Guys who really know what they're talking about, please correct me/ shout me down:

Based on the June award sheets, it looks like junior line holder seniority numbers are:

737 NYC - about 11,000
A320/MD88 NYC - about 11,500

So, figuring the junior pilot out on the line is about 11,700 I figure 737 will be about a year of reserve, and A320/MD88 NYC as little as a few months.

But junior A320/MD88 trips seem to have a preponderance of early shows/late releases. So that equals more days away from home (I'll be commuting out of BOS/MHT)

Anyone here who can give me the scoop on life as junior Reserve in NYC on these various platforms?

Looks like a good number of the 737 trips are afternoon or evening, so are start times for short call later in general?

Having a relatively high SSAN, on one hand I'm tempted to hope for 737 right out of the chute, especially if it means I can fly down to NY on day one of Reserve and fly home the evening of the last day vs bracketing each block of reserve with another travel day. On the other, I'm thinking maybe A320 (added bonus of lots of BOS overnights), then bid the 737 a yearish later when I can go straight to a line.

Thanks all you patient folk for trying to help us unscrew our gonkulations.

 

Trying to read the tea leaves on future trips is next to impossible. In the case of the MD88 the company wanted some relief on the ALV which was not granted. The ran the ALV too high in the winter because of 717 delays and now can't ramp up for the summer. As a result the company stated they have to run a min credit solution on trips to stay within the manning formula and that means fewer commutable trips and Longer trips. That will go Back to normal in Sep.
Marketing changes trips so often that there simply is not much consistency from month to month. The best advise I can give is bid the 88. You will gain seniority the fastest on that airframe.
Be careful in th BOS to NYC commute. Storms roll into NYC and shut things down. Then they move through and BOS goes down causing no shows.

 

Is that why I was able to get a min sked for June? Because I was pleasantly surprised. I started putting min sked as a top priority starting in May as I really don't want to work 84+ per month. 70-75 is perfect for me.

 

No idea why your schedule is what it is. There are two different letters out from the company on the subject. Here is a portion discussing trip mix.

- M88: Removal of trip mix and commutability parameters due to staffing

There is page long memo from the company dated 14 May on this issue.

 

I think in general you're on the right track with 88/320 being quicker to a line but having worse trips for the bottom half. The 73 has better over all trips but with slower progression. However don't just zoom in on the last few month's classes. They added a bunch of positions to the NYC320, and mostly new hired into that expansion. That was an extremely isolated event that translated into the leading edge riding the wave quickly to a line in a couple months or less. But that does NOT mean that is the expected progression for all new hires in that category. 88 and 320 trips both suck over all in NYC, but the 88 will offer faster advancement and a much larger bid package.

The 73 has the better flying of the 3…eventually. But it will take a while, longer than the first year freeze either way, to get to that point. My money would be on 88 for maximum control of your schedule the soonest or 73 if you don't mind slower movement and more time on reserve.

For your commute the 320 wouldn't be bad at all either. It just seems like the worst of the three and if you have the choice the above is what I'd do. YMMV.

 

New AE apparently has 25 7ER positions for new hires. Do current pilots still recommend new hires to avoid?

 

I'd avoid it. If you have cabin fever and have just GOT to get your "Paris First Class International" on ASAMFP then it'll provide that. Sometimes. But there's a very good reason that a senior airplane goes to the bottom of the list: None of the 12,000 existing pilots want to be junior on it.

Its mostly domestic and with the great ER purge of the last few years the international isn't what it used to be either. Lots of red eyes, lots of malaria belt flying, lots of Mexico City, etc. And its a shrinking fleet. While that may or may not mean a forced displacement at a time of the company's choosing, it likely will mean you will spend most of your time treading water or moon walking further and further back in the category. You will absolutely get some amazing trips here or there, but over all it is one of…argueably the…best category at the airline, yet the junior part is one of the worst.

One "pro" is you may or may not get to enjoy a nice, lazy fall full of lazy autumn long call dreams. Then again you might not. The time to pick it as a new hire was early on when the first couple classes could pick it. They would at least have a little wave to ride for a while, although even that will ebb pretty hard fairly soon.

It would be one of my first choices in the airline once you could hold the upper third of the seat/base you wanted. But I'd avoid it like the…well, you know…as a junior pilot if given the choice. YMMV.

 

The bid out now was placed to insure all positions were offered to current pilots before new hires. When the results are out in 10 days there will be a excellent snap shot of what will be left for new hires this summer.

 

310 open positions on the AE today.

ATL7ERF/O 25
ATL73NF/O 40
ATL320F/O 25
ATLM88F/O 70
ATL717F/O 50

NYC73NF/O 30
NYC320F/O 30
NYCM88F/O 40

 

Is ATL the only 717 base right now? The New Hire Gouge Spreadsheet lists DTW as well, but the class drops it lists only show ATL717. Is there still talk of putting 717s in NYC or anywhere else? Thanks, getting ready to pick for the 16 Jun class.