frddrvr

Soliciting advice from an anonymous Internet forum might be nuts but here it goes.

I’m relatively new here and consider myself extremely fortunate to be part of the team. FedEx was always my #1 choice but some of that shine is starting to wear off after seeing behind the curtain. That being said, I’m considering brushing off the resume with all of this doom and gloom.

I’m less than 1yr on property and don’t know what I don’t know. The majority of my buddies fly for the UAL/Delta/AA/SWA and truly think I’m nuts staying on board FedEx’s sinking ship. I don’t have many buddies here to steer me straight with an honest long term perspective of flying for FedEx. I haven’t been a fan of the night hub turns but I’m told day flying is doable with a bit of seniority. Does it really get better? So what is the true story? Are we at the bottom of a normal business cycle or do we have our collective heads in the sand? I hope I’m wrong but the headwinds of change don’t look favorable.

I’m fortunate to likely have a long career ahead of me and live within driving distance to big domiciles for the other major carriers. Flying purple tails have always been my dream so I can’t believe I’m even considering walking away from the best flying job in the world. Have I lost my mind?

cheers -

Fdxlag2

Sounds like you won’t be happy here. So get your line number elsewhere as soon as possible. Not sure what other advice you are looking for. Go with my blessings.

Noworkallplay

So what are you going to do in an economic downturn when the passenger airlines are struggling? Will you want to leave them also? So is your reason for leaving the recent earnings issues or are you not happy with the lifestyle? I think you need to differentiate what it is thats driving your questions.

gatorhater

I would agree: if the business side is your biggest issue, there will be ups and downs in both pax and cargo. Sometimes they coincide, often they are opposing. Look at the last recession when pax were getting hammered while cargo expanded. The grass may be greener today, but it could be because of a leaky septic system.

if the night hub turns/ commute are your #1 issue, then get out ASAP and get your number somewhere else. A few months can make huge differences. I live 30 miles from the busiest airport in the world. Commuting ain’t great, I sacrifice money and flexibility. night turns are not my friend, but I can hold day flying at just short of three years. That being said, Delta has hired enough guys younger than me (40) in the last 5 years to all but guarantee I never captain a widebody with any QOL. I’ll retire at FX in the top 250 if I make it to 65. I ain’t moving and FX commute is the easiest in the country. So, I’ll stick with my 1B, Fx, over my 1a, DL.

That’s my calculus, yours is different. Hopefully it adds a little perspective.

Hacker15e

No, you haven't "lost your mind", but since this statement is the cornerstone of the opinions of your buddies that seem to be influencing your doubt about staying at Purple, I'd look for some clearer analysis of the situation before making a decision.

Yes, Purple has corporate headwinds right now, and they are coming from both global circumstances the company has no control over, as well as industry factors that the company *can* work against. It might be a very tough time ahead -- a friend I know in FX corporate told me that between the China trade war, BREXIT, and TNT integration, any one of the three would be considered a substantial obstacle for the company, and we're facing all three simultaneously. And, nobody knows the future of e-commerce and how that will either kill or be a massive boon for the overnight freight industry.

But, none of those things (or even the aggregate of them all together) means that Purple is a "sinking ship". It isn't even a damaged ship. It is still a very good ship that is sailing in really rough seas. Might it get worse? Of course. But, it may also all blow over and be gone in a shorter timeline than you may think. Nobody knows, but I certainly don't find the situation to be anywhere close to "the sky is falling" that has been the popular media analysis of the last 6 months or so.

As has been mentioned, don't think that the passenger carriers are any safer or a more secure place to hang your hat for a career. The very reason Purple is has been an attractive home for the last two decades has a lot to do with two decades of tumult at the passenger lines. We are all at the whim of a lot of factors we have zero control over and we cannot plan for (especially over the course of a career-length timeline).

Yes, it gets better. It can get better fast, depending on your fleet and what you prioritize on your bidding. Personally, I wouldn't let the suck of night hub turning as a new guy prevent you from seeing the long term opportunity that Purple may offer over most of the passenger carriers, depending on your career desires. 8 out of 10 seats at Purple are on widebody pay, and there are lots of opportunities to chase interesting international flying even as a pretty low seniority pilot. The current junior widebody Captain has been on property about 4.5 years.

If that's not anything that interests you, then that's up to you...but those opportunities are rarer at most of the pax lines (and nonexistent at SWA).

Sluggo_63

You're going to find a lot of people here who are going to defend FedEx to the end, can't see the negatives, and won't be able to fathom why anyone would want to leave.

I would say that there are pluses and minuses here, for sure. Just like other places. Pilots tend to polish their own turds and downplay any negatives that their airline may have.

FedEx guys will routinely poo-poo the negatives... "Hub turning isn't that bad, you get used to it". "Over 70% of our flying is during the day". And it goes on.

