New Hire Time off
 

Alright, this might be a dumb question and I obviously will have to ask the specific airline eventually. I have a few trips planned for this summer (one for my wedding and honeymoon) and Im just wondering if I was to be hired in the next month or so by a regional, how they would treat this situation. I had to plan both trips far before this opportunity came around and it would be a large loss of money as well as very unfortunate if I had to cancel and not go. Anyone have any insight here? Thanks.

I had the same situation 11 years ago. Like you said all depends on the integrity of the individual airlines/interviewers. When they asked me during the interview if I had any questions, I explained the wedding situation and my interviewers just told me to do my best to bid around it and then management would work with me, and when that month came I explained to my base manager what was told me in the interview and she gave me the time off after trying to bid around it. I'd say get it in writing but that might make the interview team sound like you don't trust them and they kick you to the curb :)

Most regional airlines average 10 or 11 days off per month (per their own contract/agreement). As for getting time off, you might be able to try a couple of things: take time off without pay, if you are a line-holder by then (which I highly doubt) you could trip trade with a coworker...ummm...anyone else want to chime in?

Good luck!

At best someone might trade reserve days with you. Being very junior it may be difficult to bid a weekend off reserve line as well. I wouldn't count on vacation for the first year either (and getting it without seniority in your seat during summer isn't easy). If you get caught calling in sick for this, things probably won't go well.

Put off class until after the honeymoon if it's that important.

I had to call in sick for my own, first, wedding in 1994.

Depending on the airline, they might give you days off for your own wedding. The bottom feeders, no way. They will say no, and savor the moment. You are probably SOL on the honeymoon either way.

The trick here is that if you ask for the time off and they say no, you cannot turn around and call in sick...that's a sure way to get fired on probation. You could call in for the wedding, but the honeymoon would be pushing it, they will start to wonder what's up. The problem with calling in sick though is that a wedding is a high-profile event and word might reach the wrong ears. If you call in sick just to stay home and play video games, no one will ever know, but there is a chance that you could get in trouble on something like a wedding. Don't jumpseat or nonrev while out sick...


If you get hired right before the wedding you will not be able to get out of ground school. They might work with you on sim and IOE scheduling. I would probably not worry about until you have a job offer and a class date. Odds are good that they will give you a later class date if you ask, but better disclose your plans at the interview.

Don't cancel your wedding or honeymoon for a regional airline job...that's getting off to a very bad start. If she's not worth saying no to a regional for, she's not worth marrying in the first place.

Comair gives new-hires a couple years off without pay.

That said, your situation is very tough. First, you will not want to be in training when it's time to take a week off for a honeymoon.

I wouldn't even attempt to go home for a weekend wedding unless you purchase a positive-space ticket to guarantee you're back in class Monday morning.

How long is your paid-for honeymoon, and how soon does it fall after your wedding? A couple days for a wedding (after you're done with training) will probably not be an impossible deal, but a two week honeymoon your first year will probably be beyond reach no matter which airline you choose.

If you can't get off for your honeymoon, will you quit the job or skip the honeymoon? A resignation after three months on one job will be a killer at the next interview - "I quit because, going in, I knew I needed those days off but at least they spent ten grand training me first..."

On the other hand, skipping out on an expensive and much anticipated honeymoon will not do much to establish a wonderful marriage either.

I can't recommend waiting 6 months to begin an airline career either.

No matter what you do, starting at a regional with a new wife (or new baby, or new kidney, or whatever) is going to be a huge strain. Your probation year is a tough time to be establishing priorities for the first time. Good luck with your decision.

( Rickair said it sooner - what he said)

Thank you everyone for your responses. I am in a situation where my affiliation with my 141 school bridges me in with with a regional airline and I do not have to interview nor have minimum flight times. I have been instructing for a few years and wouldn't mind continuing to do so, but this is a great opportunity and one where I wouldn't have to job search, ect.

However, because I was not expecting something like this to be an option I planned for other things. As of now, it looks like my class date will be late this month/early next month and the wedding would be late July. I had planned a honeymoon for the 12 days after this, or the first two-ish weeks in August.

I realize that it is a long-shot, but I don't really know how scheduling works or if letting someone know about this far in advance would be able to work around anything at all.

