Republic Problems
 

It seems that the general perception of Republic is avoid at all cost. I am about to enter flight school when I graduate college. I know that the FO pay is poor at Republic but I would like to know what exactly all the issues with Republic are (preferable in a list format). It would be nice for current Republic pilots to comment. I would like to work out of EWR or PHL if I were to get hired at a regional and I am under the impression that Republic is the only regional who has hubs at both. Also what are the chances that republic might be a better place to work, and is it more likely it will get better than worse or stay the same? I appreciate any input, thanks!

Save yourself the trouble and just avoid the career not just republic. I'm 100% serious when I say if I could do it all over again, I wouldn't.

Unfortunately, I don't know all that much about Republic personally. I think most regionals are about the same from the info I get from my friends who are at almost every regional airline. Some are a little better, some are a little worse. Go to a place that meets your needs and has bases where you prefer. I love this career, it definitely had it's ups and downs, but if I had to do it all over again, I'd do it in a heartbeat.

You have to work there to understand how bad it is.

HR that walks around like the Gestapo.

Mostly **** CP's and management that won't lift a finger for you.

Crew Scheduling walks all over you and the contract.

A union that's worth about nothing.

Republic Problems
 

Apply to Commutair, they have an EWR base, much quicker upgrade, better starting pay, better contract, and just an overall better place to work

So what is your story specifically? When did you start who did you work for. Why did you not enjoy aviation/want to get out?

If you having even started training yet don't worry. It'll take you years before you will be hired and the industry could look drastically different then.

Hired in 2011 at Eagle. I hate commuting, being away from family, making very little money, and the manner in which we're treated as regional pilots. All this sacrifice for the chance that maybe someday you'll fly for a real career airline and be happy? No thanks. I've got 3 years left and I'm done with this garbage.

So it is management that is the problem. Not necessarily your contract? Any sign of hope for the future. Since I am just starting out I would not be able to work for a regional easily for another 2 years. Just trying to get some perspective.

How far away are you from graduating? Flying is my 2nd career, and I've been at this for almost 10 yrs. I thought i would be out of the regionals in 5 at most! Most of us believe, and the current events support this, that things are really going to change in the next 2 yrs.

The regional model of dirt cheap labor and whipsaw is not working anymore. So, being young, this could be a great time to get started.

However, the next few years are likely to be absolute chaos as regional airlines fold, and there becomes a struggle between mainline and regionals over their current **** poor contracts. It will likely take you two or three years to get 1500 hours and in that time anything can change. The costs involved in getting all your ratings now will be tremendous, so you better have a way to survive as a flight instructor.

I also hope you are ready to work your butt off, because you will be at the flight school from the early morning to sometimes late at night, and maybe only getting 4-5 hrs of pay. I would say, do your private pilot course part 61 as it gives you more flexibility. But also do your homework and find a school that will let you fly every day. A lot of 61 schools are shoe string operations and are run very slipshod.

In short, it is too early to worry about what regional to go to as in 2 years, the landscape will be very different.

This is the post you should pay attention to. These regionals change constantly and so do the bases....

Yes it is management. They took a tiny turboprop airline and expanded it into a huge, mostly jet fleet during a time of rapid growth at the regionals. They took a gamble on the embraer product, and it payed off. Their success of the last decade has made them cocky and devoted to a way of doing business. They are unable to adapt to a changing industry. Management sees labor as merely a cost, and not an asset. They fight us tooth & nail on anything that improves our quality of life, because they only see the cost in it. You know that old expression "stepping over a dime to save a nickel"? That should be our corporate motto. Nothing will change until our top two executives are gone. They set the tone for the entire company. Air Wisconsin would be a great choice for PHL, and I have heard good things about Commutair. Good luck to you.

