Frontier vs wait for flow to DL
 

Wanting opinions....

I live in Atlanta family/kids quality of life/staying in base is top priority. I'll be flowing from 9E in about 4 years...I'll be in my mid 40's by then. Looking at DL attrition in 4 years on, upgrade would be about 13 years from today in ATL. So I'd finish my career with around 10 years as captain at DL, very likely narrowbody for life.

Conversely, at Frontier, assuming I got a job offer soon, the upgrade time would probably be nearly a decade sooner in the ATL base. Crunching the numbers I'd actually make more at Frontier than DL over my career (profit sharing could tip the scale but unknown) and what's more is I'd be making a lot more sooner, and that is very attractive.

Huge shifts in sleeping schedules I don't well with at all, however the day trips/2-3 day trips and shorter amount of days away from home are huge pluses, as is the ability to drop to 60hrs...anything I can do to spend more time with family is a huge attraction.

Are there other quality of life issues that I should give significant weight to like late flights/cancelations, frequent passenger issues, hotels, transportation, management, poor quality pairings, vacation days, sick days, job security, base closures, buyouts, etc?

I'm really on the fence here, it's a great position to be in to have a legacy in my back pocket- but Frontier vs DL is about a 50/50 right now. Could really use a nudge one way or the other.

If you’ll get to ATL sooner, upgrade sooner, and make more money at F9, what’s the holdup? Prestige of flying for DL is about all I can think of and only you can put the value on that.

Nobody that I know of here worries about job security, base closures, etc. Road life varies from inefficient pairings at 5 hours/duty period with red eyes to high credit daylight turns and multi-day trips. Hotels are hit/miss. Passenger issues we probably have more than our fair share but it happens behind the flight deck door so NBD. Vacation time is 2 weeks for the first 5 years. You accrue one sick day a month. There are stories of people getting calls from a CP for excessive sick time usage but nothing that sticks. Oh and you can only drop to 60 for 6 months of the year and the company designates those months. The other months are 70 hours.

One big hit in the comparison you didn’t mention is our non-rev bennies are terrible compared to DL.

*edit* definitely what JoeFever said below

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I don’t want to nudge anyone anywhere, but waiting on any flow seems like a terrible career decision. So many variables.

Going off of the info you’ve given us, I’d say come on over to Frontier if you have an offer. The only two reasons I would lean towards the flow would be if you were younger, or the opportunity to do widebody flying meant more to you than money. Given your age and apparent lack of desire to fly long haul, F9 would be a pretty good place to hang your hat. If you’re going to likely retire off an A320 (or similar)… might as well get that seniority clock clicking sooner or later. Also keep in mind, at Frontier you’ll only take that seniority hit twice. Once as a new hire and once at upgrade. At DL you’ll be taking a seniority slide each and every time you bid up to a more senior airframe/seat position. Lots of back and forth there that an established family man may not like.

Also food for thought, we should be opening an ATL pilot domicile Q1 of 2022.

At your age, I'd definitely come to Frontier.

Thanks very much for all the replies.

It all depend on if you like the taste of aircraft potable water, or not.


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To be fair Dasani is practically toilet water anyways

Should be the easiest decision of his/her life, go to F9.

MAYBE go to a major in 4 years and MAYBE upgrading a decade later when you are 55 years old (and likely being on reserve for most of your time as a CA) or DEFINITELY going to a major now and MAYBE upgrading when you are 45 and spending your last 15 years holding a line…?

Is that a trick question somehow? Given the time value of money, I’m not sure Delta will even be more pay.

Is it the hat???


https://i.ibb.co/rw0hhmS/2-A1-DE629-...BF05824-E3.jpg

Somebody offers them on eBay every now and again. They really aren’t that costly…