If staying on the west coast is your priority, then Delta should be your first choice. SEA and LAX bases. If that’s not an option then unfortunately Alaska is your choice. If career advancement, QOL scheduling, good contract, growth, Pay, retirement then Delta again should be your first choice. If not, then Jet Blue is your choice. If you come to Alaska you can expect a LONG upgrade time, a seriously substandard Reserve schedule, a management group that thinks growth is more RJs at other airlines, a seriously substandard QOL compared to ALL the other major airlines.

Not only that, but the Anglers consider increased ASMs "growth." That means trading 737-700s for 737-900s. It also means a stagnant seniority list.

Former poster is right. If you want to stay on the West Coast...Delta.

“Should have to or not”, is a separate issue. We can only work with what’s available right here right now. I learned this contract just like I would any contract and have been able to use what’s available to work in my favor. If you don’t, any contract has the potential to screw you over. Just like PBS vs. line bidding, without going into which is “better”, if you don’t bother to learn the system and figure out how to work with either one, both will burn your QOL. If the OP is he|| bent on being West Coast, AS is going to offer better long term basing options. This is a dynamic industry and contracts change. Living in or near your base usually alleviates many of the problems that cause a pilot to hate the contract. I live in base and don’t experience most of the headaches the commuters do. I’m not saying the problems don’t exist, I just don’t experience them. I’ve commuted under a very good contract and still hated every day I was there. That’s almost 10 years of stress induced hair loss! One last thought, pilots always seem to advise against the place they’re currently employed. Over on many a JB vs. OAL thread, JB pilots do the same thing.

1.Pick which legacy you want to work for.
2. Look into your crystal ball and see whether B6 or AS will be bought by that legacy at the next economic downturn.
3. Go to that one and suck it up for a while.
4. If you don’t care which legacy then base your decision on which imperfect choice you can most easily live with for the next ten years.

Tough call...

(Planning for more than 10 years at AS or B6 is to ignore long term industry trends)

Jetblue for sure.


Alaskan is far from a "great place" to work. This is a toxic stagnant place, truly awful.

Not that it matters, the future will likely bring a combined Alaska Blue a Virgin airline. Go to whichever you think will win the seniority integration.

I don't care how much better JB's work rules are compared to AS, it is not different enough to offset the pain and expense of a trans-con commute. The LGB base for JB is small, senior and shrinking, the LAX/SNA is base is super junior, and flies both the both the 737 and Bus, making it easy for anyone who wants it to get it.

Upgrade time - it will be awhile for anyone getting hired right now no doubt. Dont even think about upgrade it is such wild speculation tha you should just presume that you will be an FO UFN. If you are happy with the FO pay scale compared to where you are now then you should go to Alaska.

Work rules - at Alaska and JB both need work. no doubt. The problem with work rules is that they will change over your career at any airline and what is a good work rule for one pilot is crap for another. PBS or Hard line bidding; hotels at the airport or downtown; RAP's throughout month or bid for daily; make as much money as you want or upgrade faster with a strict monthly maximum.

I think the choice between JB and AS for you seems obvious. And if you get the chance to go to Delta or AA or United then you absolutely make the jump.

Good luck

If you're a west coast guy, there is no comparison between B6 and AS. Take AS without a doubt. A B6 transcon commute to JFK or BOS would get real old real fast. And jetBlue's contract isn't worth a transcon commute over Alaska's.

There’s not a single post from this guy that isn’t negative. I commute from the Midwest and wouldn’t trade Alaska for a shorter JFK commute for B6. Financially it’s better at Alaska, our rates as an FO are better we have better 401k matching and were in early negotiations for a contract that will be better than what we have. Does Alaska need a lot of work absolutely but none of these places are leaps and bounds better than the others by any large margin. So if you want to live and work on the West Coast and you have to pick between AS and B6 it’s a no brainer AS. FWIW I have a friend who is dying to leave B6 for AS so he can move back to the West Coast.

Jetblue, not even a choice, unless you want to be a career fo on the 737.

Live in base fly a 737, or transcon commute to an A320