Awac
 

chances of PHL as a base as a new hire?

pretty good chance..or you might get something else but be able to bid into PHL fairly quickly

I second 'who', we are hiring mode right now, and I feel confident you would be able to hold within a realignment or two

I always thought PHL was a senior base...

Couple quick questions if I may intervene/hijack....

How junior/senior is LGA? And I haven't been able to find any info about a commuter clause at AWAC, is there any protection for commuters? Thanks.

I think LGA is junior for FOs on reserve, but I am not sure about line holders. We do have a commuter policy, you have to give yourself two shots to get to base. First shot needs to get you there by 2 hours before your show time, second shot a half hour before your show time. You do not have to commute on us or mainline for the clause. Hope that helps :)

Good deal, thanks!

It is also worth noting that even though a commuter clause is in effect, it is best policy for pilots on probation to not miss their commutes. You just don't want to talk to anyone in scheduling (i.e. management) any more than you have to. Yes, we have protection, but it's also better not to need to use it very often during your first year on the line.

As for junior and senior bases, that seems be in flux. ORF is growing and DCA is shrinking. As to where you might go as a new hire? ORF is a pretty good guess. But as long as AWAC keeps hiring there are frequent vacancies and people can change around pretty easily.

A new pilot could probably get PHL pretty easily but would also probably be on RSV longer. Most people go for getting a line earlier rather than later even if it means going to a less desirable domicile.

any new word on contracts for AWAC?

I'm a recent new hire at awac. Expect ORF reserve your first week or two of training. That's what I and 95% of the new hires are getting right off the bat. I was awarded LGA just last week, put I'm hoping and expecting PHL will open up for me in the next few weeks.

So expect ORF as your first bid, but there's a fairly good chance you could get PHL before you start IOE.

The pilot at the bottom of the RDU line-holder list is an 11/2007 hire.

The pilot at the top of the LGA reserve list is an 11/2007 hire.

Contracts for flying for another airline?

We have a contract for flying up to 70 CRJ-200s for US Airways. That expires in less than 5 years if I'm not mistaken.

There are no other contracts with anyone else and anytime the company has submitted a bid they have lost and blamed the loss of the bid on pilot costs. This has been going on since I have been at AWAC.

There is no evidence that there will be any new contracts at Air Wisconsin.

How long from app submittal to phone call usually?

couple years.... I've had my app in there since november and haven't heard anything...

Hit or miss really. Mine was all of a day in conjunction with having someone walk in a resume. Also I'll be the new bottom line holder in RDU come around June-ish from what I recall on the last alignment. I have been off OE for a week and hold a line in ORF come April. Best of luck to ya.

What is AWAC tell you all about the future here? Welcome to AWAC were here till 2015 (maybe)?

I may be wrong but didn't they help bail US Airways out and provide exit financing? I would find it hard to belive they would leave them high and dry. Also don't they have a seat on trhe board. Can someone chime in with knowledge on this?

They sold all rights to the board seat in 2007/2008. Sold the stock for 400 million plus. AWAC has no rights execpt for what is in the Jet Services Agreement with Airways. Which is confidential.

They did bail them out.. Agreed but that was 6 yrs ago too.

Yeah... because airline management have such a great track record of good moral and ethical standards.

is there a contact person there in HR?

Yup. Douchebag McGee. 1-800-jnr-mann.

Has anyone had a phone interview with AWAC that was not immediately invited to the interview but invited later on?

After THREE months, they finally gave me a phone interview and then said she'd be making decisions in a couple days. I know this is a great company but I'm getting pretty discouraged with this hiring process.

So, has anyone else had a similar experience with a positive outcome?

At least you got a phone call... I've been waiting forever and haven't gotten anything from them... if their mins are all the way down to 800... they should be jumping on a previous 121 guy...

Well to be fair, I did have someone walk in my resume. Then it took THREE more weeks to get called.

I've heard a RUMOR that they might be discriminating against high time guys. I'm at 3500 tt... They don't want to have to break any bad habits? It's probably best that I just keep my opinion on that practice to myself.

It's all the more confusing to hear that rumor and then read that they want previous airline experience and turbine time.

