Well, that makes them very similar to the crack house crash pads in EWR(take your pick). I'm willing to bet there isn't much diff between the two, except commuting to EWR means rolling the dice to see if you will actually land within a 3 hour block of when you are scheduled to land in the New York area.

I bet reliability of commuting to OAK is a "smidge" better, but correct me if I'm wrong.

 

Plus you can always use the extra money you'll make at SWA to go on vacation to the nice international places that CAL flies to regularly with the 737 such as AUA, SXM, SJD, CUN, etc. I'm sure there are guys on this forum that will tell you to leave CAL for Skybus if they were still around. Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

Jeez Herc, I thought you got edumacated from our earlier exchanges.

Skybus indeed.

 

Thoughts for any of those out there not necessarily at CAL, but somewhere else. Is there any legacy you would stay at as a less than 1 yr guy if you had an opportunity at SWA? Given the merger talk at DAL/NWA, USair and UALs trouble with labor/mgmt, it seems SWA is the only breath of fresh air out there.

 

my recommendation is to move to CAL "if" you reside (or plan to) in a SWA base... if not, I would stay at CAL. During your 20 year career you will want some variety in route segments/etc... and at SWA you will probably (neve know though) get that chance. Flying the 737 for 20 years seems like it would get old... especially doing 4 turns a day.

 

The nature of the industry is cyclical. The Legacy's can be right back up there in no time. As it's been said many times before, nobody really wanted to go to SWA, FedEx, and UPS 10 years ago. Now, many want to go to those places. These companies could once again be the places that no one wants to be at. It could happen. Will it? I don't know.

I'll echo a previous thought. If you live in a WN base, then I'd probably go. Commuting to EWR SUCKS. I did it for 9 months, and you might as well go to a casino because you have better odds.

Another thought though. For now, the current WN business model provides you with nothing but driving a 737 around the US for the rest of your career. I know some guys are happy with this. I flew with a CA on the DC9 who was a former Air Force Reserve C-5 driver, and he wanted NOTHING to do with international flying. Can YOU be happy with only flying a 737 domestically for the rest of your career?

 

Hell ya I say.

 

I can fly a plane full of rubber dog$%#! out of Hong Kong if the pay and QOL is good to me.

 

What are considered junior bases?

 

I don't work there, but from what I've read, OAK is going most junior. Behind OAK is LAS and PHX. HOU and MCO are in the middle. I'm not sure how the others stack up.

Could a SWA guy fill the rest in?