I don't live in Austin but looking at today it shows 10 flights, 3 on our own metal which is almost a guarantee that you will get on. Mix in a couple southwest flights and this commute is likely a piece of cake. Also you won't have any trouble getting some AUS overnights once you get some seniority.
Check out that website. Its a free calculator that works great. Go into crewtrac and plug in every overnight for 2015. It will then generate the rates for you and you can either figure out how do to it yourself or take it to your tax professional. The standard deduction is 6,300 for the 2015 tax year. My per diem alone for tax purposes almost took me to the standard rate. Throw in a few other itemized deductions, Union Dues, uniform, job fairs, etc, and you are looking at easily topping the 6,300. I am not a CPA so consult with the proper people.
I don't live in Austin but looking at today it shows 10 flights, 3 on our own metal which is almost a guarantee that you will get on. Mix in a couple southwest flights and this commute is likely a piece of cake. Also you won't have any trouble getting some AUS overnights once you get some seniority.