This is by and large because we are still recovering to the desired staffing level. Don't expect to break guarantee when that happens. However they typically do not shy away from keeping someone on the road if they ask to stay on the road.

You described me. I have an interview schedule at K4, and was thinking about the same thing about ACMI and it's probably the bottom shock absorber if the economy takes a hit. I'm really excited at the thought of flying around the world and seeing places I would never otherwise see, even at a legacy. Or stay at my no flow through regional with decent seniority but going to Buffalo and Des Moines in the winter time while commuting across the country on a weekly basis while waiting for a legacy to call or not.

Did the ACMIs furlough after 9/11 as severely as the pax carriers? Serious question....I actually don't know. I always thought that an ACMI with a knack for finding business (like K4) would be the safe bet. Many legacy drivers ran for cover at carriers like that when it hit the fan last time. Hence the repressed wages during the lost decade and a half.

I have no idea either actually. When you think about it the fallout from 9/11 was almost 20 years ago! The legacies that furloughed were running on a totally different model back then. Now that we have mass retirements that have no where peaked yet, I think a downed economy will hopefully not have as big an impact on pilot hiring as it has before. Perhaps attrition will cushion it. But, with ACMI's having such a small pilot group compared to the legacies I wonder if they can absorb it as well.

At least with K4 and Atlas, the flying is very well diversified, not so much at the pax carriers.

For sure, having done it myself, the adventure is awesome. But I'm definitely not deleting any apps or slowing down my networking. ACMI is full of eccentric CEOs and business that have a "knack for finding work." Some guys say I'm crazy, but then I meet guys that are on airline 4 since 9/11. One example: Polar, World, Evergreen, WGN. That's four interviews in less than 17 years. Remember Spirit and JetBlue also offer ACMI type schedules, my friend at Spirit bids reserve, and consistently gets 15-17 off/month.

Don't mean to lecture, wish you the best and I'll probably bump into you on the road. Safe Travels.

Coldest I've ever been is in South Korea during the winter. Cold in the USA is dry. Try humid cold!! Could only get half the walk around done before retreating to warm up again.

its 105 heat index here in OSAN today..... but I know what you mean... it gets cold as %^&* here.

K4 started in 2001. No furlough because of 9-11. Two furloughs, 2009 and 2013. Downgrades and a bunch of other fun stuff accompanied those time periods.

Atlas declared Bankruptcy in 2004.