Njflyguy

This may apply to most regionals, if not all airlines based on seniority, but how does planning PTO work for new hires? If I know I cannot work on certain dates into the future (e.g. wedding, medical procedure, vacation, etc.), how does the time off request work and how far can it be submitted and confirmed?

QRH Bingo

Vacation can be submitted several months in advance, once you have full access to the bidding system. As an FO it's likely to be awarded the vacation, not sure on the CA side because they tend to take more vacation time than FO's. Monthly bids are submitted by the 14th of the prior month. Trying to work your monthly schedule that way could be tricky but if you're only needing one weekend you can probably get it without too much issue. If it's a medical procedure during the week, even easier. With a few months seniority, you can pretty much make your schedule as you want on reserve provided you can do it within the 12 days off you're given. Additionally, you can always request to swap a day or two (talking reserve here) if the reserve grid is positive for the day you are trying to get off. Other last resort options are the ability to beg someone to trade with you via the tradeboard or facebook groups or even take a hit on your pay and drop the day outright if the grid is positive.