Exactly. Flows are a carrot. The situation we're explaining is more like a raincheck for a guaranteed future shipment.

My 2 cents is the majors need to worry about "re-fleeting" them
Selfs..(more 777's A330's ect..) Not spending capital on a bunch of E175's... That is why they wont "fold" them in..

I would think that if they bought us (or already own us) and want to give us a seniority number I would think the major's pilot union would require us an ISL(staple) and then be paid what their contract says and allow the mainline pilots to bid to the large RJ if they want. Not sure though

And if it were two ALPA carriers involved, you'd have a guaranteed lawsuit if all the regional guys were stapled. The regional ALPA guys would sue ALPA for sure.

Senior captains at the regionals would fight that as hard as they possibly could. There would probably also be lawsuits involved. Can you imagine a bunch of 30 year RJ captains who live in base and fly nothing but high credit locals and CDOs being stapled to the bottom of a major list, going back to FO and being forced to commute to reserve in NYC?

There are quite a few people at most regionals who have no plans to leave the regionals and would pitch a fit over any kind of absorption that they wouldn't have the right to pass up.

They can barely get flow throughs to accept the FO mentality and fly the plane. Forcing them to go would wash them out of training and put them on the street.

This is coming soon, by the end of the year. The big three need pilots for their brand. There is a need currently but in 3-4 years without a steady source of pilots these airlines will be in a world of hurt. The first airline to innovate and make a move will be way ahead of the game. We are all focused on the shorterm, this is not a short term move, it is a move to capture the required manpower over the next 5 years and bring in the next generation of pilots. The smart airlines looking into the future are already actively working on this and recruiting from the flight schools trying to secure pilots for their brand. Regionals will eventually be the entry job for the mainline brands. This will allow a select few regionals to properly staff and provide for a more defined career path which will allow for more financing options for potential pilot candidates.

Why would they be forced back to FO? They could choose to stay in status and base on the rj. I cannot imagine many senior pilots would bid down to the rj and force these captains to an FO position of any kind on a different bird and even if they did- there would be plenty of junior rj captains leaving to the right seat of the bigger planes which would practically level the bid.
I think people are stuck in a "flow" mentality here. The hypothetical proposition I am offering for debate in this thread is neither a flow nor a traditional staple to the bottom of a list- it is folding in the entire carrier (pilots, fleets, bases and lines etc.) to the major airlines ranks, generally keeping the operation intact.

Past history shows the purchased carrier would not agree to a staple. Most managements are also unlikely to give up all control of the hiring process.