Commuting, QoL and Taking Days Off
 

A few basic QoL questions from a guy considering the career (major). I realize many of these answers are airline dependent, but I'm just looking to get a general idea based on the wealth of experience on the forum:

1. With overbooking as the new normal, has that adversely affected the ease of commuting to your domicile? I plan on living relatively close (150-200 miles) from my domicile and taking a 30 min flight from my hometown regional airport. Is it really as simple as just showing up to the podium of the commuter flight, flashing your badge, and getting a seat? When would you be denied? Do you get priority over paying customers? Are most regionals compatible with commuting "out of company" pilots to their hub?

2. Is there any good reason to commute in uniform? Can I bypass security as a known crew member by just flashing my badge?

3. How often can you grab a first class seat while commuting? Do you recommend getting an AmEX for the lounges and bennies or are the basic company lounges good enough?

4. As a junior-ish lineholder, how much control can you wrangle over your scheduling? Do most airlines allow pilots to request specific days off for pre-planned events (weddings, marathons, trips)? Or are you wholly enslaved to whatever the scheduling scraps remain? Also, is one given the scheduling freedom to take off-days in larger chunks (i.e. 10 consecutive days off followed by 10 nonstop days on the road)?..How long does it usually take to get off reserve and become a lineholder?

5. On a typical 4 day trip for a major, how long, on average, are 1.) Turns between legs 2.) Layovers for each fly-day?

Thanks guys for any information!

what is your background?

sounds like you know absolutely nothing about being an airline pilot. Are you a MIL pilot possibly?

1. you are last priority, after paying passengers. Then you may be lower priority than other pilots going to/from work, depending if you are jumpseating online or offline, and company policy. Depending on loads may be better to drive.

2. Matter of personal preference.

3. First class depends on if there is a seat available and the policy of the airline you are traveling on. You will be last priority when DH to work. Lounge is not free an you cannot be in uniform, so pay for it if you want. AMEX lounge is much better than AA/DL/UA lounge, in my opinion.

4. schedule is by seniority, so you bid what you want, and you get what you can hold. If you want certain days off then bid for that and hopefully you can get it.

5. depends on airline and trip, but maybe an 30-90 minutes at each stop and layovers from 10-17 hours domestic.

I've been commuting for 15 yrs and am moving next month to a base. Commuting is relatively easy when it all works out. The only thing you lose is time. I'd look at the frequency of flights from your home to work. Is there a flight every hr or only twice a day? Sitting around for half a day waiting on your flight home gets old quick. Most guys I know who live that distance away drive it. With the time factored in for going to airport, security, arriving an hr early to make sure you're the first one etc it'll be quicker to drive and you don't have to worry about not making the flight for whatever reason.
Think of commuting on another airline as bumming a ride. No one is obligated to get you on the plane. A gate agent who is having a bad day may not let you on for whatever reason, a cpt who doesn't like your airline can deny you. It doesn't happen much but if you think in it as those terms then you'll have the right attitude when asking. Meaning; be polite.

Hoover, Navigatro, thanks for the replies,

Yes I'm mil and am clueless about the airlines. Just trying to think ahead on some of the QoL issues if I make the jump :-)

If the air line you are trying to commute on is not the one you work for...you are at the bottom of the list behind paying pax and everyone else who works for said air line. At least you would be in reasonable driving distance.

As far as QOL. The seniority pendulum swings on a whim. You could be a 4 month CA like it is happening at DAL or you could be a 15-20 year F/O like DAL of the recent past. Today's snapshot is not a reliable indicator for future opportunities. But right now is a good time to be getting in.

A 200 mile drive is easy. A 30 minute commute on an RJ is a nightmare.
You generally have to plan on two flights from your home to your base to meet the "commuter clause" that gets you off the hook for missing work. Depending on your show time for your trip, and the flight schedule, that could mean you have to commute in the prior morning. Why sit in a crashpad for 16 hours when you could spend the day and night at home with your family, and just drive three hours to work?
If you lived over 500 miles from work, then you would fly. Less than 300, you drive.

^^^this right here

Get a Commuter car that gets good mileage and be done with it. You'll never get bumped from the drivers seat in your own car.

I'm guessing an RJ at that distance will be weight limited ALOT

Commuting, QoL and Taking Days Off
 

When I was an FO at Envoy, I drove from OKC to DFW a lot. It was a 3 hour drive, but I usually gave it 4.

Will definitely heed that advice. Which naturally begs the question...what are the best high-mileage reliable commuter cars out there? I'm guessing the venerable Honda Accord would be #1. What about the Suburu outback? I love those cars but are they high-mileage reliable?