Well Bzzt and Bedrock, I am starting flight school May 19 and I am 22, it is a pilot mill school but I am willing to work hard and I will be able to fly everyday. the reason I asked about republic because they have 3 bases within 1 and a half hours driving distance, meaning there is a good chance I would not have to commute. Being 22 I do not have "my own family", wife and kids. I do have a girlfriend whom I have discussed this with and dated long distance in college so we think we are as best tested as anyone entering this industry. Spending a few days away from your wife/family is nothing like 3-4 months, then only getting a week at best during college breaks.

So Bedrock, do you think with my situation, starting at practically the youngest age I can hopefully being at a regional by 24, is alright for this industry? Someone has to fly RJs for the future of aviation, of course who wouldn't love to be at a major before 30? I will do everything in my power to get to a major asap, hopefully the industry is on a so called uprise and that may be possible, but I am going in open minded about worse cases, stuck as regional FO for 5-10 years or at the regional permanently.

Bzzt, if you were 22 could live at your base not having to commute and had no family you would be missing, do you think you might have a better perspective on the career? Would you still regret it? If a major hired you in the next couple years before you quit in your current situation would you still feel the same?

When I was in your shoes back before I knew anything and about anything, independence air was the shiniest turd in the toilet. The best way to plan this career is to not plan anything at all.

If I were doing calculations, I'd add a few buffers. Two years to get from 0 to ATP is a very difficult situation. I'd say a fair expectation is to be instructing between 2 and 3 years. You should also plan to be at a regional for no less than 4-6 years (2-3 years to upgrade at the shortest and 2-3 years to get 1000 TPIC). Again, these are the absolute shortest times I'd be using when making a decision. Make sure you are okay with making between 18-30k for 4 years.

I only reply to this thread because I think 90% of people interested in making the airlines their career ask the same thing. I've been asked this many times in an airport but young high-school kids looking at college choices and their parents on deadheads sitting next to me wondering if they should fork over the 'roughly' 100k to get them started. (Keep in mind that tuition number can vary greatly depending on a multitude of factors)

So for them, for you, and for anyone reading this forum, here is what I tell them:

This is not an easy field to get into no matter what the flight school brochures tell you. Pilot Mills get you tickets but often not the time and experience you really need to be properly prepared for a career in the airlines, I'm talking the day to day and crew aspects particularly, as well as the schedule. It's a huge hurdle to get that 1500 and your first 121 Job, and despite what anyone tells you, it's not really any easier after that either. Major jobs are still hard to come by due to the 5 year back up of age 65. We talk about movement, but think of all the highly qualified guys ahead of you that have been racking up PIC for 5 years.

I would NEVER tell my kids to get into this career. However I know that I love my job and can't imagine doing anything else. You are the only person who knows how much you want to fly.

Starting at 22 and hoping to be at a regional by 24 may be a stretch, though I'm sure it has been done, things change all the time. With the 1500 hour rule and now the new ATP rule where you need level D? simulator time to get your ATP, this career is getting more costly and the barrier of entry is getting harder, not easier and the regionals are about to go into a tailspin due to this.

I see you talking about living in base, one thing you have to understand is that bases close and open all the time. You could be living in base then 2 years later, poof, it is gone. Are you going to move again? I see this happening as the regionals struggle to staff their aircraft fleets.

I may have missed it and apologize if I did but do you have a bachelors degree? If not, the Majors won't even look at you without one, I hope you plan on getting one if you haven't already.

Right now, work on getting the ratings and instructing, by the time you reach 1500 hours, this industry, especially the regionals, will be a whole new animal.

No, even if I was 22 with no family I wouldn't. The chances of me getting hired at a major in 3 years are roughly 0.0. The fact is you spend half of your career at a regional flying bad schedules and making little money. It's just not worth it in my opinion.

Then what are you waiting three years for? Quit. One less grouch for the rest to compete against.

Half your careers at the regionals? Maybe a select few. Everyone I know usually moves on within a few years. Pic time or not
Bzzt you've been at egl for 3 years, have you worked anywhere else?

Dudes... they fly 175s. What more is there to argue about? Sign me the F up!

