They don't, Delta is very big on the entire package. They will hire a corporate guy without hesitation if the rest of his resume compares well with pilots from other backgrounds.

 

Many thanks to those who have contributed to this forum! Great info here that helped me better understand the process. Only the facts below without editorial since I have no "inside" info:

30 Oct App Submitted
22 Feb Availability Date (initially)
31 Dec Letter from current FO to Hiring Board
3 Feb Invite Email received
5-6 Mar Interview date

App specifics:
4 Recs (through Airline Apps) from current FOs, 1 CA
Mil 2400 TT (F-16, T-38), ~2100 sorties, 2400 PIC, 1100 IP, 20 EP (evaluator), minimal GA time (<10 hrs)
Currently flying ~15 hours/month (T-38)
ATP (Accessible Aviation)
Aerospace Engineering Bachelors (3.33) and Masters (3.42) from Auburn University
21 years of Mil assignments broken down by assignment (not job)
Broke out my most recent deployment as a DETCO (it came up in the interview)
Jobs dating back to HS with as much detail as I could reconstruct

I'm humbled to have gotten the job given the extraordinary talent who are still waiting. Best of luck to you all!

 

It's a great military retirement job. You will love it here.

 

There have been a lot of XO and NetJets guys in classes recently.

 

Sorry to break it to you. Although international experience is good to have, it's NOT a make or break/seal the deal/show stopping box to check/not have checked. (Insert airline here) is going to train pilot with (insert background here) the way they want said pilot to fly THEIR plane, in THEIR ops.

Funny, they ALSO hire plenty of single seat/tactical jet pilots. Don't they they know that those guys can't even fly in icing and would get lost going "international" if it wasn't for the tankers dragging them so they don't get lost!!!

It's more case of the following;

 

The one I talked to did have short blonde, grey hair, but this was back in 2013.
I was pretty keen on Atlas, coming from the military and having met quite a few crews out and about. This experience with one of the people involved in the hiring process put a bad taste in my mouth, and at the end of it all, I'm glad I never heard from them.
The pilots I've met from Atlas have been great though, nothing bad to say about them.

 

The level of qualifications for guys getting hired is astounding to me. I used to think I had decent qualifications as an 11,000 hour RJ check airman, but now I'm not so sure!

 

Who were the people doing the "fast pass interviews". Lots of people I talked to felt like they got conflicting info. Was it all the WAI Delta scholarship winners/recent hires?

 

While this seems utterly silly on their part. You are correct sir.

 

That's exactly what I had. A delta intern/recent hire that had spent about a year at a regional before getting picked up.

They handed you a business card that stated this was not an interview but only a resume review. It was just a very cold process compared to the other carriers I spoke with. Some that had Delta fast passes had more senior people that actually talked to them about who they were to get to know them. Just as long as the app gets scored from handing them my resume.