reandld

No surprise there. What I like to tell people is that Piedmont pilots are like Navy Seals: efficient, elite, and serve a niche role.

Cicada

The Navy Seals have a consistent stream of trainees coming on line in a well thought out recruitment mechanism.
One could hardly say the same about Piedmont.

Theaveragejoker

I also doubt the Navy Seals give a dozen extra sims.

CADR

I also think the Navy and those in charge appreciate the Seals and give them all the tools and resources to complete their mission. They also probably respect them and don’t use and abuse them since they are not easily replaceable.

Duffman

This is true if you wait for the flow. With a 4-5 year flow, PDT knows how to dangle carrots at the right time to keep you in. When the timeline is 1 yr to finish OE, 2 more years to upgrade, then 2ish years as a CA making close to 6 figures and you know you're going to flow, there isn't a lot of motivation to bust your butt on overnights after 6-leg days to polish your resumes so you can maybe get the call 6 months earlier. But because COVID gave everyone so much time and threw so much doubt in the flow, I think a lot of pilots did the prep and got their apps out. Because the flow time is now highly speculative, I also think we're gonna have a hard time attracting new hires if we wait until everyone else is hiring. I also think COVID made LCCs a lot more attractive because we all saw how well their business models work.

sanicom3205

It's all about how you play the game. I know Piedmont guys who busted their tails on overnights and did everything they could to get out. That 6 months you mention could very well be the difference between a wicked commute or a leisurely drive, furlough or continued employment, career captain vs career FO.... you get where I'm going. When the music stops, there's always that first guy to get kicked to the street, stuck in the right seat, or forced into a 6 hour flight across the country to get in position for short call reserve in LAX. You never know where that line is going to be drawn, but every number betters your odds. Again, it's subjective but in my book the goal was to get through that door as fast as possible. If AA is your goal, there are limited avenues to get there. Flow, military, WO hired outside of the flow are the three best chances in my opinion.

Lahey

Sounds like to me some guys/gals already did that and blasted off to cargo/legacy gigs (FedEx/ups, United on the backside) during the thick of all this. most the ones I hear that are going to put their apps in never do, or never lift a finger beyond line flying after putting their app in. *shrugs* to each their own I guess

Duffman

I completely agree and that was one of the primary reasons I came to PDT in the first place. Plus, it was a guaranteed domicile in PHL or CLT (easiest possible commutes from where I live with the cheapest crashpads), and no reserve. Even through COVID I can count on one hand how many hotels I've ever paid for out of pocket and I've never had a crash pad. What scared me was the music stopped when I was an FO getting min guarantee on the bottom of the payscale, commuting to reserve, in a company known to have a low quality of life, at the beginning of what could've been another Lost Decade. Miraculously, maybe because of CARES, luck, timing, a combination, COVID looks more like a 1-2 year speed bump. I've viewed PDT as a high risk/high reward career path, and for at least a year COVID appeared to be the worst-case scenario you outlined above. My concern now is that we'll be short staffed for years, which leads to "fly now, grieve later," adversarial relationships with management, etc, when it could all be avoided. This adds another dimension to quality of life, especially considering they dock our pay at the drop of a hat, if we don't do whatever is in the company's best interest, no matter how contractually questionable it may be. We can grieve it, but that takes months to resolve and the best we'll do from a grievance is get what we were supposed to be entitled to anyway. Although docking pay isn't technically disciplinary action, it definitely sends that message, which is insulting when you're trying to be a good employee whose basically bartering for things that are already in your contract.

The flow at PDT is/was a fair deal in exchange for the quality of life. You show up here, work hard for 4-5 years, and get a guaranteed job at AA, which has always been my career goal. It's a good deal for AA because they can perpetually staff their regional at <5 year payscale, they get a steady flow of 121 pilots with the ideal career progression, and regardless of resume fodder, anyone who can fly 121 6-leg days for 5 years without issues (considering they can see all your training/disciplinary records) is more of a known quantity than anyone they could hire off the street. But when the flow stopped, PDT's biggest carrot became a much bigger gamble and I think new hires are going to take that heavily into account when they have other options. I think PDT should either start hiring now, when there's less competition, or they're going to have to really sweeten the pot later. Either way they're going to have to pay for new pilots, it's just one avenue is being understaffed with all the associated drama and chaos and the other is a more predictable quality of life.

ArmyRWP2018

Heard 12 new hires per month going forward was the word from daddy AA to Piedmont on Friday. Also heard Crew Planning, not to be confused with Crew Scheduling, was seeing a resignation “a day” as well. That is still a formula for a shrinking Seniority List if both are true….

Argento73

I've heard that PDT will have a new hire class july 19th?