In NYC you will very quickly have a line and be flying easily 70 or so hours a month. If you do get reserves you won't be sitting around much. It is very typical to have a rotation on your schedule by 12pm EST for next day if you are on reserves. If you are short call you will probably wake up and already have a rotation scheduled for later that day. NYC is short. I'm on reserves in atl and I regularly get deadheaded to NYC to fly NYC trips and turns when they are short. If you want seniority stay in NYC as long as you can. I'm bidding back there in the next AE. June hire and steady mid 90s% on reserve in atl. In NYC I'm 60ish percent and falling.

Trips lots of transcon and carribean out on NYC. They are awesome.

If you say "stagnant" on here in ref to anything the guys who walked uphill in the snow both ways will tell you to get off their lawn.

Forbidden word.

Yep, silly me. I would rather have been a stagnant Delta FO the last 10+ years than spending that time at a regional. Life is all about perspective. There's always someone that has it worse or better.

This is what I was referring to. Thanks.

Thanks! That's the information I was hoping for! You helped immensely!

There is a lesson here. All the new hires who get a 737 or 7ER need to realize there are lords of folks senior to you still flying the 88/717. They will bid the bigger equipment when they get the chance. If you want seniority, and have a choice, take the 88 or 717.

I knew that the S-word would bring on the pontificaters who needed to point out how bad they had it. Everything is relative, and people shouldn't have to write 20 alibis every time they make a damn post that might contain language that somebody might find offensive, insensitive, entitled, etc, etc -- it's just tedious. Everything is relative. Yes cry babies, you were an 88 reserve for 10 years and furloughed twice. The next guy was stuck flying CRJs. Another pilot had to go to Emirates to feed his family. Wah. This is a new hire forum and people are trying to make educated decisions NOW. Relatively speaking some categories move faster than others; on occasion a new guy will call the slower category stagnant, they shouldn't have to pay homage to your sob-story every time they try to pass information.

I deleted my original 2nd paragraph since this is the poolie forum, not the I walked up the steepest hill in the deepest snow forum. If people would just stop looking for an excuse to be offended -- both here and in the USA-at-large, we'd all be better off.

It's been awhile but I will give my impressions of the 88 in ATL and NYC.

I commuted to NYC for a year in a half most of that time I was reserve. Had to cover all three bases was terrible. Most of the trips were not commutable, but they were good once you were on them. Usually one or two legs and lots of TPA, FLL and MCO. The Captains were really good guys and made it a point to buy dinner and beer.

Finally I got 88s in ATL I was so happy I could drive to work. I hated it! The trips were usually at least three legs. I did a lot of five legs. Learned to love Flint MI. But It was the Captains who made it miserable. I would say at least 15-25% of them were people I wouldn't want my worst enemy to have to work with. I finally had enough and bailed to the ER and its so much better.

88 hasn't been too bad to me, but nothing to compare it to. I bid reserve for days off, has gotten me some awful trips, but also some really sweet ones. I apparently haven't had it as bad as Klondike. I've flown with some "interesting" guys, but the worst guy I've flown with wasn't that bad. Mostly 4 day trips. There are 5 leg days, but I have only had that once or twice, usually tied to a 30 hour layover. My 30's haven't been in big cities, but better than what Mike described in the 717. Huntsville isn't bad, I had fun there. Fayetteville NC was probably the worst, and there was still a movie theater in walking distance, and I enjoyed the novelty of getting paid to not work. I do agree that as nice as having 30 hours off, you generally have to pay for it somewhere else on the trip.

Main thing about the 88 in ATL, it's an enormous category, there's pretty much something for everyone--once you have enough seniority to have a choice. ~600 crews, that's a lot of trips.

If seniority is your thing, people fear the maddog. Lot of new hires bail asap. Pretty much no one bails TO the 88. My seniority is 15% higher in the 88 than it would be in the 717. Which is crazy, but it is what it is. The plane is kind of a pos, but hey, it keeps things interesting. I used to wonder why MD went out of business.....

I will piggyback on this. I have been ATL88 for a few years now. The plane is a piece of crap and a poor design. anyone who tells you different is lying. However, just like anything, once you figure it out it isn't that bad. Lots of 3-5 leg days. For those coming out of the mil, I find the days far more fatiguing. Not nearly as hard as mil flying, but I want to pour myself into bed at the end of the day. As Klondike said, there are some awful guys to fly with on this thing. I thought it was system wide as a new hire and was a little let down. After talking to many people on different fleets I have come to realize the majority of Deltas "do not fly list" reside on the ATL 88! A lot of guys I fly with have been "stuck" on the dog for over a decade.... and it shows. To be fair, there are also some great guys that make the job very enjoyable. But the bad ones really stick out.

So why would anyone in the world stay on the maddog? SENIORITY. For the mil types seniority is life at the airlines. You won't be able to advance your relative seniority as fast on the other airframes. If getting weekends, holidays, the days off you want is your thing..... come to the dog!

*disclaimer-the 88 is all I have flown.