The Duke

Just entered my 4th year at FedEx after coming here from SWA after 21 months there. Both good places to work. I’ve been on WB pay my entire time at FX (sat right seat in the 75 my first few years before moving to the 767 at tail end of last bid). I’m an Arizona native who gave up being home based with SWA; that I miss every time I have to Jump out to MEM to start a trip. With that said, commuting here has been painless and low stress. I also tend to bid trips that are double deadheads or have front/back end deadheads so I simply airline to/from work. Not originally a huge fan of night flying, but I’ve adapted to it just fine and now actually enjoy it in a way. It’s quiet, weather tends to die down at night, it’s just easier. No pax and no drama from the FAs simplifies things as well. I no longer know how to make a PA announcement. I don’t log nearly as many hours here. Just hit 1000 hours at FX last month after 4 years on property. Another interesting thing to contrast flying here vs SWA: none of my trips at FedEx have been revised. I simply show up to work, work the trip as advertised, and go home and forget about work. If you need to pick up extra, you can (for now) and if something comes up and you can’t schedule around it, you can simply drop the drip into GMU or, worst case, proffer it. Some folks at SWA like their constant sked revisions because of their rigs and ability to make more tfp. I’ve found over time that I just like to work my line as advertised. That’s why I bid that line.

We have some areas for major improvement in our contract here at FedEx. It’s a good job with room for improvement. The crew force is a bit more disjointed that SWA, due to a number of different factors. SWA has a new and improved contract since I left and in the short time I was at SWA, I felt SWAPA made some major strides in terms of unifying a divided pilot group. Schedules were very productive versus weekend layovers here at FX that are typically 60 hours. We even have a trip on the 767 that goes down to Brazil and lays over for 92 hours. That would give the bean counters at SWA a heart attack. So not the most productive skeds in that regard. I have a lot of friends at both carriers and all seem grateful to have a good job.

ConnectionPilot

Awesome information. Thanks for the post. How would you say your QOL is, in comparison to your peers at Southwest?

Zard

Fantastic post. Thanks for the input.

The Duke

Downside to FX would be my trips on the 767 are longer. SWA, at least when I was there, was all 3 or 4 day trips. So you’re typically not gone as long. Because I’m a commuter now, I tend to work 5-7 day trips so as to minimize the number of commutes. On the flip side, I tend to have bigger blocks of days off now in between trips than what I typically had at SWA. Long term goal is to live in Arizona for about 7 months of the year and have a second place either in Montana or SW Colorado for the other 5 months. Because of the larger blocks of days off and the commuting flexibility afforded due to double deadheads, etc., it’s probably going to be easier for me to make that kind of lifestyle work at FX vs SWA or any of the other pax carriers. We just flew a jumpseater the other day from MEM to GEG. He’s been here a few years now and bids single departure lines out of MEM on the 777. He lives full time up in Couer d’Alene, Idaho. When he’s gone, he’s gone, but comes home and has lots of days off in between trips with minimal commuting. So he would be an example of where FX is a good fit for him because of where he wants to live and the flexibility it affords him to balance making a good living while having a nice quality of life.

I just worked a 5 day trip that started with a front end DH to Spokane. Since I live in AZ, I bought a ticket on AA up to GEG to start the trip. Finished up in MEM, commuted back to AZ and caught a nonstop later that evening up to Kalispell for a week of vacation with family, back to AZ for 2 days, and just airlined back up to GEG this afternoon to start the same 5 day trip that goes GEG-MEM-MKE-MEM-GEG-MEM. Commute home on the back end and have another 9 days off before coming back to do the same trip again.

On a side note, FDX and SWA, in my opinion, have the two best vacation policies around, because neither uses PBS. So you can get nice big blocks of days off with no loss in pay and minimal use of vacation days. More time away from work = better quality of life = better health in my book.

The Walrus

I have a good friend that I went through AD flt school.with who has been a SWA capt.for 20x yrs. He will tell.me I've got a great line next month, 4 legs to ft Lauderdale and an 18 hr layover! Then I'll bid a weekend layover to tus or phx and spend 3 days on fdx at his house visiting, one leg on each end.

Tuck

I used to hate being gone for more than 3-4 days at Fedex but after a while - I really have gotten used to it and like it. Because on the flip side the amount of time you get off. In the past 5 weeks I have only scheduled one 3 day trip. Now I had a week of vacation in there but having that much time off is likely impossible with vacation at Southwest - system form just doesn't allow it. It's rather typical here at Fedex.

In addition if you can live in base sitting reserve at Fedex is way better than at SWA. In 14 years of sitting a lot of reserve I've never worked more than 50% of the days - doubt you ever work less than 80% of the days at Southwest on reserve. Their system encourages you to work - if that gives you a good feeling then SWA is probably better for you. Fedex has a ton of inefficiencies that most pilots can take advantage of if desired.

I always tell guys looking at both to really look at the system form. SWA is about the same - so just grab any 5 and 10 year guys annual schedule. For FDX you probably need to look at something similar to what you'd fly - long haul commuter is very different than in base reserve or hub turns. Don't spend too much time looking at the actual trip - look at the annual schedule - what to expect. Flying a lousy hub turn becomes much easier on the mental aspect if you know you have the next 10 days off vice flying a 4 leg day flight knowing you'll be back at work in 3 days.

fly2ski

As a 24 year guy here at FDX, I've done it all. WB Cap at year 8, single departure international lines and now flying WB hometown weekday and weekend layovers with deadhead starts and finishes. I spend maybe 3-4 days per bid period in hotels. Yes I fly at night, mainly because I don't like our day flying. I block around 350-400 hours MAX per year. Right now I'm on a hometown layover and heading out the door to walk my dog on company time, it don't get any better than dat!

Jeff90

I hope to be this guy some day!

FRNTOFWAVE

I've been trying to get out of Kalitta for some time now. Unfortunetaly no one will hire me. I thought I had an in with Delta, American, and United, but I didn't do well on the interview I had last year. I have plenty of time as a former Mesa Airlines Captain. Just looking for a place to hang my hat and Fedex and ups seem like a good third choice.

Boyce.

UnusualAttitude

Be sure you tell them exactly that at the interview. They’ll love it.

-UA