Life During Peak?
 

Hello, folks. New guy on the forums, hoping to end up at Brown sooner rather than later.

I'm curious about how life during peak is, especially for junior pilots. I'm trying to figure out the timing of my app, and I'm currently of the mind to wait until the 2018 season rolls around, since logic tells me that peak for a newbie is a busy, busy time.

(I searched a bit through the forums, but most all of the threads I found were either a decade or more old, or had devolved into bickering about supplemental lift/pay/etc.)

Are you seriously considering waiting until 2018 to apply because it might be "busy" for a new guy during peak if you were hired late in 2017 ?

I'm just trying to figure out the question ...

That choice could possibly lose you a hundred seniority numbers

:confused:

That's how I take it. Not a smart move, but that's not our decision to make.

I'm going to say something that will get me stoned on this forum, I know...

But a minor loss of seniority would be worth it if it allows me one more Christmas with the kiddos.

Yes, seniority is one of the many factors I'm considering, but I'd like to take a few minutes to think about what a fall 17 class would mean (canceling a family vacation in October, another from Christmas to NYE), and weigh all of that out before I commit.

Very understandable. After I wrote, I figured that family obligations was a factor. Best of luck!

Odds are good there won't be any newhire classes after mid-September, so that everybody is finished with training before Peak.

Peak is a busy time for EVERYBODY, new or otherwise.

Like any airline, if you're junior, you'll probably be working holidays. That being said, on Christmas Eve night aircraft operate into SDF and there generally aren't outbounds Christmas day, then early the morning of the 26th the system spins back up again. If you are based and live in SDF (or your family comes in), you can at least have ~24ish hours over Christmas Day with them.

Can't speak for how things work in ANC, ONT or MIA.

What's it like to just have every airline waiting for you to just submit your app?

You have already missed the boat for a class for 2017 most likely. Seniority is everything but you don't seem to use logic


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Man, I just love asking for help in a forum. I'm so thrilled to have my bad life choices pointed out to me so I can correct them.
:D

If ANC and junior would probably start a long multi-day trip or RSV block on Dec 22, work through Jan 1.

:eek:

2 weeks off before and after. :D

It might have changed, my experience is a few years ago.

There is no such thing as a minor loss of seniority.

First airline I was at, I made it to senior FO. Approx 10 numbers from upgrade in less than 1.5 years. When the dust settled, and the furloughs stopped, I was 10 numbers from the bottom by year 3.5.

Guys hired a month later got furloughed.

That's the extreme example, but its not unheard of to see quite a difference in quality of life within a few seniority numbers. That's not just at UPS

Good Luck with your decision