Again, there are other things i could choose to do right now im my life, im young. But Im not sure I can turn down an opportunity like this to jump into the right seat. Thanks for the comments

Also, I am not canceling the wedding/honeymoon.. It just wont happen. I am planning on talking to the recruiter with the airline and if I get a response that looks like Im going to have to change my plans, well then Im just not going to be taking this job.

OR, you could use this as training for your prospective mate. there will be many missed birthdays, holidays, and even anniversaries. Might as well get used to it.

If you can interview later, great.

If the interview is right now, take-it-or-leave-it, go ahead and interview for the experience, and during the interview ask about class flexibility.

If you interview well, and if they need people, maybe they'll put you in a pool for after your honeymoon.

If it's a good company, they will appreciate you wanting to hold off until your personal stuff is squared away. If it's not a good company, no loss.

Just my opinion, of course.

Or training for yourself - when you meet a senior captain with that week off, send him in your place.

The thing is that with this opportunity is one where I would not have to interview to get the job. All I will need to do is turn in my background check info and they will offer me a class date. I wish that I could take a class after all this is over, but I have to accept a date before April 25th or I dropped out of this program. So it's a tough choice.

I also know because of all these new airline hirings, the flight school I went to will be hiring flight instructors soon. If I am offered a job there, it will be much more flexible.

I understand that If I were to ever work for an airline this would be the life.. but im just not sure it's good timing right now. If they will give me a class date that is August, then great but im not sure I see that happening

Although its difficult and you say that now, if you do end up at the same airline but at a later date you could quite possibly regret not taking the earlier date for MANY years, possibly your entire career.

There are pilots on their second major who are furloughed now who missed being furloughed by their first airline by a few weeks. At that same airline had they been hired by their regional (or other) a few months earlier they could have upgraded 2+ years faster and been at the major two years earlier and not only not been furloughed but could have been a Captain there.

A bit dramatic but very true. In a hiring boom the difference between being a top ten FO in base and a 2 year upgrade vs 3 years of reserve and a 4 year upgrade can be as little as three classes.


Take a class if you can get it and if you call in sick over a 5 day reserve stretch it would be up to 7 days off.

Very wise words!

Wheres the honeymoon too? I could buy you out of it if the price were right then you can reschedule with the misses when its convenient for you two! Sooo...wanna make a deal?;)

Ahhhh...I kid, I kid... Seriously though, good luck with THAT predicament. If it were me, I'd let the airline opportunity go for a month (there will be others, just watch) and then deal with it once you get your personal life taken care of. The way things are right now, you are probably gonna get rode hard and put away wet your first year and it WILL suck, for you and your new wife. It is a tough adjustment for most couples/families so you probably wanna make sure you and the wife can get off on the right foot.

I guess in the end you can't count on much in the airline industry, but the ONE THING you can ALWAYS count on in this business is this: If SHE ain't happy, YOU ain't happy! Works for flight attendants as well as wives.:D

PS
If worse comes to worse, if you have paid airline tickets, you should be able to get away with calling in sick and then using your paid tickets to get where you're going. The guys who get fouled up are the ones who try and non-rev/jumpseat when they are supposedly "sick". Whenever you non-rev/jumpseat, your company gets queried (CASS approvals, pass approvals, etc) and most match up the sick calls with the non-rev list.

HAHAHA I hope this was sarcasm. If not, have you ever been with a woman before? Try telling any normal woman that you are canceling her wedding and honeymoon because of some garbage regional job and she will laugh in your face as she packs your bags and tells you to take a hike. This is only a ~25K job if you are here in the US...

Remember this is your wedding. Hopefully you won't have too many of them and it will be one of the few important days in your life. I've only worked at one airline but usually, like others have said, they will tell you to bid around it and then call someone in management if you don't get the time off. If you call the chief pilot, at my airline anyways, and tell him you have to be at your wedding / honeymoon he will work with you to get the time off. You may need to bend over and reshuffle your reserve days and work some long stretches but they are human and will understand. I've had a few things come up, family member's weddings, even minor stuff like family member graduations and they were always accommodating if you got past the regular entry level crew schedulers and talked to the chief pilot or one of the scheduling managers. Bid off the days you need and if you don't get the days you need call the CP and manager of scheduling and get them in the loop. We also can call in unavailable and it counts towards our attendance the same as a sick call and it's more to be used in situations like this. Keep them in the loop and tell them you won't be available on certain dates from the get go and if they fire you I don't think anyone doing the hiring at another airline is going to hold the fact that you went to your wedding against you... If your wedding happens to fall during training tell them and see what they say. I interviewed the week before my wedding and when they called to offer me the job they said that they would put me in a later class so I could go on my honeymoon and have some time to recuperate before I started.

