Regional help.

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dnov27

dnov27

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Hi guys! New to the forum, first post!

I am having a bit of a conundrum trying to figure out what regional to accept a class date at and I was wondering if anyone could give me their two cents on what the best move would be. At this point I have offers from Xjt, Rah and Envoy. And I am rapidly approaching the 1500 mark. I intend on going to class somewhere in the next 2-4 weeks. This is what I have been thinking for the three offers so far. Please correct me if I am wrong:

Xjt: Interviewed earlier this week successfully! However was told all the classes for august have been postponed and unfortunately they were unable to provide a timeline for when those classes might be rescheduled. With xjt it seems the word around the street has been fairly negative with thoughts of stagnation and parking airplanes obviously from the outside looking in this has me worried, but anything could happen and in the hiring department they seemed to think that the slow of hiring and parking of jets is somehow managements way to scare the pilots into a contract. Not sure how true this is. They also said they expected larger aircraft from INC. After a deal is signed. If any of the above koolaid from the hiring department is true it would seem like an alright place to be. Any xjt guys have any opinions on any of that?

Rah: Also interviewed successfully here in March. From what I can gather the contract leaves a lot to be desired. No cancellation pay sounds like a nightmare to me and I never particularly hear anything positive from threads about them. However, big airplanes sound like job security to me and they actually have class dates scheduled. I've been offered a choice of two of them. Both 170/175 one for Republic and one for Shuttle America. I don't know what one I would pick maybe an Rah guy could provide some information that could help me make a decision on which class to take IF I decide to go there.

Envoy: Successfully interviewed in March. I would say i am a little less educated on the current situation here. I know management has been playing hardball and the hope of the 175's seem to be dwindling and lately positive threads seem to be lacking. However things could always change overnight it seems pretty common for that to happen in this industry. Also, I am unsure of the upcoming class dates being that they want me to get a few more hours before they want to assign me anything. Advice here also much appreciated!

Options are always a good thing so I am certainly grateful for that but of course I have been second guessing myself. I am open to interviewing at more places if anyone has any suggestions. I was especially hoping to get a call from Compass but I have had no such luck. Also if I makes a difference I would be living in either dtw or cvg depending on which one commuting from would be easier.

An aviation mentor once told me to make a decision based on the information that I have now and to buy him a beer in 5 years and he will tell me if I made the right decision. So with that I am in the information gathering stage!

Thanks guys!
 
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dnov27 said:
Hi guys! New to the forum, first post!

I am having a bit of a conundrum trying to figure out what regional to accept a class date at and I was wondering if anyone could give me their two cents on what the best move would be. At this point I have offers from Xjt, Rah and Envoy. And I am rapidly approaching the 1500 mark. I intend on going to class somewhere in the next 2-4 weeks. This is what I have been thinking for the three offers so far. Please correct me if I am wrong:

Xjt: Interviewed earlier this week successfully! However was told all the classes for august have been postponed and unfortunately they were unable to provide a timeline for when those classes might be rescheduled. With xjt it seems the word around the street has been fairly negative with thoughts of stagnation and parking airplanes obviously from the outside looking in this has me worried, but anything could happen and in the hiring department they seemed to think that the slow of hiring and parking of jets is somehow managements way to scare the pilots into a contract. Not sure how true this is. They also said they expected larger aircraft from INC. After a deal is signed. If any of the above koolaid from the hiring department is true it would seem like an alright place to be. Any xjt guys have any opinions on any of that?

Rah: Also interviewed successfully here in March. From what I can gather the contract leaves a lot to be desired. No cancellation pay sounds like a nightmare to me and I never particularly hear anything positive from threads about them. However, big airplanes sound like job security to me and they actually have class dates scheduled. I've been offered a choice of two of them. Both 170/175 one for Republic and one for Shuttle America. I don't know what one I would pick maybe an Rah guy could provide some information that could help me make a decision on which class to take IF I decide to go there.

Envoy: Successfully interviewed in March. I would say i am a little less educated on the current situation here. I know management has been playing hardball and the hope of the 175's seem to be dwindling and lately positive threads seem to be lacking. However things could always change overnight it seems pretty common for that to happen in this industry. Also, I am unsure of the upcoming class dates being that they want me to get a few more hours before they want to assign me anything. Advice here also much appreciated!

Options are always a good thing so I am certainly grateful for that but of course I have been second guessing myself. I am open to interviewing at more places if anyone has any suggestions. I was especially hoping to get a call from Compass but I have had no such luck. Also if I makes a difference I would be living in either dtw or cvg depending on which one commuting from would be easier.

An aviation mentor once told me to make a decision based on the information that I have now and to buy him a beer in 5 years and he will tell me if I made the right decision. So with that I am in the information gathering stage!

Thanks guys!
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Where do you live? Any designs on Compass or Mesa? I mention them because of the upgrade times.
 
