WMUFLYBOY, from another WMU grad and soon to be furloughed regional fo; STAY PUT! I got the itch and was able to take the next step. The pay sucks, the lifestyle sucks, the flying's cool (nobody can say otherwise). Enjoy the industry leading CFI pay and benefits, get your masters paid for, by the time things pick up you'll have enough time to be competitive for a regional job(maybe corporate if you play your cards right). Best of luck, feel free to pm if you want a straight shooter outlook.

 

I'm sure this topic has been hashed over pretty well, but let me add my two cents. I wouldn't get too carried away making career decisions based on today's projection of the future economic growth. If things were set in stone, we would all be flying based on the projections made in November 2007.

The one fault economic planning has is it is static. We assume all of the assumptions we make today will pan out. As we know, that never happens. The economy, like life, is dynamic. Events we cannot foresee today will play a huge role in airline hiring in the years to come. On September 10, 2001, hiring was to take place for years and years and no one ever considered the possibility of a terrorist attack.

I know most people here prefer the gloom and doom scenario, but what if modest growth returns to the economy by the end of the year. Most, but not all, economists are predicting something similar to that. That would certainly alter hiring. What if many senior pilots decide to end their careers at 62 or 63? That would certainly alter hiring.

Personally, I wouldn't expect too much movement until the first quarter of 2010. Still, there are a few encouraging signs out there. First, merger and aquisistion activity is happening (Republic). Second, Air Tran recalled all of its furloughed pilots. Third, oil, although more expensive than in January, is 50% cheaper than just one year ago. Each of these data points leads me to believe the bottom is in and things will be or already have turned up, however slight that may be.

It's always darkest before dawn and then the sun comes up. I think we reached that point in late February and early March. The morning overcast remains though.

 

"Average 1st year pay will be aprox 1700/month for a 1st year regional at 75 hours at $22.75/ hour. Dont expect more than 75.

So I assume you only make 1100 a month as an instructor (50% increase statement), and being that you work 7 days a week, you make on average $35 a day as an instructor.

Care to rethink your opinion on the extra 50% you will make at a regional?

I am not trying to be mean, but don't be melodramatic. There is nothing more annoying, as a regional pilot, is reading about a CFI who cant wait to fly an RJ so he can make big money, while the regional pilot is barely getting by.

Some might think that the reason why the regional pilot suffers financially is because the CFI wants to fly the RJ to make the "big bucks."




Don't be so quick to judge me. I'm not dying to make "the big bucks" at a regional, I know that won't happen for several years, I don't have SJS, if I did, I would be furloughed from one of the less favorite regionals right now. I opted to finish school, and in doing so I missed the last hiring wave. There is nothing more annoying than when guys at the airlines assume every CFI and up-and-coming pilot out there is absolutely dying to get hired by the first airline they come across just to "fly a jet, because its soooo cool." Don't blame us for a problem that started long before we touched the controls of an airplane.

I know you aren't trying to be mean, I didn't take it that way at all. I don't mean to come off as melodramatic, so please don't think that is the way I am.

As far as pay goes, $35 would be a good day for me. Our pay is less than $15/hr and with things being so slow, I rarely make $35/day. I have not made more than $900 in a month this year so perhaps I should have said closer to a 90-100% pay increase, using the $1700/mo figure? To answer your question, no, I don't wish to rethink my 50% because in most cases that is about accurate given that if/when the hiring resumes, things will likely be better and the airlines will have more block hours to be flown, and hopefully more hours per month for the pilots thus one can make more than minimum guarantee each month. As far as financial planning goes it would be irresponsible to plan for more than the minimum but I would be surprised if an airline actively hired when its pilots were having trouble making the monthly minimum. I may be wrong, as this industry is so bass-ackwards that it may have happened in the past.

At any rate, what do I know? I'm but a lowly CFI.

 

I can. How cool is this?

Take off, after 3 mins @10,000 AP on, the same conversation starts: "so... how long have you been working here?"

Regional flying is probably the least engaging type of flying out there.

 

A basic look at mins would be that Colgan is hiring. The pay is terrible the work rules are terrible and...well the pilot group is great. You know Colgan, do a search and you will know all about the place.

They are advertising 1000TT with 100 ME but there was an email sent out that realistically it is going to be 1500TT 300 ME with two internal recs. Now with those requirements there will probably still be 50+ resumes that will make it in the door for less than probably 10 slots.

Id say for the current time being that is a basic general idea as to what hiring requirements are starting to look like in todays market.

 

You're right, it sucks... In fact nobody in the biz likes it. What was I thinking? Must have blacked out for a minute there...

 

At least the guy was/is a CFI and lived to apply to an airline.... the last two years they were hiring kids with the ink still wet on their commercial tickets, and the IOE Captains were having to play flight instructor to teach these kids everythign they didn't even know that they didn't know.
As bad as it is, at least the folks who've done the CFI time probably know how to fly.... at least a little.

 

TI am basing my figures on second year pay at my company and his company.

 

You were once, not very long ago if you are on 2nd year pay, in this position. Seems a little hypocritical is all.

 

Actually, I'm on 4th year pay but that's not the point. Sure I took every interview I got for experience, but I didn't go to the first company that came knockin. I was hired at places where second year pay was in the twenties, but I didn't want to contribute to de valuing this profession, plus I don't think this job is worth that. If people keep taking these low paying jobs just to "get in" there will eventually be no reason to be "in". If we can't afford to feed our families, what's the point?