4 717 f/o's doing upgrade training in January probably a few more in February.

right... musent forget the upgrades indeed.... I recall them saying that "inter-island bookings were down into 2013" recently though which could also account for less need for 717 FO's and crews in general..

For the new hires, if you get the choice, my advise from what I've seen out there talking to others who've done training recently is if this will be your first "Jet" and you get any say in it, try to get the 717 first... it's a lot to take on learning to fly swept wing jet, a "heavy" and international ops all at once for many, and IOE has weeded out some in the recent past, or made others sweat bullets.

My class we had a gal with no prior jet experience and she smartly bid the 717 and is doing great on it, she'll be in much better shape when she goes to the 76 or A330 down the road. Her uncle who is also a check airman on the 767 told her it was a smart choice.

I flew the 71 when I first got here, and I'm glad I did. Excellent introduction to the islands, and great practice hand flying. You won't get that on the widebodies...but you better have the hand flying skills down before moving to the widebodies. You probably won't get the chance to develop those skills in an airplane where most of the flying is strait and level for hours on end, and where only a few minutes on either end are hand flown. You may only get four landings a month....experience builds slowly. Yet stick skills are very necessary.....

Yep, I actually loom forward to the variety of captains I fly with as they each give me a different perspective on the various islands and their history and culture. Being a mainlander myself I really appreciate the introduction to the islands this is giving me. Getting more landings in the past month than in the past two years has also been a breath of fresh air.

I know the class on the 27th is full (Congrats to all), you guys hear any mention as to when the next class might be?

All I want for Christmas is a Phase III! Congrats to the guys heading to class on the 27th!

If you pass Phase III, what's the process? Do they give you a class date or put you in a pool? What's the average wait time? Anyone know how many more classes are planned?

There is no pool after phase III. If you passed you are usually invited to a class with in two weeks. I believe there is one or two more classes before they re-open the window again in late spring.

Thanks! Still waiting on a Phase III call....but staying hopeful.

Did the Dec. 27th class get their a/c awards yet?