Commute driving vs flying
 

I'm looking at commuting from FLO to CLT. There are typically 3-4 flights a day from FLO-CLT. It is about 2.5 hour drive(but would have to leave probably 3.5-4 hours prior to show time to account for the possibility of traffic).

The flights are operated by Piedmont with dash 8's currently although they will soon be getting rid of those before I actually start my regional career. After that I'm assuming they will be serviced by 145's and some CRJ's judging by what I can see in the future for booking options.

Those who have experience commuting care to offer insight as to what is probably the more stress free route for getting to work?

Driving without question.

A reasonable drive once a week beats trying to get on standby, with at least two flights that get in before sign in time. Then when you’re delayed getting home and miss all the flights Home, you’ll regret not driving. The only benefit saved flying is wear and tear on your vehicle and gas costs.

Drive.

End of thread.

Surprised to hear this, but super ok with it! Is a 2.5 hour drive not uncommon in the regional/airline world?

Not at all.

Up to four hours is common if done once a week.
I used to drive RDU-ORF and couldn’t have been happier. Several friends of mine used to drive RDU-CLT.
Always choose driving. Removes all stress. You get to go home EVERY time you land. Never miss a commute. No worrying all day long about weather, delays, or possible maintenance.

If in doubt, drive.

But it's situational.

Example, SOCAL to PHX or LAS in entirely driveable, but it's long 4-6 hours. There are numerous flights, all day, early, and late and multiple airlines. So flying would make the most sense, with a possible drive if there were wx or flow issues or it was a big holiday travel day.

If you're looking at two legs, then a drive of 4+ hours would likely be worth it, but you'd have to bid stuff with easy first and last days so as not to crash an airplane or car due to fatigue.

Drive.

As said by Rick, if there’s like 20 flights a day between the cities then flying might be worth it. But there will be the times you wish you just drove regardless.

I drive 2 hours (vs 15 minutes) to get to an airport with 18 flights/day to my base instead of 2. I'm also one of the guys on here that doesn't feel like commuting is the end of the world.

Drive.

I drive 4 hours. I have plenty of commute options from my home airport and I do fly on occasion, but I enjoy driving. Towards the end of a trip I look forward to the drive home. Nothing better than grabbing a giant cup of coffee, throwing on comfortable clothes, good music, and not stressing about whether I'll make it home or not.