Originally Posted by BATOL (Post 1739461)

Ding ding ding ding! Exactly right. Although "success or failure" must be qualified as to for whom. I think it's probably working out exactly how Delta intended it to.

But to your original post, troll or not. As you'll soon find out, 2 years is an eternity in this industry. By than the regional landscape will certainly look vastly different. Some may consolidate, some may vanish, some may be scooped up/stapled/B-scaled with their mainline partners. I think most of the 60 seat or less fleets will be gone or dwindling. Long story short, spending time on the drama boards this far out trying to divine the future of this or that carrier is a colossal waste of your time. Go watch Mythbusters and drink a beer. You'll have 40 years of airline pilot complaining. Why subject yourself to two more! Just keep your nose clean (no arrests or DUIs) and knock out those hours! Get your Commercial Multi ASAP and apply at Cape Air, Era, Airnet, Iron Air, or any host of places that are hiring guys below ATP mins. And if you're just now starting your private, no way in he77 will you be applying to regionals in two years. 750 hrs/year is more than many of us fly! Unless you have a trust fund, a Seminole, and live in Arizona, it's not likely. That said, best of luck to you and don't let the doomsdayers get you down! (Seriously though, get off the APC crack pipe for now).


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Originally Posted by vilcas (Post 1739412)

Delta doesn't seem to me like a company with no plan. The EtD program was implemented by Delta for filling Endeavor FO seats. The success or failure relies on metrics that Delta will set and then measure. The pilots who post here are not privy to these metrics and are not privy to Delta's plan. Every pilot out there thinks they are an expert when it comes to the airline business. I can assure you this isn't the case. Delta has a long term plan for Endeavor and the EtD program and as such, we must wait much longer to determine its success or failure.

Originally Posted by vilcas (Post 1739473)

Delta needs the type of people hired through the EtD. These candidates fit the Delta standard for a pilot. Why would Delta discard a resource they have already paid for. Most managers don't make a habit of paying for something they don't intend to use unless by doing so they gain in some other way. Despite what some Endeavor pilots think Delta is not making moves to try and aggravate the pilots at Endeavor.

Originally Posted by Mesabah (Post 1739539)

The EtD guys will be stapled to the bottom of the Delta list if 9E folds. The EtD is an individual contract, it has to be honored, not only could you sue for lost wages, you could get punitive damages saying Delta defrauded you.

Originally Posted by 80ktsClamp (Post 1739558)

The EtD requires captain upgrade otherwise they don't have to honor it.

Originally Posted by ShyGuy (Post 1739612)

Put it this way Mesabah, do they give a Delta Air Lines pilot seniority number to the EtDs upon passing their Endeavor interview? That would be a fool-proof way to ensure a Delta seat. But no, you don't get a number. This is just to get Endeavor right seats filled with new pilots. And let's not forget the hundreds of pilots who were hired right before 9/11 and the '08 recession and then never got their job when the airline started hiring again. This was true even though they passed the interview and were in the pool waiting for their class.

Originally Posted by Mesabah (Post 1739636)

There is an interesting situation brewing at Endeavor, the Bridge Agreement requires Delta to hire a specific amount of pilots from 9E regardless of their status in the SSP. That hiring commitment doesn't end though, until the last SSP eligible pilot is offered an SSP interview. For a pilot to be SSP eligible, they have to be a captain. However, even today, 14-07 came out with additional downgrades. Thus, the hiring commitment will never end as long as we are shrinking, or don't grow in size large enough for everyone to upgrade. Thus, when Delta runs out of candidates, they have to hire anyone here who applies, until the last FO on our SSP list upgrades, which is looking like never.

I think Delta thought that they would have an endless string of apps coming in here, because we have the Delta name associated with us. I think, they thought they would go through our seniority list within a few years. However, because of the number of lifers here, and the attrition rate, they are stuck hiring everyone who wants to go.

The only way out of the agreement is to shutdown 9E in the next two years, and interview everyone right then and there. Anyone who doesn't pass the interview is immediately unemployed, and offered severance. The EtD's then get stapled below those guys.