Virgin America
 

Anybody hear anything? I know they've started hiring but no word on pay. Will they last, especially out of SFO??

They cannot even apply for an operating certificate until their business plan gets federal approval. That in light of what happened the last few in DC, may be awhile.

some acft subleased
 

some airbus a320 have just been sub-leased from virgin america to TAM brazil...indicative of what the us govt thinks of R.Branson...When he becomes a us citizen, virgin america may have its certificate....

I interviewed about 3 weeks ago. Great operation.
Pay is $95/hr for an 85 hour guarantee=$96,900 @ 1yr.
$5/hr increase per year for 6 years=$127,500 @ 6yr
They completed FAA tabletop review of Operational Control last month and passed with flying colors.
DOT and FAA certification expected in December. Proving runs planned for mid December and they're shooting for first revenue flights March 1st.
First routes will be SFO-JFK-LAX. Check their website. It's changed recently and there is some good info there. There is a lot of stuff they are being tight lipped about. I think they want to make a big explosion on the scene once everything is together.
Pilot classes are Dec. 4th, 14th and 21st

how do you know that it is a great operation? the pay definately isn't an indication...how about FO pay, where does that sit?

6th year pay is the same as 6th year pay at USAirways and higher than 6th year pay at United.......so pay is in line with current realities.
What I meant by great operation, though, is that it is a dynamic, exciting airline, will offer a great product and will be very successful.

Once airborne, that is ...:D

They still do not have economic authority to be an airline from the DOT. The FAA will not set a time line for certification until such time the DOT issues their OK.

Actually they have de-linked the two processes so that they can run concurrently

What about the all-important work rules??? Is that 85 hour guarantee tops or is there ability to credit more? Min days off? Rigs?

Rigs? What does that mean?

-LAFF

Hey Vegas,

You plan on moving to SFO? I think jumpseating is going to be a little tricky.

Well first of all, the most junior Captain at United is making 128/hr right now plus a 15% retirement fund contribution each month, that is 147/hr in real cash. 95/hr is a joke. Not even Ind Air paid that ****ty. Secondly, 127/hr in 6 years? Do you suppose US Airways and United pay will go up on their next contract? You will be crowing about 127/hr in 6 years and UAL and US Airways will be at 150+. Doesn't sound too good to me, but some guys will work for food.

I totally agree, except Virgin America pilots will be looking for jobs in three years.

Tell you what, vegasd0uche. You're choosing to work for a non-Union company that is undercutting my Union contract. By definition, you're choosing to be a cancer on the industry.

Don't ask for a jumpseat.

Boy i cant wait for a phone call... i sent my resume in, i have 1000 TT 50 ME..cant wait to fly the A320..Ill do i for free if they wanted me too.. :rolleyes:

Hey Greenface,

found a new victim you can try to intimidate with your empty 'refuse the jumpseat' threat?
I would not want to sit in the same cockpit with you if it was the last flight out of Saigon (or Baghdad soon - if you lefties take over the country).
What defunct airline do you work for anyway - so I will never even attempt to fly with you.
Tell me about the time you actually did not take someone on your jumpseat, I don't think you even have the power to do so. Gateagent will overule you anyway you silly union air transportation worker.

Not a record, but the S word will be broke out within one page!

Anyone wanna throw some money on it?

Oh wait, we're all BROKE!

Actually, I've had the pleasure of rejecting B6 jerks a couple times. All you have to do is tell the gate agent when you arrive, "No jumpseats for jetBlue or Virgin America." That's all there is to it.

Oh boy.:rolleyes:


I think VA might have something original to offer in terms of product and the backing of Branson certainly doesn't hurt. The Virgin name is huge around the world. The down side is that management looks shady and I'm not sure about their operation centered in SFO, one of the worst airports when it comes to on time dep and arrivals. Vegasboy the pay seems a little low but certainly not out of the norm, can you shed some light on work rules?

Is that so you don't have to deny them face to face? Pretty weak if that's the case.

VA ops in SFO
 

They have one A320 they have been using around SFO lately,

I've seen it taxi around the airport...

It's generally parked over at Signature.
Yesterday they had it over at the international terminal looked like A12 where KLM usually parks...

Also ground crews have been painting lead in lines from A-taxiway to the D gates at the closed center concourse.

something is in the works...


Cheers
George

Yeah if I was going to deny someone I would tell them why...to their face.

what do you think they will offer that is original besides lower fares because they pay their employees less?

that made me laugh, because the righties have done so well lately...

It was about $75 an hour below the norm for narrow body Captains until lowlife scumbag outfits like jetBlue came along and hired spineless dogs to fly for $129 an hour. Just like they are currently paying EMB Captains (a 100 seat airliner, BTW) $72 an hour. The Legacy wages were forced to come down to match by mangagement's use of the bankruptcy courts.