But be aware that your buddies at other airlines do the same. Maybe I would have enjoyed myself at Southwest, but when I hear my buddies say they flew 800+ hours in a year, or "we rarely five 5 legs a day any more" or "we get to pick up as much work as we want to make money," I just shake my head and wonder how they do it... just like they look at us landing somewhere at 7:00 am and think "those poor bastards."

I was at a major passenger airline in 2001 and was furloughed after 9/11. I was lucky enough to get hired here after 5 years as a furloughee. I turned down the recall to my airline in 2007, which was a good thing because I would have been furloughed again in the recession of 2008.

But, when I was a new hire here there were nights I really questioned my decision to jump from a steady 9-5 job in the Air Force Reserves to come here. I had a scattershot VTO schedule with me making multiple commutes to work, just to hub turn all night in the back seat of the 727, hanging in the straps just trying to stay awake on final. I was seriously wondering what I had done.

But it got better. As my seniority grew, so did my quality of life. Week-on/week-off became a reality. Then came double deadheads to my home town. I was home more and blocking less. Life was good.

I tell everyone that comes here that being junior here sucks. Some of the worst flying in the airline industry is our junior domestic flying. That isn't a debate. It can be horrible. But with seniority, it gets a lot better. I think the problem you're facing right now, is you got hired in what seems like it may be the beginning of a slowdown in hiring keeping you from gaining seniority as quickly as others that have gone before you. It's easy for me and others to say, it'll be good once you get some seniority, because we're already senior and maybe didn't experience being a 90% 757 FO hub turning for years with no option to improve our lot in life.

When we were hiring 20 pilots a month, we always had guys in class who came from other airlines, including the "big 4." Although it wasn't publicized, I'll guarantee that we had quite a few pilots leave here for other jobs at other airlines.

So, really, I have no advice to give you except be wary of people who tell you that you're crazy to think about leaving, because you aren't. Their history here may not line up with your reality. But also be aware of your friends at other airlines who tell you how good it is there while ignoring the downsides of their jobs.

Whatever you decide, good luck to you. I wish you the best.

UnusualAttitude

Excellent post. Cheers to you.

Cicada

[QUOTE=Fdxlag2;2958566]Sounds like you won’t be happy here. So get your line number elsewhere as soon as possible. Not sure what other advice you are looking for. Go with my blessings.[/QUOTE


Here is my true story. College roommate gets out of AF about 3 yrs after I start with USAir in early 80's. He immediately starts with FedEx. Calls me with a story exactly like the OP. He thinks he wants to come over to USAir. My job is great and I am advancing quickly. But I tell him that just about everyone I know at Tigers/FedEx seems pretty happy, and I have jumpseated quite a bit on them. He has an offer at USAir. I honestly was taken aback by his possibility of jumping, and he sensed it. Thank God he stayed. Had he come to USAir, he would have been constantly on the cusp of furlough, and ridden out multiple mergers, BK, and constant job worry. He ended up being a fleet Capt. Had a huge paycheck and a pension. I was fortunate to do fairly well, but I constantly thank his stars he stayed at FedEx. And at the time, USAir/ Piedmont was killing it.

meatloaf

I hear you. My first 2 yrs were miserable too. I was a night flying hub-turning zombie. Hated it, and began to reassess my decision. I was getting ready to move on. That was 19 years ago.

In Year 3 I started International. It's a totally different experience. My body reacts better to it. I have fun or do something interesting on every trip, see the world, and I couldn't pick our Chief Pilot out of a lineup. I pass through MEM a couple hours a month commuting. My family is happy, the pay rates are attainable and not pie-in-the-sky for only those who have been on property since the Reagan administration, and I like the flexibility to either work hard or take a month or two off. And yes, others seem to like the hub-turning life for various reasons. God bless 'em.

Having worked at a passenger carrier previously, I would say this: Fed Ex has not historically had the knee jerk reaction that virtually all airlines have had when the economic winds shift. They have still never furloughed and we still have a pension. (See 9/11 for comparison). It's not perfect and who knows what the future holds, but it's been a damn fine ride and I'm glad I stuck with it. Best of luck to you.

coryk

I don't blame you for thinking that. I tell my friends wanting to come to FedEx this... "there's no worse place to be junior, but there's no better place to be senior."

The difference between the two here is massive, imo. Being junior/senior at UA/DL isn't as drastic, as many of their domestic trips are the same and you're really only bidding for commutability/days off. Not so much here.

I've been here almost 3 years. I left a big 3 pax airline to do it. My first year I questioned my decision a lot. But as I got more senior I saw how good it was here vs. there. I don't think I could say my QOL would have been better at "major airline A" if I had stayed after looking at the schedules of some of my friends there.

Bottom line, most of these jobs are the same. Get up, fly, eat, sleep. Go home, enjoy time off, get a cool hobby. Forget about the job.

Just my opinion.