Help on Regionals
 

Hey Everyone,

Im new to the forum. Just wanted to throw out a question to get some opinions. So Im a military guy (P3's and T6s) getting out this year and I naively thought the transition to the airlines would be easy. I had no idea how difficult and competitive it was right now. So, in order to rack up some more hours it looks like Ill need to get flying somewhere and the regionals look like the best bet. I have little knowledge on who to work for since my career to this point has been in the military. Any suggestions or recommendations. I've gone through the previous posts and they are confusing as hell. Also, with this new Envoy thing, is Envoy now one you want to stay away from? I love sarcasm like the next guy but this is an honest request for help so although I will laugh at the jokes please mix in some serious info too. Thanks fellas.

SkyWest.

Not sure if it's that difficult. Many regional airlines will take you if you have a pulse, ATP written completed, and over 1500 hours. For a military guy, your hour requirements may be reduced.

Im not too worried about getting on to a regional...Ive talked to them and they say I have all the qualifications. Im unable to get on with airlines like Jetblue and up though right now. Not enough hours it seems. As far as regional goes though, Ill look into SkyWest. Any idea on which one based more on the East Coast is preferred?

I have over 2000 hours and CFI/II, MEI and ATP.

Where do you live or where do you want to live? Honestly, if you think that the regionals are going to be a short time thing for you (and given your background there's every reason to think that's accurate) pick one that has a base where you can drive to work.

Well, thats why I liked Envoy because I have family in NYC and MIA so I could eliminate rent but it seems like Envoy just had a bad situation unfold. Would they still be a good place to go?

Help on Regionals
 

West coast look at Compass (and maybe Skywest). East coast PSA and Mesa.


Skywest is a very reputable company, but I don't forsee very much movement there.

Ask ten different guys and you'll get ten different answers. Envoy is shrinking, but they do have some attrition to go along with it. A new hire today though would most likely be riding the bottom of the seniority list for a long time. Ditto at Endeavor.

Of the two I'd say NYC is more likely at Endeavor, but that's just a guess. I have no special inside information and all the above could change tomorrow.

Unless you have no problem living at the regional pay scale...With your background apply at all the major airlines and supplemental airlines...Try and Network within your community for employment leads or recs...I would avoid the regionals with your experience.

Get a year at a regional and GTFO. With a year you will be competitive with.......lets see, everyone, and maybe Virgin Galactic. Use the year to apply to every airline you might even care to work at. Its not if you can fly the planes, its if you can hang with the lifestyle. Plus its a cheap/fast way to find out if the job is for you. Reason being, there is nowhere in the airline business, where working conditions and sub-human pay rates are worse. If you can hang at a regional, every place is better, including the Iraqi Airforce.
Don't get comfortable, embrace the suck, and put your interview suit in the front of the closet. Hit up Emerald Coast Consulting (http://www.emeraldcoastinterviewconsulting.com/ )for interview prep.

Best advice you will ever get in this career. Not commuting vs. commuting makes it a completely different job.

"With his experience?"

He only has 2000 hours. Sure it's military time but cmon. The regionals are a great place to get his feet wet in the 121 environment.

If you are expecting a short stay it won't really matter where you go. Like someone else said go to where you can live in base.

If you plan on spending a few years at your regional the choice probably becomes a little more complicated.

If you're looking at NYC bases I would consider CommutAir too. We have EWR and IAD bases. We're a turboprop operation but if you don't mind that it's a pretty good place to work. $30/hour first year pay, 4 free hotels in base per month, and upgrades around 2-2.5 years. PM me for additional info. Good luck!

Yeah even with mil. background at B6 you'll probably need another grand if not 2 grand on the hours. You might want to try the next VETS in Blue event if it's what your gunnin' for. Tbqh

2000 hours of Military flying makes a pilot more than qualified to apply and be competitive at a Major Airline. Especially against a 6000TT regional pilot...Beyond 5000TT seems to be where the Majors start to look away from a candidate anyway, but what do I know (as I'm reminded by the children of the magenta everyday) I've only been doing this for 30 years...:rolleyes:

Actually, reading this board (and others), talkingto buddies, etc unless there's a bunch of additional boxes checked, that kind of time is a little on the low side for peer comparison/mil demographic.

FOR RIGHT NOW ANYWAY.

I know......I know......., we ALL know people getting hired with less than competitve times/quals. But I say AGAIN, for right here and right now, still on the lower end of scale in relation to flight time.

