Would anyone be willing to provide some insight on the bidding process and schedule flexibility with United as both a reserve and lineholder? Probably just me but having trouble finding any details

 

That’s really broad and an explanation of reserve rules and bidding in general could fill a novel. Did you have a specific question?

 

We have PBS. That's about it. "Thinking" about applying?

 

Good points, I will try to narrow it down.

My spouse is also a pilot and we both want children so schedule flexibility is important to us. In this regard Spirit is high on our list because of straight trip drop availability as a lineholder and am curious if anything similar is available at united. Of course senority is everything typically but we just dont have a guage on many other places and trying to do our research.

So yes, i guess you could say “thinking” about applying but just trying to do my homework.

 

If possible, apply to an airline where you have yalls parents, future grandparents, that live close to base. If this isn’t possible, move to base that you could see building your family in and do research on future childcare/nannying in the area as a key point in base research.. and that the grandparents can get too easily nonreving.

once there bid your seat/ seat based on scheduling flexibility that comes with the fastest seniority movement to make it work. Don’t chase the biggest plane/highest pay rate/ca upgrade if your priority is family life.

I realize this isn’t super helpful but it’s how we have chosen a place to live/ what I bid. Wife is a nurse so she’s always in town but has very long hours so in some ways has some similarities. Sorry I can’t be more helpful

 

At United you would have the ability to drop trips and reserve days. You can also trip trade through an automated seniority system and move reserve days. The only problem with this is that there need to be a minimum level of coverage to change your days off. This can be extremely difficult at some time and easy at others. It depends on your seat/equipment and base as well as the amount of flying for a given month. If we continue to hire at this accelerated pace then it stands to reason that staffing will begin to tighten up during summer and holiday periods and this difficult to drop and trade days off. In the meantime, there are many bases and seats that are offering 50 hours to take the month off. I don’t know how much longer deals like that will be around.

 

Appreciate everyones responses. They are all helpful. Thank you for your time.

 

I will add that at a junior domicile before COVID, I was able to drop a trip maybe twice. In my understanding, UPS and FedEx offer much better flexibility in the regard, if you can take the flying as a junior guy.

 

United also allows one to drop down to zero.
However, both Spirit and United's contracts have a 'small' item that states a pilot can drop trips as long as there is sufficient reserve coverage.

Try dropping all of your assigned holidays and one will see that 'dropping to zero credit', while theoretically possible isn't guaranteed.

Of course Spirit does pay an additional $75 for pilots to fly on a holiday so maybe it's all volunteers who pick up/fly holidays at Spirit? /sarc


The one piece of advice I have (as a commuter) is to avoid being a commuter. Non-commutable trips add days per month away from home.

 

If you have the option of getting a job offer in multiple places, I think your best bet is choosing an airline with a big domicile in an inexpensive place to live. Ideally a junior one at that. Simply being senior will give you far more control and flexibility than any one airline’s contract… Especially when you are talking about pay and quality of life at a Legacy versus ULCC.

aside from the first year or two on the 757 at FedEx, I would have to believe that the ratio of pay to time at home would be highest as a FedEx guy living in Memphis… But being junior at FedEx is about one of the hardest “dues” one would have to pay in the industry (cue the fedex “it’s not that bad”.)

basically, being able to live off FO salary in a junior base (and driving to work) is about the best control and flexibility in person can have in this business. A couple years of seniority should enable you to work three days a week, and if you live in base, that can be three 1 day trips (or a 2-day and a 1-day).

Personally I spent a couple years doing Transcon two days on the 757 at united. Left the house at 4 pm and was home by 8 the next night. Six of those trips a month (at 12.5 hours apiece) meant I was off 18 days a month and essentially home 24 days a month with my family