As long as I am one of them ��

 

Well there are 200 Max airframes on firm order through 2025 and a bunch of 800 still coming. SWA is buying any used 700 they can get their hands on. We heard (in the training center) that they just bought 12 700s that will be online soon. So with only about 80 classics left, to be gone at the end of September, that is still a pretty big net gain of airframes. We were told that in September there will be 30 classics left and parked then October 1 there are 10 Maxs starting.

 

Pilot hiring is a long lead time indicator. It takes a while to get the machine spooled up, get new hires in the door, and get guys upgraded. There will be steady growth in block hours here that will require more pilots. Even with a net zero airframes growth, we have increased NG dispatch reliability and possible red eye flying that will require more pilots vs airframes.
Take a look when you are out on the line at some of the registration histories of the aircraft we fly. Many of the 700s are lease returns from Europe, Asia, and North America that have come on line within the last year.
The ripped out printer and bondoed wiper switch are dead giveaways.

 

So i've always been curious since SWA pay is different than others. About what is the pay a captain will max out at down the road. Will you ever be able to get close to $300k a year at SWA?

 

Yes. 2020 Capt pay hits $245/tfp. 100tfp/month for 12 months = $300K.

 

At the SWAPA meet and great they said the top earner broke $500k. Top FO was close to $300k. My first question was how many days off and they said they averaged 6 days off.

 

The true tournament level players should add $100k to those numbers for 2017 with the new CBA pay rates. So expect a CA to make over $600k this year and an FO to make almost $400k. That is not the norm, and those guys work a lot, no more than that, they work all the time. There are a lot of ways to make extra pay here, the company encourages and even depends upon it, but they all involve working extra in some way. That's the way it works at SWA.

 

You know, I used to think that was true, but I have found that when scheduling goes into crisis mode, you can make solid money without really working too hard.
It requires a little extra work on your part, but you can have sub 50 block months with way way over 120 tfp.

 

Net of 700 a year? Are you kidding me? Let's do some math.

(120 retirements a yr (until the FAA up the age to 67) + 100 folks that interview, offered a job and never show + 100 folks that leave for carriers where they can make CA in less than 12 yrs) - 700 = 380 new pilots a year.

Factor in the coming pilot shortage, and lets send out a big "Welcome aboard" to the HS grad with a couple of DUI convictions. And you trannies thought AT was dead.....

 

Your math sucks.
I am far from a sunshine and lollipops guy, but the guys that never show aren't hired. The guys that retire are helping seniority movement. The shuffling around to other majors is just going to happen. Can't help it. I just flew with an 83000 number guy who upgraded in less than 10 years. The hiring numbers touted at the beginning of each year have been low every time.
I guess what I am saying is save the doom and gloom for four years from now when we are back in negotiations. SWA is a good career destination. They are hiring at training center capacity for the foreseeable future. It's a good thing. This isn't the place for a quick upgrade, but you can make a comfortable living with awesome QOL pretty quickly.
If you would have told someone in 2012 that in 5 years Dallas would be the second biggest base with junior captains and FOs, we would be flying 737s to Costa Rica, and you could get a job here with no type rating they would have laughed you out of the bar. Who knows what this place will look like 5 years from now.
It's ok for you to be happy every once in a while. Try it out.