Non-union outfits like this are the bane of commercial passenger aviation. They initally make a ton of money on Euro subsidized Airbus leases and undercutting Union contracts. When the first 5 years are up, the good deal airplanes get sold off (see recent B6 news) and the "growth" that enticed the original cadre of spineless dorks into the Company stalls. About the 7th year, all they can hope for is a buyout (ala PeoplExpress) before the magician (Branson/Neeleman take your pick) folds up the tent and heads off for his next airline IPO.

Give VX or B6 pilots a ride to work? Don't make me laugh.

What they're going to offer is something along the lines of Albuquerque to Florence using only 1 airline and only having to make a profit for one organization, and no RJ's. So, better (roomier) aircraft, better service (Virgin hallmark) and no code share for international travel, even to a non-gateway European airport.

Sounds like it has potential to me.

Nope. I'll tell them to their face. Have, in fact. It gives me great pleasure, especially if its the last flight of the night to where they're going. I was just correcting the "impression" that my authority over the jumpseat as Captain could be circumvented by a gate agent.

Ironically, about half of the top ten guys in seniority at Virgin America are former Indy Air guys.

EDPM

I say original because I'm assuming they're going to be operating based on the virgin brand, have you ever flown on Virgin Atlantic? Hopefully they can find Virgin approved flight attendants too.:D

We're supposed to let the British start an cheap airline in America and the British won't even allow my airline into Heathrow. That's fair.

I thought the pay sounded good, until someone mentioned that it is CA pay. I thought it was FO pay. I hope this thing doesn't get off the ground.

Then they should know better!

Rigs usually mean "duty rigs". Example= 1 hour of flight pay for every 4 hours on duty. Gives the airline the incentive to use their crews more efficiently. If you fly 5 hours in a duty period, you get paid for 5. if you only fly 2 hours, you still get paid for 4.

Strange, UAL pilots in JFK had the same personality disorder that you suffer from. Their JS coordinater put a pretty good stop to it if I remember correctly.

Maybe when you deny a B6 guy a ride, yours JS will do the same.

Oh yeah, being a professional proabably won't hurt you either.

Just curious, who do you work for by chance? If it's CAL, I would think that you have bigger issues with people in your own house who have dragged the industry down. You wouldn't have to go outside the company to exhibit your charismatically challenged persona.

Most of them are going in as intial cadre check airman. I'm sure their compensation package will be above the advertised rate.

What would you do if you were over 50? Apply to CAL and wait for the crappy 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th year pay to catch up? And that's at YOUR 4th year wide rate.

Most of these guys were maxed out on the CRJ pay scales and made more than a 5 year wide FO at CAL would make. Note, I said CRJ rate. When they went to the Airbus I can bet you they were making just as much, if not more, than a 3rd year CAL narrow CA makes.

So, I'll ask again, if you were over 50 and had to start over again watched your company go down the drain, and were worried about your retirement, what exactly would you do?

Start at the botton of some airline with crappy pay and no insurance for 6 months, or take a job as a CA and a MUCH higher pay rate?

It's OK, you don't really need to answer.

so what's going to happen in 6 years and you don't upgrade to captain right away at virgin and there is even worse fo pay then there is now?

ps explain to me why Velocipede is such a bad guy for not offering these guys rides? he's only trying to protect his flying/job from someone who is trying to undercut his pay. sorry that these guys lost their jobs a indy air but why should he help in the race to the bottom. If these airlines came in with equal pay and out performed his airline I bet he would allow them to catch a ride.

Eric, read my post again. I'm not talking about everybody that goes to work there. I'm talking about the former I-Air guys that are going over as CA's already. They guys that CALCAPT said "should know better", as he put it.

Now read my post again, seriously, read it again because you really had a reading/comprehension problem the first time.

And as far as denying a guy a ride. Don't even go there. Call your JS coordinator. See what he has to say about this practice, and then get back to me, OK?

I like how you have to compare CAL's Fo pay with thier CA pay. Besides a third year CAL pilot can hold CA at a much higher rate. Are you saying these pilots should also cross a picket line because they are older and are used to more money? Starting over sucks, but so does lowering the standard for our industry.

You work at a company that has more than it's share of that type that lowered the standard in our industry. Whats your point? Do you get in their face and tell them that in the crew room? Do you walk up to every JetBlue pilot and tell them that? How about every Frontier, Airtran, or Spirit pilot?

Besides, if you were over 50, like I said, what would you do? Say to yourself "screw my family, kids, house, wife, my CA's seat, and the 6 figure income. I'm going to go to CAL so I can make 30k the first year, and when I'm 55 I might be making what I was when I-Air folded. All because I wanna "hold the line" and not "lower the standard of the industry."

And no, I don't agree with scabbing. In case you haven't noticed yet, these guys haven't crossed a picket line.

you're saying that it is ok for the first few but not the others because they will get check airmen pay? I read your post and it's not that difficult of a read.

as far as the my jumpseat coordinator goes that's funny. My former MEC chairman had us denying gojets for what they were doing. unfortunately he moved on and the new one didn't pass on that info to the new captains. I'm not worried what the JS coordinator would say. why don't you go and ask a cal or southwest pilot about a jumpseat war that happened in the past about how slow cal pilots were flying at one time (late 80's/early 90's)