I hope you realize that involves zero skill and all 100% timing and luck. You were fortunate to start at a regional right when regionals were expanding like gangbusters while legacies were furloughing or already had thousands furloughed post 9/11. Anyone hired at the average regional in 2002-2004 was either a direct entry Captain or was FO for 6 months to 2 years tops. From the timeline you wrote, it seems you spent 3yrs 4 mos and got outta there with plenty of TPIC for Delta. I spent 4.5 yrs and not a single drop of TPIC and yet it was the exact same employer as yours. That's the difference starting 4 years later makes.

You are correct the cycle shifts. If I had to give advice on a regional today there is only one: Compass.

 

So, what exactly has been said that is disingenuous? Everyone that seems to be arguing against the prospect of a sub 2-year upgrade at mesa keeps using the example of 'the last decade'. NEWSFLASH: right before the beginning of the last decade was 9/11. After that was the change in retirement age which SIGNIFICANTLY reduced mainline hiring due to lack of mandated retirements. Then the industry shrank due to the 2008 recession and subsequent slow growth. I think it's fair to say that the last 13 years has been riddled with 'extenuating circumstances' that have nothing to do with individual company management.

Fast forward to this year: the industry is growing again, companies are recalling furloughs, FAR 117 is coming, and people are starting to turn 65. As you can tell, the current times are not respective of the last 13 years; so anyone that pays very much attention wouldn't use that as a valid reference to say that regional flying can't be used to get to the mainline.

In respect to Mesa: the company is projected to nearly double in size, adding ~20 crj 900's this year, 30 e175s with the possibility of more. No aircraft are being retired as is the case with other outfits, and Mesa continues to outperform others on an operational cost basis.

So why exactly is everyone so butthurt? I just don't see the confusion. Hating on someone for accepting a job is stupid. If you lost your job, I'm sure that you would be likely to accept the first do-able position you could find. The truth is that to a new hire, most regionals are the same. The pay is crap, the work is hard. People are going to choose the company the provides whatever is important to them (QOL, bases, aircraft, prospective upgrade time); that's all there is to it. Crying about how we aren't compensated in line with our skill level isn't going to scare away CFI's that beg/borrow/steal to even make $16,000 per year flying a beat 172 in a lot of cases.

The fact is that Mesa obviously isn't having much trouble filling classes. I'm not sure where people get the idea that there's a shortage of people with ATP mins and SJS. When is the last time you visited a flight school? Sure, working for ANY regional isn't putting 6 figures in your pocket right away, but we're living the dream guys. If you don't think so, then why didn't you take a desk job?

 

Don't know about you but my dream wasn't to fly at a regional for 10 years.

80kts in every thread you pop in spouting your success story. I don't know how useful it is for the guy who won the lottery to tell everyone else to buy lottery tickets. Just because you hit the jackpot doesn't mean the majority of us will. I'm happy for your success, I really am. I just wish I didn't have to hear about it every day.

I do agree though, Eagle is not a great place to work. When I was applying to regionals only 2 had a LAX base and I applied to both. I was hired at Eagle first and Skywest called during ground school. I made a decision to stay at Eagle, was it a bad decision? In retrospect absolutely. If only we could change the past, of course then I wouldn't be a pilot at all.

 

Only your last line grasped the point of my post. And if you think it is zero skill... Well, Virgin America.

 

So for the current Mesa guys: How many days off is the average junior lineholder getting?

 

Oh you're at Eagle. That explains the butthurt. Upgrade so far away no wonder you use the word "magical". I'm in the same position at XJT CRJ side. A Mesa or Compass guy hired today will probably upgrade before us.

 

Our generation had the extenuating circumstances of the economy collapsing and age 65. A regional pilot hired today will be hired into a similar environment as 80kts. Like an investor that researches stocks before buying, a prospective regional pilot can set himself up for rapid advancement just by researching the industry. Nothing in life is guaranteed, but those that are successful are the ones who stacked the odds in their favor.

Going to Compass, Mesa will stack the odds in your favor much better than going Eagle, XJT or Skywest. Small, growing regionals are the way to go.

Bzzt for some odd reason wants new hires to choose companies like Eagle and subject themselves to 5 years of quality 40k FO pay "for the good of the industry" rather than go to Mesa and earn 65k+ by your 3rd year while build quality TPIC.

The crazy stuff people come up with while waiting in the endless line for upgrade

 

I'm not saying that people should do it for the good of the industry, I'm saying you should do it because building PIC in this day and age is pointless. There are no stepping stones and you will be at a regional for an extended period of time whether you have 1000 PIC or 4000 SIC, etc. Counseling people to only look at upgrade times so they can "get to a major quicker" is misleading and very poor advice.

 

Should I stay or should I go.......

I met a Mesa crew in the hotel van after my C5 interview back in July. He dropped some rumors about the upcoming 175s, and in hindsight I wish I had believed him.

I got an email from Mesa HR for the "Interview," then deleted it. Wish I still had it.

Is the current hiring just for 117 or are the first 9 new 900s already on property?

 

You're still looking at the past 5 years as the norm. Those hired today will not face the same stagnation we did.

Getting to a major quicker is not the only benefit of quick upgrade. The 65k+ pay is a huge benefit. The fact that you get to fly with your favorite Captain every trip is a huge benefit. I don't know about you, but I'd much rather be 2nd or 3rd year Captain at Compass or Mesa than 4 or 5 year FO at XJT, SKYW, or Eagle.