How far would you drive?
 

Thoughts and opinions?
Current corporate guy here that’s living in the middle of nowhere and thinking about making the switch to a Major. Moving isn't really an option(family, kids in school, hometown etc.). With that said I have a couple options. I could drive 4 1/2 to 5 hours and reach 2 major hubs, or drive 2 hours just to start my commute(which sounds miserable). Leaning towards the driving, but that cuts down on my options of airlines.

So what do y’all think? How far would you drive to get to work?

That’s a tough one. Best case scenario, you’re a line holder with a bunch of days off, it would still suck. You’re driving 5 hours to and from base. Add in reserve schedules, hotels after a long day because you’re too tired to fly or drive back etc… Outstation commuting is terrible too with limited flights a day plus you’re still driving 2 hours. I would just stick to your corporate job if you don’t want to move.

Both are bad, but option 2 depends on your specific commute, jumpseat policy, loads, etc. Getting some seniority will help, but being long call 5 hours away isn’t the worst. Once you get seniority, you can build your schedule to minimize the commute.

So couple of questions:

1. “Thinking about making the switch” why? Your corporate gig can’t pay out in the long game or schedule or your buddies are there?

2. The domiciles you can drive 10 hours round trip to—are they bases you could hold as a newhire?

3. You talked to the family about this?

Also, it would help to know what airlines you’re considering because the fleet types available can influence how many times you have fo make the drive per month.

At SWA you could massage your schedule with a little seniority to stack two 3-day trips together and only have fo make that drive twice per month working four 3-days total.

where do you live? Have you looked at cargo options for commuting?

During my 15 years at a major I’ve done a 5 hour drive to base for about 4 of those years, and a 2:15-3:00 drive to a commute flight the other 11 years. The long drive was nice from an always get there no stress kinda thing, but it was too long - by about an hour or so. The long drive to a commute stinks too. Podcasts help, but living this way for decades is pretty brutal. I’ve come to the conclusion I just have to work less and try to get done with my career earlier in life so it doesn’t kill me prematurely. I try to bid easier first/last days, but with the trips we have it’s tough to find trips that have easy days on both ends. There’s no good answer here. Boils down to work less and enjoy more time where you choose to live.

Good luck!

I have a tough drive as well....Beats flying but still takes a lot out of me especially after a day of flying. The goal is to be out by 62-63 for sure.

Yeah this is a pretty crappy position to be in if I am being totally honest. I think if you can provide more detail as to which cities you would be driving too that might help, but honestly if moving isnt an option, I would strongly consider staying in the corporate world. I will admit, commuting to me is about as bad as it gets so I may be skewed here, but both of those options spell really long days on both ends of a trip, which will lead to exhaustion, not to mention the added time away from home.

Listen, lots of people do the commuting thing, I get it, but holy crap you would have a two hour drive just to start what is already a taxing process of getting to work, now you are doing it from an outstation. Think about it this way:
1. Drive option. You are spending, at a minimum, 10 hours a week in your car, but realistically more like 15 because you have to go back to start day 1 again. I look at that as a minimum of one day wasted, but if we go by work days, that's two 8 hour blocks, each week on the high end, so 4 days if being conservative and eight on the high end a month. So at best, you are losing 48 days a year to driving and at worst, 97. Even at the low end, losing a month of home time a year just in the drive portion is a pill I couldn't swallow.

2. Commute option. Well you still have a 4 hour round trip drive each time you go to work. Better than the other option by half, but still not ideal. Now you have to factor in the commuter policy rules most airlines have, which require two attempts to keep yourself covered if you can't get on, not to mention having to time things right to actually have a flight. Some smaller airports may only have 1 am and 1 pm flight a day, meaning you might have to go out the day before. You can see where I am going with this, as time quickly starts adding up and to me, that is not worth it.

I value time with my family above all else, so giving that up for a commute just isnt an option for me anymore. If I were you, I would seriously consider moving to a major city, or at least a little closer to one or stay in the corporate gig when they are responsible for getting you to the job.

