PDT is definately not a crap regional (and I'm not sure that you were saying that or not), and we're a wholly owned subsidiary of mainline, so we're definately not undercutting anyone, but are being undercut ourselves by contract carriers. our first year pay is great and we have a good labor contract, great pilot group, and fly some bad-@ss airplanes. I would agree though that the upgrade times are so long that it is effecting our recruiting, which is leading to reduced minimums, and this gives the illusion that we;re a crap regional because of our low minimums...but if you do your homework, you'll find that PDT was actually THE place to be a while back, and would be an awesome place to work now if we had an upgrade...

come on over. it's a fun job and a fun airplane. just be ready for the training...it'll be a gamble with the kind of time you have I think, becuase the Dash can be a handful, and the training is intense; but I guess people with your times are making it through, so I'd say go for it

 

i think it is something that i need to seriously think about. i am worried about my knowledge as it probably isnt up to the standard it should be. but at the same time the pilots getting hired at PDT with low time are/were probably in the same boat. i think its just a matter of studying really hard for the interview and training. thanks for all ur guys help, any other suggestions are greatly appreciated....

 

Certainly was ... so was ALG, PCA, Pocono, Ransom ... and many others !

Its a never ending cycle of lowering the bar ...

 

My take on this hiring spree is that "crappy" reginals are looking for warm bodies to fill empty right seats (because everybody is jumping ship), while good regionals are looking for Captains.
The crappie outfits know the 250/50 folks will bail as soon as they get the so called 121 experience. I heard of a guy that had to rent a c152 to build PIC because he didn't have enough to upgrade. Is that good captain material?
Sharkair, you can't tell me that some Mesa gear swinger is going to get hired over somone with a CFII/MEI and plenty of PIC at a "good" regional.
No offense. If thats the case, then we have hit bottom.

It will be interesting a few years down the road to see if the jumpship method is really shorter to a "good" Major or Frac.

 

If you live in PHL then Piedmont or AWAC are your two best choices.

I can't make a judgement between the two. The Piedmont folks we run across seem like professionals and just get about their business. Rarely much drama. Some other airlines have drama on the frequency. Not Piedmont. That means to me that they select good people and train them well.

But if I were you in PHL I would go for AWAC or Piedmont.

 

I didn't say (or imply) anything about PDT, it was a general statement. Also since you fly turboprops you're not undercutting anyone in any event.

 

i guess i dont want to be undercutting anything, i just want to pay the bills. in the end, it all comes down to financials. if that means flying turboprops instead of jets, thats fine with me. at least ill be doing what i love. im just worried about washing out and how bad that will affect my ability to get another job....

 

I'm in the sims at Pinnacle right now. I interviewed with about 1000tt after instructing a year. It was great experience, fun, and paid better (where I worked) than starting FO. The downside -- seniority is everything.

I'd say study for and take the ATP written. Get Everything Explained for the Professional Pilot by Richie Lengel. Apply wherever you're interested and keep flying as much as you can.

Good luck, study hard, and get your CFI unless they hire you without it.

 

I am in the same position as WMUFLYBOY with about the same amount of time. I am definitely getting the regional "get there itis". Im almost done with my CFI though and I'm graduating from college this December. PDT seems like a good company to me as well. I also feel the same way about flying the TPs first rather than the RJ's first, ( fastest thing I've flown is the Seminole). Here is a question, with my time being so low, would it be wise to go somewhere where I can fly a TP first, or does it not even matter? I do plan on doing some instructing....or at least I think so.....

 

Yes, I can. I can, and I am.

That said, nobody really needs to make that decision anymore. If they're both qualified, they'll both get the job.