Well best of luck to you! If you hear anything, let me know!

Not really a rumor, more of a fact at the moment. They had a big crop of high timers come through that felt like AWAC should just be happy that they were willing to be there. They put forth little to no effort in training and washed out. Ever since then, they've decided to go for people that will be excited to be there and give a good effort in training. So far it seems to be working for them. Obviously it isn't fair to lump all high timers into that same category, but that's just the way it goes sometimes.

Thing is I'm a low-time pilot with a type rating and previous 121... I'm the best of both worlds... ;)

That's really a bad thing to hear. Those of us that stuck out the last pilot recession and didn't seek refuge in other more secure careers are now being punished.

Well maybe they'll come to their senses and I'll hear something. Perhaps it's all a test and if I'm still excited to get a call after waiting three months, I'll stick it out through training.

Come to their senses?? They were washing out a minimum 25% of the previous 121 and high time guys in the sim. That's just bad business practice to continue to hire people that aren't excited to be here. The guys with 1500-2000 hours, generally from flight instruction and 135 seem to fit the training profile the best. Maybe you should come to your senses and not call out a company you are TRYING to work for.

BTW, the company (mostly middle management) blows, but generally the training dept is top notch.

On that note, management spends quite a bit of time on these boards apparently. I've heard of an instance where it bit a new hire and he was let go.

I got a first phone call from AWAC months ago, then probably after a week after the initial phone call, I got a call to interview. The interview was 4 days out, so it wasn't a lot of prep time for me. The week after the interview, I got the "Thank you for interviewing, but..." e-mail. Both the HR woman and pilot team that interviewed me were very friendly and professional. A former 121/Mesa furloughed guy in our group got hired and is currently at AWAC.

I just recently finished training and heard that exactly...A320 guys with tons of hours that had trouble with the FCP panel, the FMS and even raw data ILS work....others had bad attitudes and a few even argued constantly with the instructors.

The Training dept here at Whiskey IS TOPS. Great people that are patient and know their stuff!

I assume the same is true anywhere - you must be ready to learn, and sometimes learn some new stuff.

That sounds painfully obvious, but there are folks who show up who think they know everything and don't want to learn the AWAC way. Not everything AWAC does is perfect, but they don't do a bad job of actually flying the airplanes.

The folks who show up ready to learn and not have some 'superior' attitude are more likely to succeed in training than those who have quirks and already know everything.

The pilot selection and training at AWAC is top notch in my opinion. It is a rare day when I fly with a new F/O who is not very good. The rest wash out.

I should apologize. "Come to their senses" is obviously a figure of speach. If I really had any ill will at all toward this company, I wouldn't be so anxious to work for them. At no point did I "call out" this company however.

My point was simply that, in my opinion, they should hire pilots based on interviews and based on a person to person judge of character. I think that both high AND low time pilots have a lot to offer.

This is really all I have to say on this topic. I would like to avoid bulletin board mud slinging etc. I'm here to learn more about the airline I would like to fly for.

Happy Landings!

I have just finished oe and they hired me with 3000 hours, a type rating and an atp. Its all about the attitude that you show when you turn up on interview day. Two days before my interview date they interviewed 8 and took none of them. They took all 8 on my date (great bunch of guys) Clearly they know what they are looking for in a candidate.

Work ethic is key, the training dept. Has been known to bend over backwards to get someone through who was easy to work with and was putting their best attempt forward. Very impressed with everyone i have met so far here.

To add to what CEFO is saying...

Air Whiskey has got to have the simplest interview out there. No sim ride, no test, just a 30 minute two-on-one interview. With that said, they are doing something right, because my indoc/systems class of 10 is a collection of the most professional, dedicated, friendly people I have ever met. In addition, the training department is first class. I have been constantly impressed with their performance throughout the training process thus far. I am halfway through sim training now.

My training class' experience ranged from 24 years old to 32 years old and 850 total time to about 2300 total. I was the only one without a bachelor's. The class after me has a 19 year old and a couple 40+ year olds with prior airline experience.

Wow... they're giving 19 year olds class dates but not even giving me a phone call... what's going on here?