lowflying

Sadly yes they do believe that... They (AAG) really do believe that they are so special that people will look past the long list of downsides. They're like the over the hill, former high school quarterback who thinks they still have it; think Al Bundy

snackysmores

The first jet class for FO's will be March 20th but that will be for our OG lifer FOs transitioning over. The first class for new hire FOs on the jet will be something towards the end of April.

And yes, our VP of Flight Ops said that our guaranteed interview is better than a true no interview flow LOL. "Because you can choose when to interview instead of waiting for your seniority number to flow."

There were a bunch of FOs who did not have 3000 hours at Horizon but we're called for their interview with Alaska. They we're quickly told "Thanks for coming, but you're not qualified. See ya!" And they burned their guaranteed interview. What a scam. Only Alaska would call you to waste your time for an interview knowing full well you had ZERO chance of getting the job.

gazoo34

I just talked to the wife of a former Horizon pilot (he now flies for Atlas) who verified a lot of what is being said on this forum. I’m glad I never went to Horizon but I’m sad that a company I would have loved to work for has become the bottom feeder of the bottom feeders.
I’m applying to Atlas today and giving up on ALK, this once great company has lost its luster regardless of the recent award they won. Which I’m very curious about given the recent number of cancelations by Horizon??
I feel bad for the young pilots that were led down the path thinking ALK (Horizon) was different.

Niobe

Yes, good old used car salesman, Vice President B.L. I never met a more brazen individual. Making obvious lies to your face trying to convience you the sky is purple, as long as he gets his way. Told my entire new hire class we would be getting the bonus earlier last year,and that just turned out to be another lie (made it sound like a certainty) Nobody has ever seen a penny.

Griever

That guy (BL, the vp of flight ops), is one of many reasons why I cannot recommend working here at this time. He will (literally) wine and dine new hires and make outrageous claims without basis.

Crew Scheduling has become difficult (and quite passive aggressive) to work with under his leadership. There once was a time when I could answer my phone on a day off, but now I know if I do I will be junior manned, regardless of what I have going on (holidays, doctor appointments, no child care available, etc). If you answer your phone while on duty, they are going to treat you like a reserve for "operational necessity"

Reserves are currently working 100 credit bids, sometimes six days in a row (7 in one recent case, which is a violation of our contract, btw), (with low block time), a high number of airplane swaps. I hope you like doing 4 preflight inspections a day for 4 credits! oh yeah, you have a 30 minute scheduled turn time to do all that! Make sure you do it on time or your bonus is at risk!

Our airplanes are dirty, unreliable, and we make our pax walk through wind, rain, snow, puddles if deice fluid. We contract with a wheelchair service that never shows up on time, and when they do our pax with special needs get blasted by the elements and turboprop noise while they wait.

It's shameful.

Don't apply here if the above is shocking to you. If you are in training, think about what I (a line grinder) just described and ask if this is the type of place that is right for you.

inevitableneb

New Hire here, I came in before the 10K bonus. I was very optimistic about Horizon, I kept waiting for them to get their act together, come up to market levels with compensation, I never imagined they would violate the the contract and the pretend like they didn't. So disingenuous. I don't know how many the 10K will attract but I know it will send many who they have already invested the training in, looking elsewhere, total slap in the face. I just got my apps in, and I'm leaving as soon as possible. There's just no reason so stay. If your thinking of taking the bonus, do what you gotta do, I came because of the bases, it was very important to me to stay in the NW. It was a classic you don't know what you don't know situation. There is no reason anymore the struggle through your first year, the industry has changed. Horizon is so far behind the hiring, I think their future is in question. They have just given me absolutely no reason to stay.

dbcooper1313

I've got no skin in this game but I'll give some friendly advice to the young bucks who want to stay in the PNW and at the same time are whining about lower than "industry standard" pay (whatever that is). Commuting sucks beyond belief as does paying to shack up with other pilots in a stinking crash pad.
Just something to consider.

Griever

With all due respect, I think you're misinterpreting what these threads are communicating. Most posts here are not "whining," as you clumsily describe. Because we do have "skin in the game," and because some do commute, we alone are in a position to subjectively describe the relatively low take home pay and poor working conditions.

This isn't a thread filled with QXers looking for sympathy, we have consistently been warning off others from making the same mistake as us. Pilots are a scarcer commodity than 4+ years ago, and our management refuses acknowledge that. Instead, they chose to violate our legally negotiated bargaining agreement to make up for their lack of planning.

QX is living on borrowed time, otherwise our management wouldn't be blatantly and ILLEGALLY disbursing a paltry 10k check to new hires.

Jay1122

Hey guys, obviously new here. Just wanted to confirm this pre-hire bonus at Horizon if possible. They are giving people 10k to take a class date and pay that out before the individual even shows up to class without requiring them to sign any type of commitment? Is that correct? Has anyone actually received the bonus? @Griever, can you fill me in on the illegality of offering this bonus? Thanks!

gazoo34

The bonus wasn't negotiated with the union and therefore violates the agreed upon pay scale the union negotiated (I presume). This has happened at numerous regionals. It is a way for companies to temporarily increase first year pay and erode the negotiating power of the pilot group. This is how the regionals stay alive AND IT IS WRONG! The regional airline construct has taken away the bargaining power of pilots and until new pilots realize that going to a regional for min wage pay hurts them in the long run pilots will continue to get abused. Boys and girls a bonus is temporary and doesn't make up for cold calls and junior manning on days off. It doesn't make up for possibly getting a flight violation at a min wage job which may prevent you from getting your dream job. DONT GO TO A REGIONAL UNTIL FIRST YEAR PAY IS ABOVE $45 and there is a guaranteed flow to a major. It will happen in the next two years. Horizon like all other regionals need to die a slow painful agonizing death or pay pilots equal to the responsibility of having 79 lives in the literally "palm of their hands."