Ok... so again, I'm new to the process and I don't really understand how commuting works... are you guaranteed a seat? Let's just go through a hypothetical commute from Nashville... what's the process?

What's the normal schedule like? Do you end up back at the RIC or STL base a lot or are there a lot of overnights?

How does reserve flying work? Will I have to be at the airport all the time?

When flying the line, what's a typical day/week like?

Thanks for humoring my questions--just trying to find out all the answers to my questions...

Thanks.

Chris

 

Chris

I will take a shot at answering your questions.

You will not have a guaranteed seat hardly ever, and never when commuting. that does mean it is hard to commute, but you have to leave yourself with two or three other options.

When you are on reserve, you will either be "home or Airport" reserve, when on home reserve you get to sit in the crashpad all day and wait on the hour and half call out, most often times I saw, I had many many hours to a day call for a trip on home reserve. Airport reserve you have to be at the airport and ready to go at the end of the phone call pretty much, but if you do not get used you get paid five flight hours for doing it.

The lines are what you make out of them, and how you bid, ask for advice on how to bid and read the bid packet, they wont teach you in ground schools, so for the first few bid periods that you bid you will get crap schedules, you just have not learned yet.

I drive in from indiana for my trips so I do not have to do airline comutting, and I bid all three and four day trips with early shows, and early end times. That gets me the most time at home with my wife and dog. Plus the four day trips have less driving that I have to do, saves me gas.

I like doing our united trips, four days, sometimes it is not alot of flying with long overnights, again I am lazy that is what I like.

There is a plenty of day trips and two days and the like, but it seems that the shorter trips go more Sr to people that live in st louis.

I hold most often times 15 to 17 days off every month, and if I get a day trip or a two day thrown in there, I just drop it, and I get 18 or 19 days off, and I have done that every month since April.

Reserve time is real short, and upgrade time is real short too.

I am not worried about the upgrade time, I have learned I am not ready at ATP Mins.

I think you will experince the same thing too, even though they hire low time guys, it is still a big boy job, and experince counts.

Feel free to ask more questions

Reeves

 

If we were guaranteed a seat, everybody would commute. Commuting sucks for just this reason...it's super-stressful and time-consuming.

Don't expect to see home again until the last day of your trip...unless you are on the American-side, hub and spoking out of STL. But your overnights will be at outstations. But then again, w/some seniority you can pick up day-trips. United flying is pretty much out of ORD/IAD. US Air is hub and spoke out of PIT.

Home reserve is a 1.5 hr callout. Airport Reserve is 15 min's or so. You hang out in the crew lounge all day. On reserve you get a mixture of both.

3 or 4 on, 2 or 3 off w/the occasional 4+ day's off.

Any more Q's feel free to shoot away!

 

reeves, you actually make TSA sound like a nice place to work! In fact, i kind of miss it! :*( I really do some times! I agree with you on the upgrade thing, when I heard about the ATP mimimums I was ****ed because my seniority would have held a captain position this fall, but I would have never taken it with only one year experience in a 121 environment, FOS need much more than 700 in type, one icing season, and a tutorial on how to use a radar! The captain has a very important job and a huge responsibility, something I wouldn't really be ready for with only one years experience at an airline, things are going to get hairy at the regional level with an ATP minimums wonder captain and some Delta Connection Acadamy hot shot slingin the gear!

 

How is life treating you,
I have not heard anything from you in a while

I kinda keep out of touch, I dont live in the G spot anymore, and I just stay at home and mow my grass, that seems to be my favorite thing to do right now.

Trans states is not too bad if you just keep the mindset that they are machines that need to be minipulated to get what you want. I consider my self doing good if I get 50 percent or more of what I ask for. I figure that is the best it is ever going to be.

I sit and work my magic.

Later on

 

I know it's been said the pilot group at TSA is great....are the FA's pretty cool too? Is it like the other carriers->mix of young, old, etc...

What are the hotels like...any good ones they put u up in?

I think I saw in a post recently that RIC was a good base....not too involved with the management,etc.....Is STL bigger/better?

I'm instructing and plan to do so for a while but live in ATL and haven't decided what i'm going to do. Obviously i know commuting blows and with ASA being here that's a possibility. Just curious about TSA and the likes

Thanks

 

ATL will be an easier commute. We have 3-4 flights per day plus 2 or so CHQ flights to STL plus the 3-4 DAL flights and now the Airtran stuff.

 

3 good regionals have bases in ATL and you want to commute to STl to work for TSA? (ASA, SKywest and Republic?) Get your time in instructing, you will need all those hours to upgrade anyways once you get to your jet.

 

I guess I missed this response. I was not trying to tear you down or attack you personally. My point was that it would be unwise to go to an interview or accept a job without knowing anything about it. I know I would not buy a house without at least one home inspection, or buy a car without looking at it.

 

yeah things are going pretty good over here, living 10 minutes from the employee lot makes life a lot better! I am holding 3 day trips and some weekends off! the flying is pretty good, the crews are awesome. I do miss STL and the g-spot, those were some good times. I kind of wish i would have stuck around, i would be in a pretty good spot over there, but oh well!