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From regionals to majors
Hello, I am just curious to hear from those who have recently made a transition from a regional carrier such as ASA, Comair, XJT, Eagle onto a major carrier and how the QOL has changed. Since the industry has changed dramatically it is not as realistic to make a 250k+ paycheck with ridiculously easy schedules and great layovers etc. Regional QOL has risen and Major QOL has decreased. Now that the gap has narrowed is it still worth making a move? Thanks
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Short and long answer. Yes.
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XJT Capt. to CAL F.O. It's a rough first year but absolutely no regrets.
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CALFO-could you elaborate a little more on the downsides of the transition?
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I can ditto CALFO.
Very simply I'd rather do one 6 hour leg than 6 1 hour legs. Plus when you have to take a pee midflight you dont have to fight for the aft lav! |
I guess the downsides are the initial pay cut and going back to being the bottom feeder on a seniority list, but the upside is obvious. At Xjet or any regional you top out at 70-90 bucks an hour, thats all you can ever bee. You bring that in as a second year widebody F/O or a 3/4th year Small Narrowbody FO.
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Originally Posted by Flyby1206
(Post 126553)
Hello, I am just curious to hear from those who have recently made a transition from a regional carrier such as ASA, Comair, XJT, Eagle onto a major carrier and how the QOL has changed. Since the industry has changed dramatically it is not as realistic to make a 250k+ paycheck with ridiculously easy schedules and great layovers etc. Regional QOL has risen and Major QOL has decreased. Now that the gap has narrowed is it still worth making a move? Thanks
Great jobs are still around and the majors will get better than they are now. Good luck! |
bigtime209 - The downsides of the tranistion were the fact that I didn't have company sponsored health insurance for five months, the tremendous pay cut, and having to commute on reserve. Fortunately, these are all temporary items.
Despite the downsides, I have no regrets in coming over to CAL. I got into this career because I enjoy flying and travelling. Being at CAL has given me the opportunity to fly new types of aircraft and to fly to new, interesting places. In my first year at CAL I have overnighted in several Carribean destinations, as well as Ecuador, Central America, and Anchorage. I enjoy the diversity and the fact that I seem to get to the West Coast at-least once a week. I have also been pleasantly surprised with the how fun the crews at CAL have been to fly with. -minrest |
I left XJT 6 months ago for CAL and I have absolutely no regrets about my decision. The cons about making the move are all VERY short term...no medical benefits for 5 months...1st year pay....reserve (only 2 months)...bottom of seniority list (last I checked, I already have around 300 below me).
For me, I had anticipated the pay cut, so I was able to put away a good chunk of change to help with the pay cut and to pay for temporary health insurance...I also re-vamped my budget.....after adjusting the budget, I have not had to use my savings (except to pay for the temp health insurance).... In my opinion, the pros far outweigh the cons.....by my 3rd year I'll be making about the same as what I was when I left XJT....somewhere between 4th and 5th year I will "break even" with the amount of $$ I lost with the paycut coming here....if I had stayed at XJT I would have been on reserve as a CLE CA with only 12 days off a months and 75 hour guarantee...at CAL I am holding a line with 14-15 days off a month and around 85 hours of pay.....at CAL, I average 2 legs per day...occasionally I will have a 3 leg day.....I love the variety of destinations...west coast, east coast, caribean, south america, latin america, canada....and that is just on the 737....so far all of the crews have been great....only a handful of "slam clickers"....the movement is very quick at CAL....right now I should retire around 150 at CAL (of course this will change with mergers, medicals, etc.), if I stayed at XJT I would have retired around 350....I could probably go on and on about what I like, but I think you get the point. If I had one recommendation, it would be to plan ahead...if you think you might be interested in making the move to a major, start saving now...re-adjust your budget now.....that way when the call comes you will take the "I can't affort the pay cut" out of the decision making process.....then you can make your decision based on QOL, bases, and what your expectations of your career are. Good luck! Skychief |
Originally Posted by Skychief
(Post 129173)
I left XJT 6 months ago for CAL and I have absolutely no regrets about my decision. The cons about making the move are all VERY short term...no medical benefits for 5 months...1st year pay....reserve (only 2 months)...bottom of seniority list (last I checked, I already have around 300 below me).
For me, I had anticipated the pay cut, so I was able to put away a good chunk of change to help with the pay cut and to pay for temporary health insurance...I also re-vamped my budget.....after adjusting the budget, I have not had to use my savings (except to pay for the temp health insurance).... In my opinion, the pros far outweigh the cons.....by my 3rd year I'll be making about the same as what I was when I left XJT....somewhere between 4th and 5th year I will "break even" with the amount of $$ I lost with the paycut coming here....if I had stayed at XJT I would have been on reserve as a CLE CA with only 12 days off a months and 75 hour guarantee...at CAL I am holding a line with 14-15 days off a month and around 85 hours of pay.....at CAL, I average 2 legs per day...occasionally I will have a 3 leg day.....I love the variety of destinations...west coast, east coast, caribean, south america, latin america, canada....and that is just on the 737....so far all of the crews have been great....only a handful of "slam clickers"....the movement is very quick at CAL....right now I should retire around 150 at CAL (of course this will change with mergers, medicals, etc.), if I stayed at XJT I would have retired around 350....I could probably go on and on about what I like, but I think you get the point. If I had one recommendation, it would be to plan ahead...if you think you might be interested in making the move to a major, start saving now...re-adjust your budget now.....that way when the call comes you will take the "I can't affort the pay cut" out of the decision making process.....then you can make your decision based on QOL, bases, and what your expectations of your career are. Good luck! Skychief You do realize that you're gonna get "Hey, SkyChef, where's my crew meal?" Sorry, I'm bored! |
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