state line you pick. If you choose Oregon side...crossing those bridges and just getting to them are enough of a nightmare that many would choose to fly instead of drive. Taxes and the bridges are a big reason Vancouver/Camas is known as a pilot ghetto.

We considered going back and had we done so I think we would have ended up around Olympia.

If you are set on Portland area, dont forget Alaska.

Im blathering. Yes you can easily make it work. As with all things airline, your life will improve as your seniority goes up.

Packrat

Prepare to drive. Commuting from PDX to SEA is a nightmare.

TurbineDriver

I second the above. That commute is a nightmare. If you are wanting to live in PDX go to Alaska and accept the sub par wages and schedules.

Packrat

Or move to the north side of Vancouver, WA. That will cut down on the drive.

gettinbumped

Agreed on all fronts. Going by air from SEA-PDX is a nightmare of epic proportions.

As for places to live, I recommend looking at Ridgefield, WA if you want to be near PDX. Lots of growth and nice housing that isn't crazy, good taxes, and on the north side of any PDX traffic so the drive to SEA isn't horrible.

Rudder

Don't do this cuz you will find yourself hanging out in Cabela's in Lacey WA on short call,VERY dangerous!!!

Jiggawatt

Thanks a lot for the replies and advice. I'll take a look at Ridgefield and areas north of the river. Like everything else, sounds like it comes down to personal preference, but your inputs help me understand the pros and cons. I appreciate all the help!

sailingfun

In a relatively short time you will be making in excess of 275k. When you run the numbers using that kind of income you may find that living on the WA side can make your house payment from the state tax savings. You will need to adjust that for higher property taxes however it's still substantial.