Wednesday night.

 

Any word on new hires going back to the 756?

 

Not until all 76t pilots are trained to the 756. Not enough sims or slots for new hires also. Probably after the summer.

 

All those new hires who went 756 6 months ago are now stuck on the bottom of the list for the foreseeable future. Meanwhile, I had a July bus new hire in the jumpseat last week who's already a line holder.

Hopefully for their sake they start sending new hires to the 756 again soon. Unlikely in any significant numbers.

 

For those of you looking at choosing 737 vs Airbus, is there any way to know which might be a better choice for a specific base? (i.e. which one may have faster movement) Or are there too many changes for that to be reliable and you just have to go with something?

 

Movement pace changes with every vacancy bid. Anyone that says they can answer that, wouldn't be working here because they would've won the lottery already.

 

All you can do is look at the relative size of the bases you are interested in and the seniority of the base... and make your best guess. For example, there are about 215 737 FOs in SFO and about 125 Bus FOs in SFO, a fairly junior base overall. You'd think movement would be faster on the 737 since the SFO base is new, but the base has been filled with relatively junior FOs who won't be moving on for awhile. On the other hand, many of the BUS FOs there are fairly senior and upgrading to CA now, so I believe movement on the Bus has been much faster in recent months. That might not be the case anymore next month so don't agonize about it if your best guess turns out wrong. You'll be happier if you come to expect the unexpected.

 

I warned newhires to avoid the 756 back then. Many disagreed with me, in spite of the fact that a 737 or 320 FO could bid up to the 756 at any time. Plus, all aircraft pay the same on year one. I see zero advantage to going to the 756 as a newhire.

No matter which aircraft you choose - 737 or 320 - it will be the one that takes the longest to get a vacancy in the base you want to go to. Call it FO Murphy's Law.

At this point, it's a crap shoot. Choose the aircraft you'd prefer to fly. If you like noisy, cramped environments, go with the guppy. If you prefer to be reasonably comfortable and have a 110 pound tray table, go with fifi as long as you don't mind the aircraft calling you stupid every time you land.

If it were me, I'd go with fifi. So the guppy's probably a better choice for your desires.

 

What did the drop end up looking like?

 

If you like 24 hour Caribbean and Central American overnights, some all inclusive, then guppy. If you like domestic stuff, then fifi. I personally enjoy warm weather and beaches. I'll deal with the meal tray in my lap.