Outside of aviation yes. In the 121 world? No, Eagle is it. No one but the ultra qualified and/or connected is getting hired anywhere and I don't see that changing in my window I gave myself to get hired at a major but we'll see what happens.

Some legitimate insight there. This job, while enjoyable sometimes, quickly becomes just a way to pay the bills - or make a feeble effort to on FO pay. When that collides with commutes to reserve, base closures, home long enough to kiss your spouse, do the laundry, shave, sleep and commute back out etc, the shine quickly wears off.

i hear heller said that they will park more planes then just the 145 because of staffing, no more upgrades for a while.

1) they short pay you, many emails to get paid what they owe you if at all.
2)call at three am on days off to see if you want to come in
3) two leg commutes on days off, common to see new guys buying hotels on their own and only four days at home.
4) moral, hard not to let if effect you
5) long upgrade time 7 years plus
6)bases close often
7) change time to make thing legal
8) food stamps, if you work here you will be on, them unless you have a lot of money already.
9) company goes out of their way to make sure you hate life
10) no one has trust of leadership
11) BB emails

Pardon me for asking but have you found some secret technology that stops time? I only ask because you may be 22 now, and have no kids, wife now, and not really value your life now. But that won't always be the case. One day when have you have worked your butt off to finally be that pilot at Republic you may have a completely different view on your career expectations. Airline management hopes your expectations right now continue to be your expectations.

Trust all of us when we say think really far into the future and ask yourself what you truly want out of your career. Stick to that and maybe you'll get half of it. If you skimp on your expectations now, you will be in a world of hurt when you finally get to where you are trying to go.

I know none of this means anything to you and we probably look like a bunch of bitter angry pilots. But most here are pretty dead on with the reality of an airline pilot career.

Compete against who? There is no competition, anyone can be a regional pilot. What he said was an honest opinion from someone in the industry. A vast majority of pilots like flying but hate their jobs, at least at the regional level.

If you have 100k burning a hole in your pocket go get an MBA and have a real career, being a regional pilot is not a career. Where are you going to live when you are 25 and have 100k in debt? What do you do when you want to have a family and want to buy a house? How are you going to get a loan for a house (let alone save for a down payment) making 20k a year?

If you still insist on giving it a go then a pilot mill is the absolute worst decision you could make. It will ruin your finicial future. Unless you charge it all on credit cards and then declare bankruptcy. Also, being only 20 you might be young enough to have to worry about single pilot ops/pilotless planes. It is coming, it is just a question of when.

I would concentrate on your ratings one at a time. Objective is no failures and minimum cost. This increases you chance of (I) getting to your preferred airline and (II) surviving on the first few yrs pay as CFI, pipeline, FO or whatever.

Once you have gotten a job that will get you to 1500 start educating yourself on not only regionals but alternate routes. Know all of their interview minimums, hrs etc. when you are within a few hundred hours of that polish up the resume, see who is still standing, read the gouges and apply, apply apply. Then interview, interview, interview.

Once you get offers only then can you choose where you want to work. Remember you may have to work somewhere that is not your first option. So know them all, pros and cons etc. try to make the most informed decision you can. No one has a crystal ball.

Welcome to the career.

Well luckily for me both college and flight school will be completely funded for me so I will have 0 debt. The pilot mill will get me my ratings and hours faster than a local FBO. I am not trying to be spoiled here but that is what I have been blessed with. So would it be that bad with 0 debt starting an airline career around 24-25?

and Afterburn81:
"Pardon me for asking but have you found some secret technology that stops time? I only ask because you may be 22 now, and have no kids, wife now, and not really value your life now. But that won't always be the case. One day when have you have worked your butt off to finally be that pilot at Republic you may have a completely different view on your career expectations. Airline management hopes your expectations right now continue to be your expectations. "

No I cannot stop time but the point was I am not bzzt i am not entering the career at an older age with a wife and kids. I will be going through the toughest part of this career without having to worry about those things. I don't think anyone can argue that the first couple years as a regional FO are the toughest time during an airline career. That is the point I was making. I understand my future and all the setbacks possible. I just want to do something I love and I feel that being away from home a lot is tough but better than doing something that makes me miserable and being miserable around my family all the time. To me that is worse then not seeing them for odd periods of time but being satisfied and happy when I do.