To the OP, as mentioned, go to vets in blue, get on facebook/linkedin and start networking and getting rec letters, try to find a buddy at UAL to get you a meet and greet, etc. Come later this fall and next spring, the hiring is going to pick up. Meaning the competitive stats/numbers are going to widen a bit. Unless you have a guard/reserve gig, it'll be currency you're after more than flight time.

I'm not going to sit here and debate the "quality of time" issue. Especially after the arrogance you have clearly shown in the above post

2000 hours simply isn't going to meet the requirements at most majors right now unless you are very well connected. Quality aside it's just not enough quantity.

Are you saying that if a regional guy (FO in particular) has 5000+ TT, that the majors / legacies start turning them away? I hope that's not the case.

Anyhow....

To the OP, like everyone else has said, commuting vs not commuting makes a big difference. If you find an airline that fits your personal needs, then shoot for that one. Envoy has a great, but senior pilot group. Great pilots there, very knowledgable, and ALL are willing to help their fellow pilots. There a LOT of veterans there, myself included. Quit a few P3 guys as well. There's a joint LGA / JFK base, as well as MIA (not sure how long MIA is going to last though). Things aren't going too well here right now, but we still have a decent contract, and 20 a month (minimum) flowing to AA, and the attrition is about to spike through the roof. This could be good, or bad for a new hire. Good, as it makes room ahead for you; Bad, if they attrit too fast without enough new hires coming in behind you, and the company decides to park more airplanes due to inability to staff them. You could be furlough fodder. You would probably be on reserve for a vey long time. Which could be good if you live in base, and want to have more time at home, but bad if you're trying to rack up hours quickly and get out. Which is what it seems your goal is.

PSA has all East coast bases, CLT, TYS, and DAY. Endeavor is probably your best bet of a NY base. PDT has smaller out station East coast bases, are getting jets and probably will have fast movement, but you'll probably be able to get your time and move on before you upgrade. Have you looked in to cargo?

One thing to keep in mind is; most people chose an airline that they thought they could move along quickly, get out, and get to a major / legacy as soon as they could. They didn't look into QOL issues too much, as they thought they would just suck it up, and be out In a few years anyway. Then something happens (9/11, oil price spikes, mergers and consolidation, ect...) that causes them to be stuck at that place for a lot longer than they had planned. Ask yourself if you could handle that place for longer than expected.

I heard they were hiring! Low mins, short reserve times, quick upgrades. My app is in :D

Commutair, actually a nice company. Stay away from Envoy, no future there.

I currently have offers on the table from Envoy and Republic and have been debating back and forth over which to go with.

I was strongly leaning towards Envoy until last week's announcement, which now has me wondering about the future of the company and whether I'd be able to actually fly much.

At this point, is there any reason at all why I should still consider choosing Envoy over Republic? I like the company better but I don't want to jump on a sinking ship either....

If your ultimate goal is a major, then go to a regional with a flow-thru to a major. EtD would be a great deal for you.

There was a recent new hire at United with 1750 hours. His background was F18s and I'm sure other things. Based on being P3s and T6s, 2000 may not be competitive enough on its own. You didn't mention any other good stuff like IP, safety, and other things besides flight time which can factor into your competitive level for a major. Also, if the P3 time was as aircraft commander, then you're already almost there.

If you want NYC, Republic is hiring into both the E170 and Q400 classes out of EWR. They have been known to open and close bases but EWR will likely stay for a while. Envoy is a proud company but there's been very little good news over the last 3 years really. I don't think PSA is gonna be able to handle becoming 2.5 times it's size in such a short time so they may not get as many airplanes as announced. Whether they stay at Envoy I don't know. I will agree that not commuting is the biggest factor to how good your time at a regional will be. Even a slightly crappier contract might be better than commuting to a good one.

sent you a pm

Fly Guy,

Keep interviewing and wait for a better offer. There are scores of people that have "jumped ship" to Republic only to leave shortly after.

You've been well warned about Republic and it keeps getting worse. Don't do it.

Fly a desk or join the reserve/guard (full time till you get your 20 year pension).... if you have such a burning desire to work at the regionals, you will need that full military retirement to afford to do so...

No hooker is worth the StD....:eek:

I know of 3 pilots just at CommutAir who left Republic shortly after being hired because it was such a cluster. One of our guys was a captain, left C5 for the "jet time" and ended up coming back to C5 as a new-hire FO. If that doesn't tell you everything you need to know about Republic, I don't know what would.

I have no info on the Q, but if we're talking E-jets, I really wouldn't count on that.

Except Mesa is pulling out of CLT they will only be IAD on the east coast