jetpilot4142

I am trying to decide between Airbus or 737. I am looking at being in Houston or Denver.

I have heard that the 737 has a much better QOL and much more seniority movement. I am wondering if this is still true after considering the higher number of Airbus vacancies now and the addition of the coming 321's?

I also heard that the 737 averages 3 legs a day vs the Airbus 4, the Airbus isn't EOW but the 737 is meaning better layovers etc. Can someone shed some light on these things and your projections for seniority movement and QOL? Thanks

JackReacher

If you use the search function, there are plenty of threads discussing all of these issues.

AntiCompanyMan

Some of this info is dated, and on the outside looking in it would be helpful to get some fresh info on the topic. I also imagine that the flying that the two fleets do might be somewhat fluid and change seasonally or over the course of the year, or what the outlook could be as new A321s arrive? Would appreciate any insights people have

DarkSideMoon

Theres more movement on the 73, whether that is significant or not really depends on what percent seniority you are and what base you’re in. It makes about a 2% difference for me in my seat and base so negligible difference for me, might be much bigger for someone else. That being said IAH 73 FO is the second biggest position in the company. That means much higher likelihood of finding P2P trades and other fun schedule modifications. I’ve found the 73 trips are, generally, better. That being said it’s exaggerated how good the 73 trips are and how bad the bus trips are. 4 legs a day is rare on the bus but it does happen. Bus tends to have more “RJ” overnights but this will trend the opposite way as the 19’s and 20’s get retired and the 21’s come on property. We’ll start seeing more Hawaii and transcons on the bus and I’m wagering more “RJ” overnights on the 73 as the smaller busses become more rare.

My take is that if you don’t mind the ergonomic differences go 73, but if you get “stuck” with the Airbus you may find it hard to willingly leave FiFi down the road.

DarkSideMoon

Obviously this is all forward looking speculation but in ten years I suspect the Airbus flying will look almost identical to the 757 flying with a few smaller routes peppered in with the newer 319’s and 320’s that we’re keeping.

what that does to seniority remains to be seen. Based on airframe retirement numbers in 10-15 years I’d be shocked if the bus fleet really “expands”.

Otterbox

Pretty accurate near term at UAL. 737 is a worse plane, but the rest of the stuff is better. A new hire will be years on property before there’s any sense of shift in the dynamic.

PK387

One more data point: I'm at 66% in my seat as a 73 FO, would be 75% on the bus in the same base. 16 months on property.

ThumbsUp

I’ll add that seniority movement is a snapshot in time. On a NB, sometimes you’ll be more senior on the bus, sometimes in the 737. It’s not a one fleet airline, so people are always moving around. The true advantage to the 737 is just that there are more of them. That means more trips in open time to trade, giving you more schedule flexibility as a junior pilot.

ClappedOut145

The movement for the Airbus will be infinitely slower than that of the 737, so it all depends on what you want. I took the Airbus and am about 55% in base. If I went to the 737, I would be a couple of percentage points better. People will talk about how the 737 has better flying, and it's true. They do some long legs to cool places. My longest flight on the Bus is EWR-SMF, and it wasn't that bad (other than the cesspool that is EWR). The comfort of the Bus can't even be remotely compared to the 737, so if you are over 6' tall, I would consider taking the Bus. In the end, you're getting to United and can bid up to a different airplane right away. Think about what tye of flying you want to do and go from there. Either way, you're going to work your butt off during the summer and hopefully find a better QOL as a lineholder.

CLazarus

Bingo (same goes for DSM's next post too). Only thing I'd add to this is that the best future Bus flying will be out of EWR/IAD, but even then it will be a few years before it becomes a reality (so how long does the OP envision sticking in a NB FO seat?). Other bases may have some decent international as well (ORD/IAH), but I doubt nearly so nice as the northeast.