Was there a furlough? Any history of bankruptcy? Sorry for all the questions. I'm checking them out as much as they're checking me out.

 

No furlough or bankruptcy. Just attrition.

 

We also went from all 3-man airplanes to all 2-man airplanes which required fewer pilots ...

 

How long does it typically take to go from Indoc to off Traing pay..? 3 months?

 

yes, about 3 months, but YMMV. Could stretch to 4 or 5 depending on IOE and what not.

 

Three engines will go away before two engines. Airbus is scheduled to be the largest fleet next year. The Airbus fleet isn't even at the end of their leases until 2020 or so. Most of them will be around until the late 20's. We did park the oldest 310-200's that couldn't meet the recent FAA order. They will not be coming back out of the desert. FedEx is very quick to park excess capacity, but also quick to bring them back online. So, when you hear that someone took a plane to the desert, it doesn't mean it's never coming back, except of course those -200's can't be used after December 2016.

 

I'm guessing 12-15 years as a F/O and 25-28 years as a Captain.
fbh

 

Not to preach, but if you absolutely want max time at home, sit tight at AK.

You could parlay the higher salary into a similar quality of life is several ways. One would be to spend some of the difference in salary on confirmed tickets. Since your family won't have pass rights, the frequent flyer miles you accrue on your carrier of choice might be valuable to them.

The other way to work this is simply proffer or drop trips when you are off probation and work less. You could make what you make now, but with more days off.

Now--if you enjoy the variety of flying around the country and around the world, then I'd say this place is a good fit. Europe is a mess right now with terror threats, but even this ex-military guy had my world expanded by flying at FedEx. From discovering what Bethlehem PA looks like, or spending a week eating lobster in Portland Maine....Grand Junction and Boise....and about every big and little town in the country at some point. Then there is Paris, London, Cologne, Milan, Sydney, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Osaka, Dubai (ptui!), Tel Aviv, and places like Baku and Almaty (not any more) that I didn't even know where they were until I looked it up.

If you goal is to be in your hometown as much as possible and sleep in your own bed as many nights as you can, there are ways you can do that here, but you probably better off where you already are.

If your goal is to see the world, make some pretty good coin, and go like hell all over the world, then its really hard to beat this place. I'm not judging anyone who wants or needs to stay closer to home, and I've only been in the industry about 15 years....not 20, 25, 30, or 35+ like some of the regulars here. At some point I may want to bid for less time on the road and away from home. For now, however, I sort of "invert" the paradigm and enjoy the travel and try to take some of the family along whenever its possible...typically once a quarter at least. My kids have done Paris, Alaska, Hong Kong, Singapore, London, and been all over the US the last ten years.

Either way...I talk to people all the time who would kill to be in your spot at AK, and you are going to be a winner any way you pick. Just don't let a spreadsheet dictate your decision, but instead think about what you really want out of this career, and what makes you happy at work while still taking care of the family and the bills.

 

Albies post is very good. You aren't going to sleep in your own bed every night at FedEx, unless you live in Memphis and do am out and backs. And that, in my opinion, is a painful way to live. However, with the good salaries we make, massive scheduling flexibility, and ability to deadhead to start work somewhere instead of jumpseat, you can get a lot of time off. Though most people use the work rules in order to work more and increase their income, it is a great benefit that during certain times in your life, you can work far less than the average pilot, and have time off. The flexibility is incredible.

But as far as making your schedule work for you, as a junior pilot, you won't be able to easily bid a great line and that's all you have to do. It will take effort, trip trading, utilizing the secondary line, carryover conflict, etc.

 

AM or PM out and backs are not a bad gig for $1200 to $2000 a day.