Nice of them...

Take the first class that is offered!

True story: during sim prep for my interview, a military guy said he was going to postpone until after the holidays to spend time with his family. I told him he needed to take the first class, and in fact I called and called until I got bumped up a month.

Unfortunately, this gentlemen is just returning from furlough while I missed it by only one class.

If you want to be a pilot, go for it. Your wife will either be onboard or she won't - trust me, this won't be the first exposure to the downsides of this career. Who knows, maybe she'll understand - which will take loads of stress off you and make you fall deeper in love with this keeper.

that's pretty sweet what 141 school is that?

Unfortunately, with all of the joking and sarcasm, the majority is correct here.

The hardest part is getting your foot in the door. Just because you're hired, doesn't mean you have a job, until 1 minute after your class date start time. Then at least you're on the seniority list.

The Mrs. must be accepting of the sacrifices of being on this job. The opposite is not always the case.

But don't let the doom & gloom get you down. Each has it's benefits at times too! :D

In retrospect, you should have called in sick FOR the wedding! :D

Are you guys serious? Just want to get this clear. You are telling him to cancel his wedding for a regional...

I got married 6 months after I was hired. When I go to my base, I told them I was getting married, and they told me to come back the month prior, and they would take care of my schedule for me. I took the time off without pay and had no issues.

This was in ORD at AE in 2004.

+1 !!!

I can't believe all the people saying the job over the wedding!!! I just hope this guy isn't one of those MAPD guys!? I'd cancel/postpone an interview/job at Mesa for a rectal exam. Or lingerie shopping with my grandmother. Or to have bamboo shoved under my fingernails. Sheesh...y'all need some perspective!

I say again sweetlycool: If SHE ain't happy, YOU ain't happy.

Do not call in SICK for your non-sick occasion.

Do call in 'unavailable for work'.


You won't have any sick time accrued, so its going to be unpaid time off anyway.
Do let the recruiter know you have a long-standing obligation for the summer. Do not accept a class date that will conflict with your dates. It sounds as if you should be done with training prior to your wedding day. Let your Chief Pilot know as soon as you get to your base. If the CP won't work with you to arrange an unpaid leave before the fact, make your best effort to cover your time off - swap off days with reserve days, get coworkers to pick up days, however it works at your company. Then call out as needed.

If you get fired anyway after being upfront with everyone, and doing your best to cover the time you need, then to he11 with 'em. Family comes first. And it won't be a black mark on you at any decent outfit.

Maybe the "skip your wedding crowd" doesn't have a lot of experience with women but the one thing you learn early on is you don't dick around with a woman's wedding. Unless it's her 3rd marriage and you're running down to the courthouse to sign the paper work there aren't many excuses outside of dropping dead that warrant missing it. That's her day and she will hold that against you for the rest of your life if you screw it up for her. Plus it's usually a good time, far better than some garbage regional's indoc. Have fun, get married, go on your honeymoon and enjoy the time with your new bride. Once you start doing the regional dance it seems like the music never ends...

No, I will not be changing anything about the wedding.. but Im also not going to get involved with this job until Im certain im going to be able to take that time off. Hopefully one of the recruiters will give me a call back and be able to give me some good info on what I should be able to expect.

I'd love to be able to take a class date in August, but if they're scrambling to fill dates NOW then will they really have dates in August? Or even care to extend me out that long? Im not really that concerned about taking the first available date to get in quick, or whatever. Really im trying to decide if I should head into the airlines right NOW. I'll have other flying opportunities and I am young, 23, so Im not concerned about this being my only opportunity. It will, however, be my easiest opportunity as I will not have to interview/apply/ect.

I've only know about this opportunity since last week, and had scheduled alot of things for this summer beforehand. I would have to potentially cancel both a 2 week trip to Europe and possibly my honeymoon, totaling over $5000 for this. While it's a great opportunity Im not sure it's good timing, nor the right thing to do at this time of starting a new life and a new family. Too much going on at the same time. Hopefully I will have more information soon, though.