Sorry to be a downer, I know others will disagree with me, but you came asking for options/opinions so there ya go.

Both of those options sound absolutely miserable. Add that up over the years (both the drive to commute and the long drive) and you’re losing so much precious time just getting to work, that it wouldn’t be worth leaving the current gig to me (just my opinion). My corporate gig had me home-based and not commuting was amazing. I’m at a major now and because I couldn’t hold the aircraft equipment based in the city I live in I’ve been forced to commute for the past year and I still have another year of commuting to go (30 minute drive to a 1 hour commute and I still hate the time I’m losing away from home). If I didn’t live in a base for my company and had to do this the rest of my life I’d probably go back to corporate flying. Luckily I do live in a hub so there’s a light at the end of the tunnel. But if I was in your shoes I would stay where you’re at until you can move (if you ever choose to).

The market for corp pilots is going to get better and better.

Given those options i would negotiate hard at home

I’ve done driving commutes, transcons, short flights, etc. Everyone’s threshold for commuting is different. I wouldn’t drive more than about 2.5 hrs to work long term. I start getting really antsy right about that mark. For a flying commute, my limit is less than a 1 hr drive to a less than 1 hr flight, and even that gets old. Another thing to consider, as mentioned previously, is your airline’s commuter policy and the frequency of flights. Might not be terrible if there’s a flight every 45 min, but if not, it will make for a really long day and probably several hotel rooms per month. It would be especially brutal if you’re gonna be on short call reserve for a long time.

Flying for one of the big airlines is great, but in your particular case I’d think hard about how much “suck” you can put up with!

I’ll dissent here and say I’d be more than happy to drive 4-5 hours long-term, if it’s the job I wanted and I’d be holding a line with longer trips after only a short stint on reserve.

That’s a tough call. Driving 5 hours, then a possible 8 to 10 hour duty day? Perhaps commuting/driving in the night before to a cheap hotel as an option?

I would say 3.5 is about my limit. Depends on traffic too. Traffic just wears you down more. All highway isn’t bad.
I had to do the 4-5 hr drive for a few months, and it just wasn’t sustainable imo. Although, driving 2 hours just to start a commute sounds like absolute h3ll.

Like someone said, try and stack your trips together to mitigate the driving back and forth. That’s best option I think.

Thanks all!! With no airline experience it’s good to hear what you all think. Just to add a little context, my current gig is great. QOL is excellent, lots of time off, pay is ok. As most of you know though, that could change in an instant on the corporate side. Stability, and wanting to “get in while the getting is good” would be the reasons I’m contemplating all this. AA and Southwest are the top two airlines I will be looking into if I decide to go this route.
Thanks again, this has given me a lot to think about and to discuss with the family.

I drive 2 hours to base. For me that is a good distance; allows me to drive to a trip and home afterwards. I pass up commuting options that are 30 minutes and an hour away...Less control over my schedule waiting on the right commutes

Domestic flying exists because people hate long drives in a car.

Driving is dangerous......

Stay where you are… look away.

Can we clarify about the driving commute times. Are we talking leaving your house to the parking lot, or including walk / bus from parking lot to KCM / TSA to gate?

4-5 hour drive each way? Naw.... get yourself one of these instead:

https://www.vansaircraft.com/wp-cont...2048x1536.jpeg

Where in this country is within 5 hours away from a major hub and also 5 hours from any Fedex, UPS, or pax destination?

I've started driving 4-5 hours to my base vs an online commute. Door to door, its about the same amount of time, and my personal stress level is way lower not having to worry about getting a seat. It doesn't hurt that I have a nice comfortable car, and it has an "autopilot" that reduces a lot of workload. I've also broken up the drive with a stop for a meal, or a quick walk around a rest area to get the blood moving again. I'll probably fly from time to time, especially in the winter when loads are lower and there aren't flocks of thunderstorms that shut down the NYC area.