This is great.

I started the career at 27. That's not as young as alot of guys but I wouldn't say I was old.

Hey I am not trying to come across standoffish or spoiled, it's just that I have come across the money that I will not have debt. Through much research I picked a school that is considered by others not me to be a "pilot mill" and I intend to get the best out of it and become a safe and smart pilot. I have been trying to get as much insight about the career as possible.

Bzzt: I didn't know how old you were but I hope that everything works out and that you and your family are as happy as possible. It sucks aviation had to become a regret for you

Have fun asking you parents for money every month.

I can pray to my relatives who have passed if thats what you mean

1) I am in the industry. I obviously know the regionals aren't where 95% of us want to be and - like those 95% - am doing whatever I can to get out whenever the opportunity arises.

2) If you would READ, you would be able to see what my comment is about. He's on here complaining and telling people that he has ZERO percent chance of getting hired outside the regionals, and that he hates it so much he's going to quit in three years. Just quit now, what are you waiting for? Once again... one less to compete with (maybe you'll get it this time). You can go quit, too.

With a snappy come back like that, you will do just fine in this career field! Follow your dreams!

Sounds to me like you are starting off with a fantastic advantage (no debt) and you know what you're getting into if you're reading this thread and/or spending any amount of time on this forum. Good luck to you.

Since your training is funded, you have a lot less to lose. I think things will get better, simply because the circumstances that led to the regional hell-hole have changed remarkably. At 22, the world is your oyster. However, if you are doing this "for the money" you will burn out quickly. Fast paced ab-initio flight training is no joke either. I knew I couldn't do it, and went a slower route. You might find IFR training to be one of the hardest things you've ever done. MS flight sim really can help in this area though, as well as teaching you to fly in general.

It is simply putting the cart before the horse to even worry about which regional you are going to fly for in 3 yrs or so. This industry can turn on a dime. Never burn bridges in this industry as it is surprisingly small, do your level best, print up some cards, and make lots of friends. Work your butt off and try hard to have a fall back for another 9-11 type event.

In the early 2000's we had a perfect storm of black swan events that changed commercial aviation for the worse. 9-11, economic downturn, dot-com bust, bird-flu, airline bankruptcies, age 65 rule, rise of regional jets. This changed the industry for 10+ years. You have to be flexible in this industry. How much are you willing to give up?

I met a guy with a "dream job". Flying heavies overseas for good pay. He is 52, no wife or family, and spends his time with paid companions in Dubai. Flying for a living is a hard life.

You'll have to forgive the peanut gallery on here, most are pretty disgruntled for one reason or another, and some justifiably so.

All that said, if you want to fly, go for it, with a couple of caveats:
- If you're going to a "pilot mill" that's demanding 100% up front, DON'T. Not saying that it would happen to you, but some people have lot a lot of mooney this way.
- The best thing you can do right now is go get your private certificate in an old clapped out Cessna and really see how you like it. Lots of other schools out there can finish you off from that point.
- Don't even think about touching a G1000 equipped aircraft. This will not only save you money, but if you can fly IFR and shoot approaches sans glass that's a skillset that will save you money in the long term.
- Don't worry about what airline you're going to fly for until you have about 1,450 hours. Up until then everything is subject to change, and WILL change.
- Two years is a bit optimistic I think. Who knows......

I do have 0% chance but I also occasionally play the lottery so I'm a sucker for sucker bets. If I put in 3 more years I can still change careers but also buy some airline lottery tickets.

Very smart. Take any regional that is within driving distance to avoid commuting. Having said that...............bases open and close all the time, however, New York/Newark are "fairly" certain bets. Without commuting you can sit reserve from home and cherry pick trips or sit home and work on second career.
The airline industry may improve significantly buy the time you're here-OR-maybe not!