nicks748

Anybody with any experience flying for any companies in Hawaii? I've kinda been thinking of perhaps going to GO or GO express, any opinions about them? Any suggestions on a good company out there? Living expense is not a factor, my family lives there so I would just move in with them again .

bizzum

Go is part of Mesa....do a search on them here and find out if you don't know about them. If you want to fly in HI....try Island Air. Go Express? you mean sit right seat in a Caravan? Not worth it.

cbire880

Friends don't let friends fly for Mesa.

nicks748

yeah, I know GO is a part of mesa.....but i wasnt sure if they treat GO pilots the same as mesa, my guess is they do. Right seat in a grand caravan for how long? Has anybody worked for mokulele airlines?

locomoco

Flying anything with go! or Mesa painted on the side is a bad deal if you are trying to make a career in the Islands; they won't last long-term, and you'll pretty much ostracize yourself from the rest of the Hawaiian aviation community and be SOL when go! tanks. Avoid them. Good luck.

stickwiggler

Double bad decision.

Go! is an alter ego designed to bust pilot groups and will hurt your career.

On living in Hawaii..

I mean no offense to "locals" so please no hate mail....

Living in Hawaii was an awful experience for me.

1. Cost. I lived in a ghetto dump and paid 1,000 a month literally inches from the highway.
2. The people.
A. racism is alive and well. the whole howlie thing gets really old, especially when most of them don't even know what the word means. (for the record it is a contraction of two Hawaiian words meaning "absence of life" or "without breath". i.e. you look dead- it's a pail skin reference.

2. Also, the culture, again, no offense, and I won't debate any one from Hawaii on this, we are all entitled to our opinion.... but the culture is very different. They don't seem to place a great deal of value on education. Their schools are pathetic, roofs literally cave in on kids heads. I know, extreme example, but true. The "island time" thing (which is a reference to everything moves at a slower pace vs. the hectic life of the mainland) has some merit, but in the end is a detriment to the people of Hawaii.

3. local behavior towards the island. You will hear constantly how the white man destroyed their island paradise. Much of it is true. But the more recent problem is the respect the "local" people show towards the island. the younger generation their trashes the island. it's not the howlies that disrespect the place by trashing it. This is not just the opinion of one sour mainlander, but a view shared by many of the older (50+) locals I am still friends with there.

4. Crime. They have a huge ICE (something to do with crystal meth) problem there. My car literally was broken into a dozen times in 1 year.

Finally, coruption. Hawaiian politicians could make a Louisiana Governor blush.


My apologies to the Hawaiian pilots on here, I'm sure that every person on here is smart, caring, and a good person. These are the observations (which it saddens me to report, because I moved to Hawaii with the best of intentions and the most open mind) of one person, and I think that anyone who is considering going there should be armed with as many experiences as possible.

Sincerely,

Stick

Mr Spooner

I lived in Oahu for 8 months and although the island is beautiful, it is vey dirty and poor once you leave Honolulu. As silly as it sounds, watch "Dog the Bounty Hunter," and you will see what Hawaii looks like outside the glitter of touristville.

And the Howlie thing is crazy, you are just a howlie to them "bra."

Spending $6 on a gallon of milk and $4 on a head of lettuce is bad as well.

Aloha

C17MooseDriver

Flying for Go is a career ender if you want to continue to fly in HI. No one in Aloha, or Hawaiian (when they start hiring later this year) will hire you.

Not sure what reception you'll get from the Majors on the mainland, but I would try and consider your longterm outlook. Try Island Air.

8Lpearlchannel

I would definitely stay away from go! (Mesa Airlines) and go! Express (Mokulele Airlines). They will soon be on their way out of the Hawaiian Islands. Mokulele was actually started by a native Hawaiian woman but she later sold her company to a white guy and he eventually got in bed with Ornstein.

I had a friend who went to fly for go! (Mesa). He was hired at a job fair in Honolulu and told he'd have no problems getting HNL as his domicile. But in reality, he was lied to. He first got bounced around throughout Mesa's route network. I believe he was based in CLT, ORD, and PHX before he actually made it to HNL. He quit less than a year after being hired. He is now flying for Air Med in Hawaii.

On the word "Haole" (hah-oh-leh). It means "without breath". Native Hawaiians used to kiss eachother by rubbing noses and breathing in. Like sniffing each other. White westerners (Captain Cook's arrival) didn't do this breathing greeting so they dubbed them "without breath".

The guy who started this thread said he has family there. I am sure he knows what he is getting into. I am from the Big Island, currently flight instructing on the mainland looking for my next career sometime next year. I am hoping to get to a mainland regional to build some time a few years and either make it to Island Air, Aloha Airlines, or Hawaiian Airlines so I can go home.

Aloha has been hiring this year. They even took a bunch of Mesa guys. Hawaiian has been slowly recalling their furloughees. They most recently posted a recall for 13 Boeing 767 FOs.

Hawaiian has been historically the hardest airline to get into. You need to really have connections there. IIRC, you need 2 letters of recommendation from their current line pilots just to get an interview.

Good luck.

cl601pilot

There's always the option of becoming an oiler on the beach.