If you are going to be living in DTW or CVG I would say keep trying for Compass. Maybe attend a job fair or network with some Compass guys, that might help open some doors. If you are going to be living in CVG, I guess PSA would be an option out of DAY perhaps. I also wouldn't rule out going 135 with Cape Air, Ameriflight, etc.

I would not recommend coming to XJT.
 
I have looked at PSA a little bit DAY base would we awesome it's like a 45 minute drive from my place. But everyone always speaks VERY negatively about them.
 
dnov27 said:
I have looked at PSA a little bit DAY base would we awesome it's like a 45 minute drive from my place. But everyone always speaks VERY negatively about them.
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Well, everyone has to take a turn at being bashed. The regionals are a shrinking industry in the future (my opinion) and there will be more hurtful things said the future when times get tougher and tougher for everyone. Of the three you listed, I would have a tough time rationalizing going to any of them with the current movement of jets around.
 
Rodger Wilco said:
Pick the one that allows you to sit reserve in your parents basement and not some hotel room on your own dime. They are all equally as crappy. If I were to do it again I would pick the one with a JR. domicile where I live or where I can move cheaply.
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That is exactly what I am trying to do and you are right they are all crappy.
 
jynxyjoe said:
Well, everyone has to take a turn at being bashed. The regionals are a shrinking industry in the future (my opinion) and there will be more hurtful things said the future when times get tougher and tougher for everyone. Of the three you listed, I would have a tough time rationalizing going to any of them with the current movement of jets around.
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Yeah, that is probably why I am having such a hard time picking, trying to figure out what one of the 3 will suck the least. Back to the Mesa thing surprisingly I have not heard from them and I have an App in, I was under the impression they were trying to get anyone and everyone over there.
 
dnov27 said:
Yeah, that is probably why I am having such a hard time picking, trying to figure out what one of the 3 will suck the least. Back to the Mesa thing surprisingly I have not heard from them and I have an App in, I was under the impression they were trying to get anyone and everyone over there.
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Probably something wrong on the app.

I'd love to see you goto ASA/XJT but I'm worried what their future is. ASA is a good crowd and they get paid well with great contract provisions. None of that matters if Delta starts grinding them against the walls in a corner, and that's what Delta proudly told the Endeavor guys and their minions running Endeavor now have parroted the same. You might start on one and go somewhere else six months later once you get your feet wet.

Lots of ways to go on this man.
 
jynxyjoe said:
Probably something wrong on the app.

I'd love to see you goto ASA/XJT but I'm worried what their future is. ASA is a good crowd and they get paid well with great contract provisions. None of that matters if Delta starts grinding them against the walls in a corner, and that's what Delta proudly told the Endeavor guys and their minions running Endeavor now have parroted the same. You might start on one and go somewhere else six months later once you get your feet wet.

Lots of ways to go on this man.
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Yeah, I have a lot of friends over at ASA/XJT and they all basically say the same thing. If they had firm class dates lined up I might just make a reckless decision and go over there.
 
jynxyjoe said:
Hehe. Seriously though, look at Cape Air, seems like they treat their employees like adults and pay appropriately.
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You mentioned something about jumping to JetBlue, do they have some sort of agreement with Cape air for pilot hiring?
 
dnov27 said:
Yeah, I have a lot of friends over at ASA/XJT and they all basically say the same thing. If they had firm class dates lined up I might just make a reckless decision and go over there.
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I would not recommend under any circumstances that you go to XJT. It's a sinking ship, and the folks that are there currently will be lucky to simply hang on while the airline shrinks into nothing.

This isn't hyperbole, this is math. They're parking a little over 100 ERJ's by the end of 2015 if I'm not mistaken.
 
I second Cape Air. If I was a young guy in the lower 48, they would be my first choice as a reasonable alternative to going to the regionals. That said, I only know what I have read about them on here and other places, so take my opinion for what it's worth. Sounds like they move you around a lot, but if you're a young single buck you might as well embrace the adventure and see what happens.
 
Of the three you listed, RAH probably has the more certain future, but even that is questionable. I started at republic in September on the Chautauqua side which is slowly being phased out due to staffing issues and trying to grow the 170 sides. Our lack of contract is keeping a lot of people from applying here. Management knows this and I wouldn't be surprised if we got another one to vote on in the next 3-4 months (whether it gets a yes vote is up in the air). Xjt and envoy have good pilot groups and I hope it works out in their favor. Really what it comes down to is where you could live in base. My QOL would be 10 fold better if I didn't have a 3.5 hour commute to work.
 
jtrain609 said:
I would not recommend under any circumstances that you go to XJT. It's a sinking ship, and the folks that are there currently will be lucky to simply hang on while the airline shrinks into nothing.

This isn't hyperbole, this is math. They're parking a little over 100 ERJ's by the end of 2015 if I'm not mistaken.
Click to expand...

But, but we are getting MRJs! :rolleyes:
 
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