Really like Delta but every thread i read says the seniority progression will be better at AA, for someone that want to live in base and have still 25 years of career left, excluding NY, all the other bases are too hard to move up the list? Upgrade? QoL?

 

No one here has a crystal ball, but the facts are:

Delta is still retiring around ~500 a year into the 2030s.

AA is retiring 600-800 a year (IIRC) between now and mid 2030s.

The problem is you’re looking at a snapshot in time. No one knows what size our seniority lists will be in 2035. If we have less retirements but 2000 more pilots hired during that time (just as a thought exercise), does your relative seniority balance out?

We have pilots with less than a year on property that have upgraded. I don’t expect that to last, but then again I didn’t think it would last this long.

QoL wise, all the big 3 contracts are essentially the same. Small differences between them. You’d have to get more specific to give you a good answer here. (For instance, our JS policy is first come first serve vs AA/UA which is seniority based where a senior pilot can bump you, just as an example)

BL…if you want to live in base, go to the airline who has a base in the city you want to live. If that’s PHX…AA. If that’s MSP…Delta. You’ll have a good career at any of them. Pick where you want to live, and an airline based off that. Good luck.

 

Systemwide, NYC has the lowest average seniority of all the bases. But all the bases move.

This is the current percentage of pilots in each base that retire in the next 10 years:

LAX 30%
SLC 20%
SEA 23%
MSP 34%
DTW 30%
ATL 35%
NYC 25%

Draw from that what you will, just saying that all the bases have movement.

 

Thank you gentlemen, i think i got the picture. 🙏🏻

 

AA is FCFS for jumpseat. And it’s my understanding that it’s just one booking window, pilots going to work don’t have priority over those going home or traveling for leisure.

 

I stand corrected. I thought theirs was the same as UA.

 

Their entire nonrev system is effectively first-come-first-served within your priority group, based on time of check in.

 

UA is the worst. Their jumpseat is seniority based, so you can book a jumpseat days in advance and think you're good, then some senior guy books it on his way to the airport and bumps you off.

 

You mean the way it is when you non rev, bid aircraft, bid schedules, bid vacation, pick up flying, swap trips ?

 

Yeah. That's what I mean.

Pretty glad that when we book a jumpseat here, it's ours unless the FAA or an unscheduled line check occurs.