Family is in the will, you're not family.

No, I'm part of the family now. They include me in the hollidays, and not just out of guilt about taking me away from home; they've included my family during hollidays when we're at home too.

As for being in the will: I signed on to fly the man's jet. That's all I want from him, and it's the best job I've had by far, and I had a good airline job! People who've always had wealth have also always had people trying to carve out their own little piece of their wealth. You earn their trust by proving to them that you aren't just another shyster. And then you only have one chance to lose that trust. I just want to fly the man's jet, he knows that, and he pays me well enough to do that.

Most importantly, I've earned their trust, in many ways, not just professionally; the job is about a lot more than just flying, and I don't mean being a servant. When I flew for an airline, the job was about days off and money. When you walked away from the airplane at the end of the trip, you didn't look back, or even think about it until show time for the next trip. If that's all you want from the job, stay in the airlines. Now I work harder than I ever have, but it's all fun work. We fly a lot, but that's good, it's job security, and besides, we really only fly to cool places, and there seems to be no end to the variety.

Every day between trips seems to involve some kind of management duty: arranging to get an MEL cleared, projecting out our likely flying load to plan the next inspection, and trying to fit the next inspection into when I think they won't need the plane, cleaning up the plane, restocking, record keeping, accounting, planning for the next trip. The boss wants us to take ownership of the plane (figuratively), and we have. We take a lot of pride in that fine machine, and when he sends a text with details about another trip, it feels a lot more like getting to use my talent to do a favor for a friend, than the frustration of being junior assigned.

I loved my airline job. I was never going to leave (locked out- Midwest Airlines), but it was a job. Flying is like a paid hobby now. I work hard, but I'm enjoying it more than ever. I've had to learn a lot since leaving the airline world, but I'm also a much more complete pilot for it. There are certainly some not so good corporate gigs out there, but a good one still beats an airline job in my opinion, and all I ever wanted to be was an airline pilot. I'm not going back to the airlines unless my boss sells the airplane or fires me, and I've told him as much. And he still gave me a big pay raise after telling him that.

Good luck!

Getting the job is the hard part. You need to somehow get plugged into the local contract scene. I did it through contract flying. I was flying with as many people as I could, networking. Figured I'd have a fighting chance at a new plane to show up. That's how I got my job.

Totally agree. Leaving behind 121 passenger flying was a great decision for me. No TSA, no uniforms and the boxes don't complain.

I know you're just across the river, but if its a great gig, why apply to UPS?

The same reasons any pilot in my position, happy in a job flying a light jet for a heavily owner-centric small business, would be interested in a given position for a large Fortune 500 flight department or a legacy/major/cargo airline.

Enhanced career longevity
Upside in earning potential
Career advancement
etc. etc.

Since having started this post however long ago, I left the airlines after more than a decade in favor of a great corporate gig. I won't go into the specifics, but if any major called today to offer a class tomorrow I would respectfully pass (and in fact I did).

For those so fortunate, life doesn't get any better... And for those who would like to join the ranks, it's not as complicated as some make it out to be. Network, smile, be humbled and open to learning and lose the 121 "holier-than-thou" stench.

Good luck.

This thread should have been called: " Your experience going from REGIONALS to 91..." Big difference with the original title.

None of the people in here left a major spontaneously.

The question for the those who got furloughed or their airline shut down, and had to find a corporate employment, is the following:
If you could change history, and make it that you were still in your major today, would you still say that you are better off where you are right now?

Now, of course, someone will recur to personal attacks, like it always happens here when you dare to express an opinion that is not in line with the main stream. Or when you don't write obvious things like "you can be happy anywhere, to each his own". Despicable.
Funny thing is that if I answer back, these guys go cry to a moderator.

Actually NoSid, I know a guy who voluntarily left American to fly corporate... pretty senior too. He's got a great gig now...

Same here.