I am also trying to be vauge because this is a public forum and I don't want any schools/companies named. I am from the US though and went to a 4 year 141 university. Thank you again

I feel your pain... I was in a similar situation with a 141 program when I first took the dive. I held off for similar circumstances as well. Continued instructing to ensure my personal life stayed intact. I still got hired after "holding out", but was furloughed less than year later sitting reserve the entire time. Those that got in when I first had the chance were and still are holding lines.

You're in one heck of tough spot. Regionals will always be hiring on a cyclical basis, so timing's everything. It looks like things are looking up at the moment, so now's probably pretty good timing (honestly, who knows...). If things go right, you only get married once...and I can tell you first hand that helping to ensure the rest of your private life is a good one is much more important than any regional job.

As for me, it all worked out. I was able to find a good gig while furloughed, and I'm still young and dumb enough to be accepting recall. I've wanted to be nothing but a pilot my entire life, and my "desk job" has helped me realize the grass isn't always greener on the other side. If you have any questions you'd like to talk about via PM fire away. I'll give you whatever guidance I can, good or bad. Best of luck!

Just don't get married. You will regret it in the long run.

Large 141 school that specializes in aviation. Hmmmmmmm. Oh I know!! It's Emery....... Ok -I digress. But not having to interview and getting hired? Sounds cool. You got plenty of eager beavers to instruct?

I know enough about women and weddings to know 98% are Bridezillas.

I never said skip the wedding. But I would say a church wedding with 300 guests and two weeks in Europe might change to a court house with Mom and Dad and a weekend in Dollywood.

Statistically:
People who are hired first have better careers.
Fifty percent of marriages end in divorce (hopefully not yours).

Everyone entering aviation needs to set priorities and decide which sacrifices he is willing to make. If I take the 747 job I make tonnes of money, but I see the wife 3 days a month. The 737 pays well, and I'm home 15 days. The Chief flight instructor job pays $35k, but it is STRICTLY 9 to 5. Which do I want, which does the wife want, and which do I end up taking? Make sure your decision is one you won't regret.

Joking aside, this IS a good time to talk to the soon-to-be-Mrs. about the realities of this industry. It certainly is as prudent as discussing where you will live and how many kids you want.

I wish you luck.

100% of Regional Airlines provide tears and disappointment by the truckload.

Where you are in 5 years depends 10% on your start date and 90% on which regional you choose, or, as they say in Vegas, luck of the draw.

Thanks for your comments. My plan is to talk to the company and ask about a later class date.. I know they are hiring 200-300 this year, im just not sure they will be holding classes 6 months from now. I know that I have to make sacrifices, but hopefully this company can work with me or I will have to give it up for another opportunity.

Assuming they can train 30ish a month (about normal for most training departments) you should still have a shot at getting a class. That is of course assuming that this oil spike doesn't become a permanent "price adjustment" and send a bunch of us packing. Also, I know you have an "in" at this regional because of your 141 program and don't have to interview or apply and blah blah blah. If it were me, I wouldn't let myself get locked in to one company. Easier may not mean it's the best fit for you. I understand that if you go somewhere else you have to fill out an application and go to an interview and compete with other pilots purely on your own merits and not where you went to school. Boo effing hoo. You may even find out that you're better off NOT going the "easy" route.

A bit of hindsight: I went to a 141 school as well (UND) and back in the day we had pretty solid relationships/bridge programs with 2 well respected regionals, Horizon and ACA. Needless to say, that has not gone well for some involved.

Walk in the interview and demand 50K per year, no more than a 90 probation period, and 2 weeks paid vacay. You'll make your wedding for sure.

But seriously, don't take a job flying a jet that pays half as much as a gas station manager. :eek:

Along this line of thinking, you might be well served by choosing to apply and interview elsewhere, even if you do end up going with Option 1. The experience you gain in the interviews may serve you well later on when it comes time to move on to the next step in your career.

Well it seems like which airline here makes a big difference. Pinnacle is the one offering the program and it seems like they are well respected from what I have read a few places on the forums.



... I have also seen things like this a few times and I am aware of the horrible pay and schedule. However, I also know that I'll need to start somewhere and airlines are just not going to pay more than $20k a year for a 650TT 60Multi 0Turbine guy like myself with not previous airline experience. I understand that and it's ok. Gotta "play the game" like has been said.

Where is Emery? You talking about the band?!?


Also, if you meant Embry-Riddle, that's actually a 142 school. However, I digress, continue with your bashing! :rolleyes:

or death. :)