This is me. I lasted a little over a year and I'm DONE!. I don't know if it's Skywest or the regionals in general, but this sucks! The last year has made me want to get out of flying for good. And I am. Being an airline pilot sounded good and all, but for me it's no worth it. Thankfully I don't have a bunch of time invested in this and feel trapped. I'm choosing to get out now. Thank you to Skywest for helping me realize just how much this job stinks! For me. Some people love it though...

 

You are not alone. I know a lot of guys who recently just quit the industry completely. A few who had been there over 4 or 5 years also. They just got sick of commuting to fly 20 days a month or sit reserve with no upgrade in sight and a shrinking airline. A few jumped ship to other regionals to upgrade quicker than 7 or 8 years. Most are happy and doing other things now. It's not for everyone!

 

Is there someone sitting there with a stopwatch who will slap you for you for failing to engage the autopilot? I am on the Brasilia; will I have to sign over my hand flying skills when they shutter that and make me fly the jet?

 

Sorry, no awesomeness, just a line pilot trying to get through the journey we call aviation. Know what my dream is? To go to Indonesia and fly a Pilatus Porter for Susi Air, now all I gotta do is convince the wife....

 

Nope,
But climbing from sea level in a straight line to 20,000 isn't really flying, but if that's a challenge, go for it, no one really cares. Your ability to effectively operate the autopilot is a skill more usefully exercised, but I don't care either way, hit the fixes and altitudes and it's all good.

 

Read Flight81s comments, your future.

 

I would hope that surviving as a Colgan flight attendant for a few years (and enjoying it) would prepare me for the worst. I've commuted, I've sat ready reserve for 5 days a week 12 hours at a time without being called and of course I was furloughed. Skywest has GOT to be a step up from that experience.

 

I've done the 8-5 thing as an engineer and obviously made WAY more than an SKW FO. I've flight instructed, flown charter, and flown corporate. I was a CA on a jet before coming to SKW. I've been here for almost 4 years, still an FO. You know what? It's not a bad job. I get a lot of time off, most of the folks I fly with are pleasant, and the CCBs are happily quite uncommon. He's a failure in his own mind, and derives pleasure from crapping all over everybody else. Put him on ignore as I have. He's a trivial failure, not worthy of your time. Most of us have or will have put people like this in the rear view mirror at some point in our lives.

If there's anything I can do for you (or anybody else) on here to answer any questions you have, please feel free to send me a PM. I'd be happy to help however I can. Good luck with your next step!

 

Thanks buddy. I'll be sure to seek out your counsel for all my future financial endeavors. You should send me your name and base so we can discuss it.

 

Poor WRX,
Your soul crushing will begin at around year 6. Enjoy it while you can, ask around about the ATL domicile or any of the others that were yanked out from under crews, your domicile is just a keystroke away from being downsized. If SKYW downsizes your elusive upgrade will disappear, just like your Frontier job. Cheap shot, yeah but you asked for it, sorry, not....I have seen your type come and go, and you will go back to being an engineer, dwelling in your cubicle crunching numbers ect. Wow you really do sound like a mini Genny Lee.