My point is that the senior RJ guys can come over to be stapled.. or not... and if they choose not to then that opens the door for somebody else. I am not speaking of the qualifications of the FOs at all. My comment was more to the point about the senior RJ guys wanting to be merged into a seniority list at someplace where they could fly captain on ANYTHING bigger than what they now fly... or what they can ever expect to fly at their current company. Sorry... that dog won't hunt. If they think they deserve that DC9 left seat over the most junior guy on the property at the signing of any merger agreement.. well.. sorry. And... I think I can handle a guy in the right seat with 8000 hours whether or not he has any PIC time or not. As long as he can get thru the training program satisfactorily... I will be happy to help them out on the line.

 

The senior pilots won't care as long as they don't become subject to displacement in the event of a furlough. The $64 question is, would a major airline pilot union sign a merger deal, staple or not, if they couldn't displace in reverse seniority order?

 

Actually, that's the problem, many Captains at regionals see going to the legacy as a backwards step. Just ask Comair and Eagle FO's We'd love to sling gear for ya, but 8000 hrs doesn't cut it apparently... 500 in a fighter though, maybe we can talk.

 

Ambition is good and I sincerely hope you live your dream of flying for a "major" airline.

OTOH, I strongly disagree with those who would sell out themselves, their brethren union pilots and/or destroy their own union in order to fulfill their greedy desire to fly a big shiny jet. Becoming a ***** is only one step above a scab IMHO.

 

I beleive that his point is that they have not experienced the stagniation that the Captains have had, therefore they have less to lose being at the bottom of the list, it is only a furlough back to where they are. Not true for a regional Captain.

That said, in the aftermath of 9-11 and the growth of the RJ sector at DCI, I ended up spending six more years at DCI. With them parking the L15, MD-11, 727, and 732 here at DAL, much of the narrow gauge flying was off loaded to DCI. My airline tripled in size to almost 2000 pilots from 2000-2006. That is where the issue is and was.

Stop the off shore flow of seats from a mainline list and there will all of a sudden be a value to once again become junior and sit at the bottom of a 12000 pilot list.

In reality, it actually was a decision to make for me. I was making about 120K a year at my regional and making the transition to the mainline meant a cut for five years. Knowing all of this I jumped. Still to this day with a back bid or two, it is the best decision I could have ever made. Even with the sale of scope and the stagnation here, being junior and under a bankruptcy era contract, my QOL on and off the road, is at least five to eight times better than it was as a LCA/Capt at my regional working three days a week with every weekend and holiday off.
My point is that even in the ear of stagnation, the life of a mainline pilot is generally a lot better than that of a senior Regional Captain. Living both I can tell you that.

One thing that many do not consider and one that AMR Eagle may or may nor have to deal with being a WO, is that these FFD contracts have resets in them. That means there is going to be extreme downward pressure of the long term earning potential for a pilot at a regional carrier. I beleive that after the resets start happening this fall, the perception of life at a regional may change. Looking at my airlines contract, I saw it getting progressively harder to justify staying there as the years went on. It was a question of taking a hit now while I had time, or taking the hit when I was boxed in.

The only way the QOL of life at many of the regionals is going to maintain its status quo is if there is a shedding of 76-130 seat flying in the next contract round. Honestly I just do not see it happening. Finally, the majority of the mainline see what that does. They have their progression and stagnation over the last 10 years to prove it.

 

In part, but I'm also putting his remarks into the context of other remarks he has made on this forum: http://www.airlinepilotforums.com/re...ct-2013-a.html

Every pilot retains the right to set their own career goals. While it isn't any of my business what young atp409 desires for his career goals, it is my business when he attempts to rob me of mine for his own benefit. As Oliver Wendell Holmes said, "The right to swing my fist ends where the other man's nose begins."

Regarding turning back the clock on scope and international air travel/globalization of the airlines, it is highly unlikely, IMHO, we'll be able to do so. Even if we could, we should remember the lesson of the auto industry, the UAW and the cost-benefit curve when wages/benefits rose above the level of the cost of automation.

 

Please enlighten us as to what you mean by "selling out themselves". To whom are you referring? Is it selling yourself out to get a better job with more potential than you would have at your current one? I can turn the tables on you and say that "those greedy regional captains" are holding back the potential of everyone EVER that will be hired after them by holding onto their 6 leg/day $125,000/year job just so they won't have to be on reserve again. IOW, your post puzzles me.

And your scab reference is out of line, and just plain wrong.

 

Heyas ACL,

From what I heard, there is some good, and some of the same ole' same ole'.

Council 54 has some GOOD points, but it was lost in the delivery.

Nu

 

I figured it would be a little old and new. Was a little surprised with some of the things. I will leave it at that until it is official.

C54 made good points, and there are so kernels of truth in there, but there is also a lot of crud. The delivery has made their valid points mood. Not just in this communication but probably with any points, valid or not, they try and make at the MEC level.

 

Heyas ACL,

While TSquare may accuse me of being "divisive", all I am doing is telling people is the truth. If people on the south side want to stick their head in the sand and say that it really doesn't exist, then that is totally fine, but they are ignoring the problem at their own risk.

Council 54 is using the angst that really does exist and some that doesn't, and they will continue to poke the sore spots. You can let it fester, or you can address the real problems and let the manufactured problems evaporate under the light of day.

Or not.

Nu