Turbosina

Not on SWOL, but Google ALPA Jumpseat Finder and you'll find listing procedures for all relevant airlines.

The rules are pretty simple:
1. Check the ALPA guide to see how to list for each carrier, as all have different procedures. If you're J/S'ing on Skywest you just show at the gate and request to be listed for the J/S from the gate agent. On all airlines, if there are seats in back, you'll sit in the back. If it's full in back, and nobody is ahead of you in J/S priority, and the airplanes' weight & balance will allow it, you can sit in the actual.

Note that CRJ-200s are notorious for being weight-limited (it's a CG thing, not a total weight thing) when they're flying a short leg and have alternate fuel onboard. In that case it's not uncommon for us not to be able to legally take a jumpseater up front. The -700 and -900 are much less prone to this issue.

2. Follow the listed dress code: uniform or business casual. No jeans, no sneakers, no T-shirts, etc.

3. Once you've listed (either at the gate, or online, or on the phone, depending on which airline you're J/S'ing on), show up to the gate no less than 20 mins prior and check in with the gate agent. Gifts of chocolate are sometimes well-advised, especially at busy times when you're just another problem the gate agent has to solve. The gate agent will need to see your badge and ID so he/she can verify you're in CASS, and he/she will print a J/S request form or boarding pass for you. Every airline's procedures vary, and every gate agent's procedures will vary, so just go with the flow.

5. Ensure you have all your credentials (pilot cert, medical cert, employee ID, passport, and the J/S pass the gate agent will give you) ready to show the CA. Wait till everyone else boards, then board the airplane, poke your head into the flight deck, introduce yourself, and politely ask the CA if you can have a ride. Offer to show him your paperwork (some guys won't glance at it, others will examine it closely). In my experience, if I'm jumpseating on my own airline, most captains just see my badge and jumpseat card, and they're happy with that. On offline carriers, some CA's will ask to see all of my credentials. Some just care about the J/S card because it shows you're in CASS.

6. Be polite to everyone, stay out of the way, and remember you're officially an additional crewmember, so don't do stuff like talk/text on your cellphone during taxi, etc. If you're in back, don't order alcoholic drinks.

That's about it, really...

LAX2MSP

If CTP is during a different month than ground school, are you still guaranteed 65hrs of pay? (I.e. CTP in January but class starts February)

Jedimaster

K', so trying to get a feel for what is actually occurring in the real world ... haven't flown since 95, was a 121 commuter captain until then (DHC8) ... Sorry, to be more clear, just recently flew 3.5 h in a 172 for a BFR, got my paper license changed to this new plastic thingy I've never heard about and am just trying to go with the flow...sort of working on my bucket list. You know, house paid for in 7 months, 4 kids put through college, trucking and construction did that in last 20 years. Recruiters at this airline and others, tell me upgrade less than 8 months with my quals. ( 11000 TT, 9000 TPIC, 121 & 135, etc) Is this for real?? Don't get me wrong, I need to sit in the right seat for a few months, just to get my bearings back ... but not going to swing gear for more than a year, bad CRM, it'll bring back my worst traits, which include starting many sentences with:" Listen Boy" and ending them with:"I was doing this when you were in diapers". This sounds terrible, I used to be really easy to fly with and sure that I still am...but don't have a ton of time left (late 50's) and bucket list or not, am not giving up #5 in seniority at a fortune 100 trucking company.
Very sorry, but I've been very lucky in aviation, less than 4 months as an FO, ever. Left corporate in 88 and my first and only airline had a lot of Embry FO's and needed 5000 TT and 2000TPIC to upgrade, which I had ++ when I started. Don't really care about many of the same things you guys do, fully vested in several pensions, (teamster, operating engineers, longshore), wife works for state, on PERS, we both have no deductible health plans, etc. Just sort of would like to get back to flying ... but just not comfy in right seat for very long. This is really my only criteria, :first, "how fast to upgrade??", second, I live in the PNW, pretty sure I'm too old to commute gracefully, third, I'm a Deacon in the Church, with all the requisite responsibilities, etc...(run a shelter, run a home for unwed mothers, etc, on the board of share for life, etc, etc, don't really have a lot of extra time, so please clarify the Delta of recruiter 8 mo. / poster 8 years. Thank you kindly.

Electra

Thank you kindly? Please don't come here. At the risk of coming off as rude as you do, we don't need any more people with that self-entitled attitude. The worst captains are those who felt themselves too good to be first officers.

ncsean

You sound perfect!....for Mesa.

Cefiro

Or go jet or TSA.

trip

It really is a full time job, I don't see how you could do both.
Upgrades will be around 2 years.
Buy a taildragger and have fun.

rcreager

This was perfect, thank you!

Oma4545

Being only 23 years old you sound like you'd be a peach to fly with! I really hope your post wasn't serious.. but I think it is.

TheWeatherman

What? You mean you don't enjoy a whole leg's worth of talk about how they did it in the 80s and how they didn't have all these fancy dancy GPS devices?