I was chatting with the very bottom guy on the active list right now and he cant wait for the hiring to resume. He is hitting the corners for the system now; SJU ATR, disp LAX EMB but later was told it was a typo and it really going to JFK EMB. Crazzzyy....

 

Anything that gets a person out of SJU ATR has got to be a blessing from God (unless of course they are a Puerto Rican and want to be ther). A lot of people have been getting bounced around like ping pong balls!

 

I know a few people from my RJ course that were suppose to start on the 26th haven't been flying since so that takes a few people out of the pool. I was talking to a few friends at eagle, he made it sound like I would get stuck in SJU or florida. Not too excited if that does happen. I'm still wondering if hiring is going to happen or not to begin with and who is going to get the calls first.

I'm not planning on anything with Eagle really, I'll just be doing something other than flight instructiing next winter. After getting burned once I don't like thinking of Eagle as in my plan till they call saying we're sending you down to dallas for training.

 

yeah I know a handful from the RJ course that have already gone other places, I'm not relying on eagle but it would be nice to get to the next step.

 

Yeah, you don't want to end up in SJU on the ATR. It may sound like a great place, but its crowded, expensive and dirty and it really tough. If you speak fluent Spanish and you enjoy the 3rd world country type setting, then it can be paradise. I, and a big number of the people I know that got sent down there, hated it.

MIA isn't terrible - if you don't mind Miami. The flying there is pretty good.

DFW isn't bad on the ATR either.

I figure that when they start hiring again you won't be able to pick your domicile. I think that program is over with. They were struggling to find people to fly the ATR when I hired on - and I don't think they're going to let that happen again.

 

[quote=Pontius Pilot;554658]Yeah, you don't want to end up in SJU on the ATR. It may sound like a great place, but its crowded, expensive and dirty and it really tough. If you speak fluent Spanish and you enjoy the 3rd world country type setting, then it can be paradise. I, and a big number of the people I know that got sent down there, hated it.

MIA isn't terrible - if you don't mind Miami. The flying there is pretty good.
quote]

Which routes do they fly out of Miami? Is is mostly to the bahamas and around Florida?

 

Sounds like NY or MIA.

 

At first I wanted to go anywhere but SJ. Now that I have taken some time to think about it I think I might like to go to SJ and fly the ATR. Here are my reasons tell me what you think. 1. Probably have the best chance at paying off my student loans and surviving at the same time on first yr FO pay (compared to ORD, MIA, LAX, JFK, ect.) 2. The weather would be pretty awesome, 82deg average for the year, low near 70 during the winter. 3. If I absoulutely hated it I could hopefully bid to get on the ERJ or CRJ somewhere else after a year and second year FO pay wouldn't be that bad (compared to first years). 4. I actually like flying so the ATR would be the best for me. 5. I need to work on my spanish, haha.

 

if you go to SJU and don't commute you might live a lonely life without any family or friends. if you commute you will find out how much commuting sucks.

you won't pay off your students loans easily on FO pay no matter where you are.

you do get a lot of good experience flying in the northeast. i don't think there is anything else like it. flying a prop is good experience too, i can't discredit that.

from what i have heard it's a pretty crack operation down there but if you can make the best of it you won't mind any other base.

if you come to JFK you get really good at jamacian.

 

1. Cost of living there is expensive! Almost ridiculously so. Food is terribly high, so high I almost went into shock at the grocery store there. Crash pads are going to run you $400 or more - a bit more than you can usually find them around the other Eagle domiciles.

2. Can't argue with the weather. It is beautiful, gorgeous - but you won't get much instrument time. What clouds there are we avoid like the plague because they are brutal bumpy little buggers. Weather is good until Hurricane blow through, which is kind of neat too. You will sweat your butt off down there. AC is rare because electricity is so expensive (5 times the continental US rate or more). My crash pad was sweltering at night. There is something to be said for being able to eat outside in January, but the novelty can wear off.

3. If you hate it that year will seem like an eternity. I met a few people that had the same thoughts and they were miserable and trying everything to get out of there. If you hate it the job becomes miserable and you'll make everyone else miserable. Somehow those guys down there can sense a guy who's sick of being there (I guess they get exposed to it a lot).

4. The ATR is a great flying plane, there is no doubt about that. It takes a pilot to fly it and automation is at a minimum. So you get stick and rudder skills. You'll be slapping that thing down on tiny runways in less than ideal conditions. It can be exhilarating. Its a pilot's plane. I don't regret choosing th aircraft. Its an excellent, well built, bullet proof airplane. It has some maintenance problems here and there, but it seldom lets you down.

5. Puerto Ricans are the fastest Spanish speaking people on the planet and they speak a different brand than most people are taught in school. Its a bit more proper than what you might hear in Mexico. Its hard to figure out what's going on at the speed they throw it at you. You get the hang of it. A lot of people are shy to practice their English, but many of them had to take it in High School so they know it.

Before you were to make a decision I have a recommendation for you. Fly down there and stay for a couple of days and check it out. You may like it, you may hate it. People can go either way. I've met people who just meld into it and will probably never leave...and then there are the guys who will kill you just to move up seniority and get out of there! San Juan is a rough and tumble city and its definitely not what many people expect. That being said, I didn't hate it. I hated commuting. Had my wife been there with me it would've been great. You really just have to go and see it for yourself.

Hopefully I've been as objective as possible about it.