You will want a car.

Now what usually happens is there will be cars down there from other students and youll end up going in groups to dinner and training. The last thing you want to do is wait for the shuttle to go back to the hotel after 10 hours of ground school. I hear this new hotel in Plantation is horrible with the shuttle.

So if you don't mind the drive, drive it. You'll have the freedom to eat where you want and not be beholden to anyone else when you need a ride to the grocery store etc.

Crunch the numbers on the drive and check out rentals too. Thrifty is $124 a week (with tax) and it at the airport, so no long bus rides like with some other rental places.

 

It's tough to say with that distance. If you were a lot closer, it would be a no brainer to just drive your own car.
Having your own car is very convenient as you won't waste the precious little time you have to travel between the hotel and training. Scheduling the hotel van and waiting can be very time consuming.
Chances are, there will be many people in your class who do have their own cars that you can ride with and get to/from the grocery store and class.
You have a lot to prepare for as class is very fast paced, so using those extra two days studying can be very useful.
I hope this helps. Good luck and welcome aboard.

 

Thanks for the insight guys.

 

Thanks for the advice. Got the study material today and class is currently scheduled for Oct 17th so I should have a good jump on preparing.

 

How far out can you pick your training date on the interview? Lets say I have an interview in October, can I request a class in March next year?

 

You probably could. However, say you were offered a Dec class date and turn it down for March. We are currently hiring Apx. 30 people a month so you would miss a chance to have close to 100 people below you in seniority.

 

At this point in your career I'm sure you know one day you could be one number away from the furlough cut off, one from upgrade, one from holding the base you want, one from being on rsv or not. And all of these scenarios could be your reality for 10+ years during a period of stagnation. Never pass up a class.

 

You can. Had a guy from my interview group select a class 3 months out due to a resignation requirement with his current employer. It's doable, but not recommended for the above stated reasons.

 

Lol. You don't need those extra 2 days. Training has changed a lot. It's gotten easier and they kind of help you more now than they used to. They had some training issues with guys not showing up prepared and needing remedials. So they changed the training up to make it a bit "easier" so to say. Before you start class, you'll get a schedule with your partner. Find him on Facebook or linked in and ask if he's local with a car. If not. Drive yours. He will most likely help you with gas and whatnot when you're there. Unless you have a big diesel truck, I wouldn't rent a car. Take the 2 day road trip and jam to music and enjoy the scenery. It'll get intense the next 6 weeks.

 

From what I gather. I don't know about 2nd year. But first is around $80. 12 year FO will be $197. Ca tops out at $290. Those are per hour rates I've heard. (Not per trip). DAL is gonna get a TA by year end. United will match. AA will match next year. UPS and FDX have monster pay scales. Spirit will hemorrhage pilots until they raise the pay. Going to need about $260-270 12 year CA at least by 2020 or I'm out. And I'll assume everyone will be as well. you're looking at MILLIONS over just 20 years if you don't make a move. Hopefully spirit management will see this. They F'ed up by not getting a TA before allegiant and now SWA. Now the bar is high. They will need to pay through the a$$. GREAT for the pilots though. Spirit has no motivation now to raise pay until flights start canceling. I heard we want 30/month hiring from here on out.

Just food for thought guys. Before you jump at scheduling call. If you hold out, we could get a giant pay bump sooner than later. Enjoy your days off and watch the wheels fall off and management scramble.