I once met a FA who drove two hours just to start a two-leg commute 😱 She lived in some remote part of Washington state and had been doing it for years. Worst commute I've ever heard of.

Honestly, if I had a schedule that allowed doing the drive 2-3x per month, a 4+ hour drive really doesn’t sound as bad as commuting via jumpseats. Sure, seniority and getting decent trips will also help immensely, but I wouldn’t just rule it out as a viable option. But, as others have said, I guess it depends on the person.

Have you thought about obtaining a light single to make the commute? There are obviously heavy costs to that, but it would sure make the commute bearable.

Yikes!

"Once you get used to it, it's really not that bad!"
:D

To the OP: Can you give us some more info? Like roughly what does your Corp gig pay? How much of a $ shortfall do you feel you have? How much time left do you have? Are you willing to do ULCCs? You say your QOL is great, what does that mean to you?

It could be you have unrealistic expectations for the pay/QOL differences between Corp and the airline world.

I have a few acquaintances that fly Corp and what they laud as good QOL sounds horrid to me, while what I consider good QOL sounds equally terrible to them.

I currently do a 3.5 to 5 commute by car (traffic depended). My limit is about 4 hours with traffic then it gets real annoying. It’s rough coming back on a Long Haul flight too. It’s has been less stressful then trying to commute by air plus it’s nice having car in base so that I can head to my family’s place in base as well.

The key that makes it better is to stick my work days together and days off together to minimize driving. Last month was brutal being on reserve and not having the coverage really remake my schedule as desired.

But if I had to choose, option 1. I refuse to drive long distances to take a commute flight. You would be in base with option by the time you drive to the commute airport, park, go through security, wait to get cleared for a seat, board, taxi, fly, land, and finally deplane….

Fly for an ACMI operator with home basing.

Problem solved.

That's an option but lots of considerations...

Weather. Not critical unless it's constant, or you rely on the plane for a reserve call out. If it's bad occasionally you can drive.

Destination. Can you park GA at your domicile? What do they charge? Are reservations required? Big airports tend to have limited facilities for GA, and it's typically geared for bizjets ($500/night tiedown). Can you land at a nearby GA field and uber?

Cost. Fuel is $$$, Mx is $$$, and that's assuming you can even find a shop with the bandwidth. I don't think I'd buy a plane just to commute, but if you want one anyway...

I looked at GA commute to NYC. Landing/tiedown fees alone make it a nonnstarter.

As a few others have said look at ACMI cargo. Home based. Also, the Fractional Jet Operators like NetJets, FlexJet, Fly Exclusive, etc. have home basing more or less. I think NetJets has around 212 domiciles.
If you're dead set on a legacy airline then look at a car that has autodrive and just do the 5 hours.

Well, yes. And no. Did ACMI for 7 years. Yes, commute was worktime. Still tiring crossing 6 time zones to get to work twice a month.

Where did you look into flying to? LDJ would be a great option for me, and it didn't seem to be super expensive.

That sounds brutal. There would have to be an extreme reason to do that, in my book.

I happened to check LGA recently for ******s and giggles as a possible option for getting to the US Open in September. $138 landing fee, $55 per 8 hours parking, $55 handling fee. Handling fee is waived with 20 gallons of fuel purchased at their price(today) of $10.50/gallon. I would imagine JFK and EWR are similar.

LDJ wouldn't be bad if you needed to get to EWR via taxi/ride share but I have a feeling they're not that cheap either(though not as high as LGA).

LDJ is $30/day or $200/week for a single engine over 3000 lbs. $25 landing fee waived with a very large fuel purchase. Not cheap, but cheaper than LGA/EWR.

https://www.lindenairportnj.com/fuel...ates-full-list

Done both. Driving 2hrs to start a flight commute sucks more than driving 4.5hrs because of the requirement for backup flights commuting to work and flight delays and fighting for the jumpseat going home. At least you can get a vehicle that’s got driver assist features to help with driver fatigue and control your own destiny with regards to departure time.

You're not saving time driving 2 hours to start a flying commute.