Thanks all for answers on other threads! I have a few specifics for anyone with intimate knowledge of SKW ORD flying.....

1...On reserve what are your minimum number of days off?
2...What are your reserve response times?
3...Do you typically fly on all of your reserve days? If not, how many reserve days per month are spent doing nothing? ( I know thats a broad question )
4...Is open time generally available on a regular basis?
5...What kind of upgrade time are you looking at? ( CRJ to CRJ ).
6...Anyone care to share a typical year 1 F/O salary? I can multiply 75 x 22 as well as the next guy....but whats realistic?
7...How confident are you on UAL's Express agreement continuing?

Thanks in advance everyone who cares to respond. You are helping me make a big decision!

 

1. 11 days off in 31-day months, 10 off in others.
2. 2 hours.
3. I haven't been on reserve in ORD (yay!), but some reserve captains I've flown with say they've been lucky to fly 10 hours a month lately. Some fly more, though.
4. Yes, because people like me drop a lot of trips.
5. Right now the most junior RJ CA has been here about 23 months. Barring any new growth, I'd expect that time to go up.
6. 75 x 22 is probably about right.
7. I'm not really confident in anything right now. I'd like to think that of the regionals, SkyWest is in a pretty good position, but who knows right now. I just try to take it one day at a time.

 

Regarding #7...

Sounds like you really want to live in ORD. In the regional world it is risky and unrealistic to plan on a "guaranteed" domicile for any extended time period. If you're just looking at a few years at a regional, OK you might get lucky. But if you're thinking career, the odds aren't good.

Instead, it is safer to select an employer with a significant presence in your desired geographic area...that way you have less chance of getting stuck with a transcon commute if your company closes your base.

SKW is pretty stable, as far regionals go, but RAH has way more eastern flying.

Assume that Midwest will get merged or liquidated, so MKE is not a long-term option.

 

1...12 days off now I believe....I've been off reserve since 10/07, so not TOTALLY sure here.
2...reserve response time is now 2 hours for every domicile. One way to milk this one by a little bit...you have 10 minutes to call crew support back in case you miss the phone call. upon calling them back, the 2 hour clock starts (so i'm told).
3...Do you typically fly on all of your reserve days? Right now, since we are really fat on the CRJ, it's been tough to break guarantee, so you may be sitting around a bit. not sure about the EMB though.
4...Is open time generally available on a regular basis? usually there's stuff open, and you CAN pick stuff up from other domiciles (though you have to get to that domicile on your own accord).
5...What kind of upgrade time are you looking at? ( CRJ to CRJ ). not sure about this one, age 65 + the recent industry crash have brought things to a screeching halt, probably up to 2 to 3 years by now (no idea)
6...Anyone care to share a typical year 1 F/O salary? I can multiply 75 x 22 as well as the next guy....but whats realistic? all depends on how much you work....ranging from 85 to 100 hours/month, upper 20s is pretty attainable
7...How confident are you on UAL's Express agreement continuing? we have a long standing relationship with United, and are in good standing with them. i don't see any danger in regards to our agreement as a whole, but flying may be reduced due to the current industry downturn. we are the largest UAX carrier by a rather big margin (1100 out of 1800 total daily UAX flights)....we do all of UAX's LAX and SFO flying, the lion's share of DEN, and a pretty large hunk of ORD's.

again, i know the major/regional relationship can change like flicking a light switch, but UAL has been giving us flying that MAG hasn't been unable to do, so UAL seems to be pleased with us.

 

I'm a reserve at ORD.... flown 3 maybe 4 times in the last 8/9 weeks. I had a 7 week stretch of nothing, not even ready reserve at the airport which is never any fun anyway. I only know 1 guy who has been called on RR and only 1 who has been released early from RR.

 

one possibility, in case you are not being called while on reserve, is picking up local trips on your days off, if you don't mind working on a day off, but the way reserve is right now, seems like plenty of days off. i did that quite a bit. the only catch is you have to call crew support to pick a trip up (as skedplus+ isn't open to people on reserve).

not the best option, but still works sort of so you can keep flying, esp. as a new hire, as you want to keep sharp in the airplane.

 

Thanks for the responses. Yea, ORD is where I want to be since I live 5 miles from the airport. I've been doing the airline thing for a long time...including 4 years at Great lakes many moons ago when we were the biggest UAX carrier at ORD. I know-and worry- about UAL's revolving door history with its Xpress carriers which is why I am interested in what you all know about the current relationship. I am a victim of a recent bankruptcy and understand the ins and outs of this whole business. Just trying to sort out where I want to hang my hat. I'd like a long term gig instead of temporary gap-fillers. Size of the airplane matters not to me ( flown big birds all over the globe ). Stability and quality of life are what is important now. I can get through a couple years of the low pay ( just for a laugh...I made about ten grand at GLA for 2 years ) if I can reasonably count on ORD...thats why I appreciate everyone's feedback! I am sitting in a groundschool right now and anticipate a "come to class" call from SKW before too long and want to make a good decision. Everyones responses are helpful and appreciated.....

 

Both incorrect. Reserve is still 10 days off in a 30 day month, and 11 days off in a 31 day month. Also, the 2 hour clock starts when crew support first attempts to contact you, not when you contact them.

 

I have about 800 people beneath me and I'm guessing on a 4 year upgrade for myself.

 

Yes, I think upgrade times will average around 3-4 years on the RJ and 1.5-2 years on the EMB. The huge growth spurt is over and now it’s all about attrition but we have one of the lowest attrition rates in the industry (currently less than 10 per month and I haven’t moved up at all in the last 3 weeks) upgrades will stay well beyond the 2 year mark (RJ) they were at last year.