Regional schedule and time on reserve
 

Guys,

A few questions, would appreciate your opinions.

I am a CFI close to ATP mins thinking of applying to the regionals. When a new hire finally gets a line, could you change around trips to maybe have 6 or 7 days ON in a row in order to get four or five days OFF in a row during the month?

Since hiring picked up, how long are new hires on reserve these days before they get a line? Looking especially at Compass, Commutair, Skywest and PSA.

Have there been many CFIs getting on with Compass, even though their preferred minimums ask for Part 121 and FMS time?

Have there been many regional F/Os (t-prop or jet) that have moved on and been hired by the nationals and majors, or do they still hire regional captains only?

Last month I waved some restrictions and got 4 off- 11 on- 7 off - 11 on. The only way you can do it is with a bunch of 30 hour overnights, otherwise you can't be scheduled 7 days in a row. The amount of days off you get depends in base and carrier of course.

Regardless of what some people will say, 121 pic is important. I have several ins at a certain mainline carrier, and was told by the chief pilot that they won't look at me untill i upgrade and get some left seat time.

I know guys from my old flight school who with no 121 time went to compass, so it's possible

If I remember correctly, most jr line holder in lax is a late may hire meaning he only spent 1-2 months on reserve. What you are trying to do is definitely possible and there are many avenues to accomplish it (SAP, Tradeboard, etc). Feel free to pm me any other questions you may have.

This is a bit of a loaded question, because every airline does things slightly differently. Also, if a company has a senior base somewhere, reserve there may run years, but with all of the hiring, most new-hire FO's will not be on reserve too terribly long.

As for a string of days off or days on, once you learn to work the system, you can make this happen. The most effective method varies, but usually means backing up days off at the end of one month with days off at the beginning of another.

As for getting on with a national or a major, Allegiant, Spirit and JB have hired a lot of FO's with no TPIC time, but understand that the reason they do that is that they pretty much own you. You aren't getting hired at a legacy/SWA without it, so if you get to one of the above named and hate it, you may be stuck. The only exception is if you can get hired by one of the ACMI cargo carriers (Atlas, Southern) flying heavies. The international time can, but won't always, make up for the TPIC time. I can vouch for this, having seen a few in these circumstances make it to UA and DL.

If you want to move on quickly, skip SkyWest, as the upgrade time there is much longer than others.

If I had to commute out of Florida to NY, CHI or DC area, would you recommend doing that out of MCO, TPA or RSW?

I know living in base is a far better QOL, eventually I can do that, but for now I would have to commute like many other guys do.

I'm not saying that 121 pic isn't valuable, but people are gettig hired at legacy carriers with no 121 pic. That's the truth.

We could all come up with stories of no TPIC FO's getting hired at US Air and United in the last two years, but for the OP I would say go to a regional that fits for them and then in a couple of years put out apps to all major airlines...you will get hired.

As for CommutAir, you do have an option to work up to 6 days in a row, which many guys do, then have 3-4 days off in a row. Just remember, most regionals like CommutAir only have 11 days off per month while on reserve. That bumps up to 12 days off minimum for a line holder. Just remember while on reserve, if you happen to get a good stretch of days off, you'll have to pay the piper somewhere else in the month. CommutAir reserve is about 6 months right now before holding a line. Upgrades are running less than 2.5 years, and hopefully dropping due to all the captains we've been losing.

We have had a couple f/o's get hired on by other companies but it's all been charter. One guy got hired by Frontier but he had other experience before coming to CommutAir. As for captains, we've recently had them leave for United, Delta, US Airways, Spirit, Virgin America, and Frontier. TPIC is definitely a big deal.

When you have a line, are you still given a number of days reserve or are all the times scheduled trips and days off only?

When bidding for lines, what are the least desirable lines that go to the new hires for the most part.

Would it be number of consecutive days, weekends on, holidays on or other criteria like that? I guess I am asking how does the line bidding process work in a general sense.

Are you saying that if I was not called during a few days while on reserve, there exists the possibility I may have to work on one of my days off in order to have the 11 days minimum days off?

Seeing that 50 seaters are on the decline, do you think Commutair has a reasonably safe niche market and would survive the downsizing trend?

