CaptainTeezy

I have questions for all the Horizon guys...I am interested in staying in the San Jose area because that is where I am from, so I know how expensive it is.

I am still 23 and thinking about possibly just going to Horizon for my entire career. I was just wondering the following...

1. Are there any aircraft that are based at San Jose and if so which ones?

2. What aircraft fly into San Jose?

3. Is pay based on year in seat or year of service?

4. Is Horizon planning to expand at all with either service or aircraft purchases?

5. If you were 23 would and stayed at Horizon for a career would you feel like your career was complete, even though you never went to a major/121 cargo to fly bigger aircraft or made more money?

6. How do you like the overall company/management?

7. Would you ever decide to stay at Horizon for a career if you were only 23? (Does my possible plan sound dumb?)

Thanks!

nagginpilotwife

Hope you don't mind me adding to your questions as I was about to make a similar post.

Is there an upflow into Alaskan Air?

Hubby got a call this week and will be interviewing in Nov. Any advice?

SharkyBN584

Couldn't tell you much about Horizon except the pay is good from what I understand. I'm more curious as to why you would want to make it a career? While it's a good regional, it is still a regional...

As far as your plan sounding "dumb"...it depends on what else you could do. If you got on with Horizon, lucked out, built up some PIC and could get on with say, UA flying outta SFO by the time you were 30-35...I would call staying at Horizon "dumb". However, it's all personal choice...as long as it sounds good to you it doesn't really matter what the rest of us think.

FL410

Horizon is a good company. They like pilots with expirience (cargo, 135, or 121 time). Or if you are UND and they will hire a cfi then. They fly the Q400 and I think the CRJ into SJC. The 200's are going away, slowly. they pay scale is on the site but there are rumors that the management wants a pay cut. They almost require a 4 year degree. There are people that want to do a career there and some do. In my opinion it is a good company but I don't think the havea domicile in sjc. they have them in pdx and sea but a California domicile may pop up as the rjs return to mainline service. Hope that helps

ChrisH

I don't think it sounds dumb at all. Horizon pay is pretty good. More people than you think, spend a career at a regional. One you upgrade to captain, especially with seniority, pay is good, salary wise, not job wise. Many senior guys get 17-18+ days off per month, some 3-4 weeks of vacation per year, etc. Giving that up to start over, even if it is at a major, may or may not be what someone wants.

I say go to Horizon, and just see what happens. If you are happy there, end up settling down, and having a family, and just want to stay put, then do so. If an opportunity comes, and you want to move on, then do so. I wouldn't make plans to "stay there for your career" just yet, just see what happens.

CaptainTeezy

I have been hearing a lot of DOOM AND GLOOM talk about the majors and how VERY FEW CIVILIAN guys will actually get hired into the majors and I was just thinking that if I apply to a regional I would want to go to one that I wouldn't mind making a career out of if I had too. Just trying to make the absolute best out of a possible worst case scenario.

RedeyeAV8r

CAPT Teezy There certainly has been a lot of doom and gloom posted. The Airline industry is very cyclical and when the Low tides come they are very low.......Furloughs, bankruptcies, pay and benefit cuts. The cycle will swing back again and the hiring will begin to pick up.....it will take many years of recovery to get back all the lost Pay and benefits thought, in fact it probably will never return to what this job once was,,,,,,,,,but it will still beat selling Bonds/Mutual funds or Insurance or Automobiles.

To sum up. A larger portion of Civilian Background pilots are getting hired at the majors than say 15 years ago. This is because of the drw down in the Military, there are simply Fewer Military pilots on active duty than there was in the 80's and the Committment of a miltary Pilot is almost 10 years now. It was 3 when I was in. If you have a Bachelor Degree or higher and all your Ratings up to an ATP and you have some quality flight time........1000 hrs PIC in a Turbine Aircraft and 3000 hours total, you are in certainly on your way.

Make all the contacts you can at CAL, FedEx, SWA, even UAL, USArways and DAL. The recovery will come.just keep your nose to the grind stone and be ready.

JMT21

I had the opportunity to listen to a couple Alaska (it's Alaska not Alaskan) captains speak in one of my classes about a year ago; one of which does some interviewing for Alaska on a semi-regular bases. I asked him that same question. I was surprised to learn that there is no upflow, in fact if anything you would have a more difficult time moving from Horizon to Alaska. His reasoning was this: Alaska holdings owns both Horizon and Alaska, it would not make any sense to draw off one end of your business to feed another. Why would Alaska want to take their more experianced captains at Horizon when they can get experianced candidates elsewhere? It's kinda like that saying on Scarface 'Don't get high off your own supply.' With that said I'm sure it's do able and does happen, but in short, no there is not direct upflow.

doug_or

I heard the same thing, but I think this was in the 90s when they were short of pilots. If we're just talking numbers, now it would make sense to hire older captains from QX- you'd lower the number of QX guys drawing top $ and they'd spend less time at the top of the payscale @ AS (age 60 sooner than some fresh young SKYW pup).

Fokker28

Well, good luck to them, I say!!