Currently at ATP Flight School. Trying to figure out my plans ahead of time.
Currently I live in the Charlotte, NC area. So I would like to stay around the area when a major comes around.
I know American Airlines is here for a major. I know Piedmont and PSA is here for regional.
Is there one better than another?
Anyone have a faster flow?
How long should I expect to flow?
Should I go with American because it’s big and nearby or should I move to a different carrier?
Just trying to get some ideas.
Thanks!

I can't speak to the differences but those two would be obvious choices to stay in CLT.

You may or may not have heard this, but if you want to get to AA faster, you may consider a non wholly-owned regional instead. The majors prefer to poach from their competitors than hire outside the flow. Thus, you could get to a major in 2 years vs 5 or more for the flow. Just something to think about.

You should NEVER expect to flow

Flow is career insurance. Plan to apply for a better job

Free internet advice: your two most important factors will be seniority and QOL. There’s a relationship between QOL and seniority and it’s slightly different for everyone. Figure out what that relationship is for you ahead of time, and then be willing to change plans if necessary to best fulfill those two most important things.

As others in this thread have mentioned, you may best benefit by temporarily sacrificing QOL to get you your seniority number at your career destination of choice quicker. Or, you may be worried about getting “stuck” somewhere during a downturn and prioritize a place that gives you better QOL initially.

Nobody knows how things will work out, or what the right formula is for you—but if you can figure out what is most important to you, the opportunities will start to fall into an order that makes sense. Free advice, may be worth what it cost.

haha, good one! and true.

Be flexible. What you think you want now may not be what you want in the future. Always be open to other possibilities, companies, and paths to advance your career and never become hyper-focused on one company.

Go to Endeavor or Republic.
PSA is between than Piedmont, Piedmont has the faster flow. Flow is 7.5-10+ years.
Don’t go to Piedmont or PSA if you want to go to American. Go to Piedmont or PSA if you want Delta or United.

I’ve also been told to try to go to frontier or spirit to get a type rating to jump into the desired airline faster. What happens if you don’t get the plane you need to jump ship?

I thought flow was a guarantee to get a job at that airline.

I guess I’m starting to learn. Obviously reserve is a QOL points, can you give me more examples?
Like longer flights vs smaller flights to stay at home more?
Or benefit wise?

Hoo boy

It’s not a guarantee. Lots of things can impact flow progression. The obvious one is an airline stops hiring but there could be changes to the flow program as well.

But even assuming the program works as advertised, what really matters is time to flow. An airline pilots life is determined by seniority. Regional airlines are a stepping stone and you want a seniority number at a destination job asap. If you can get hired at TWA two years before you flow to Braniff… that’s a win.