Again, speaking for CommutAir, you are either a line holder or a reserve, not both. Some companies have hybrid lines but we are not one of them. After schedules are posted, reserve pilots do have an option to pick up open (unassigned) time and replace some of their reserve days during the "line improvement period."

The least desirable lines are usually "stand-ups." That's where you fly the last flight out at night, spend a few hours in the hotel, and fly the first flight back to base in the morning. These are legal because your duty time starts at night and you are on duty all night. Then when you fly back in in the morning you are released into "rest."

Bidding for reserve, or as a line holder for that matter, all boils down to seniority. The more senior, the better. We use a PBS system that is done via a computer program. You put in preferences then the computer builds lines in seniority order. The higher your seniority, the more likely it will be that your preferences are honored.

You get 11 hard days off a month. That means no obligation to work or be on call. If you are on a reserve day and you are not used, that still counts as a work day by the contract and by the FAR's. You are on a Reserve Availability Period and therefore considered to be working.

My personal opinion is that the 50-seat jet market is in for some rough times ahead. There is still a market for them, but it is shrinking as mainline is taking back some of that flying. Turbo-props are very cost effective. The Dash8 burns about 1400 lb/hr in cruise whereas the CRJ-200 is closer to 3,000 lb/hr if I remember correctly. That's pretty significant. We seem to be trucking along and United seems pretty happy with our operation. Feel free to PM me if you have any more questions.

Can anyone share their experiences commuting to the NY or DC area from MCO, TPA or RSW and share which airport, airlines and routes would be recommended?

passrider.com

Thanks for the passrider website, saw the airline options and routes.

Can anyone share their commuting experience to the NY or DC area from MCO, TPA or RSW? What options are potentially more successful at what times and what options to avoid due to heavy loads keeping in mind Florida traffic is very seasonal.

If you have a line, is it possible to occasionally pick up an open trip from your local major airport to your domicile if that route is in your airline's network? I guess what I am asking is, do ALL trips (except deadheading) have to begin and end in domicile?

Are you paid per diem while on reserve?

Still hope one of you guys can share your experiences and suggestions about the commute to NY and DC out of MCO, TPA and RSW.

Commuting to/from Florida is notoriously difficult because so many pilots and flight attendants do it. Plus, you're traveling on mainline, so you are (usually) just above people using buddy passes. Add to that the fact that summer storms wreak havoc with the schedule, combined with seasonal issues (spring break), and you have a recipe for headaches. If your airline has a commuter clause (that is, if they don't punish you for commuting), it helps.

MCO is usually the hardest, but JB offers a lot of flights....that often have several of their own commuters. RSW will be the hardest because it will often be a 2-leg commute, and there isn't nearly as much direct service to the northeast.

The trick to Florida is getting across the state line in either direction, but as a junior regional pilot, expect to waste an awful lot of time commuting. If you can move closer to base, or to a city with a better commute, then do so.

As far as picking up flights into/out of domicile (some call them jetbridge trades), every airline is different about that. Some are very accommodating, and some are not. Most of the time, as long as it's legal per the FARs and the contract, they won't care. Keep in mind that a lot of pilots tend to trade with the same small cadre of other pilots, and it can be tough to break into that group, since those guys are often looking out for each other.

Generally speaking the trips will begin and end in domicile, but if a trip ends or starts with a DH, you can usually drop the DH (it opens up a seat the company can sell). If a pilot is looking to drop a leg or two or three to get home, you might be able to pick them up. Again, it has to be legal, and it can't compromise another assignment you have. I can't speak for the airlines you've asked about, but generally, Scheduling has some leeway to allow this sort of thing to happen because so many pilots commute.

Per diem is only paid when you are working, so when you are just sitting on reserve, you won't get paid per diem. Some airlines pay per diem for 1-day trips (out-and-backs), but many do not. Per diem on 1-days is taxable, whereas per diem on IRS-defined overnight trips is not. Per diem IS NOT part of your salary, and is not intended to give you "extra earnings;" it is simply a reimbursement for reasonable food expenses. If you are smart and aggressive, you can, however, pocket a lot of that money. If you don't take food, and eat when you're hungry, you won't see a lot extra money in your checking account. You can also get creative on your taxes and increase your per diem allowances, but that's a different topic for a different day.

Hope that helps...

Thanks, appreciate it.