Which Legacy/Major do you want to work at and why...

Choose one...

  • American

    Votes: 29 11.8%

  • Delta

    Votes: 59 24.0%

  • FedEx

    Votes: 32 13.0%

  • Southwest

    Votes: 33 13.4%

  • United

    Votes: 58 23.6%

  • UPS

    Votes: 7 2.8%

  • Alaska

    Votes: 10 4.1%

  • Hawaiian

    Votes: 7 2.8%

  • JetBlue

    Votes: 11 4.5%
  • Total voters
    246
bimmerphile said:
Have you been to the PNW? It's way better
I live in jersey now and took the "live in base it's great" regional advice, but man would I love to live out there
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I think it's a pretty area. Done the Boeing factory tour and took a cruise out of SEA.

At this point, it's all about the family. Have one kid, probably work on a second soon, and parents/brothers are all in PA which is a driving distance from NJ. Inlaws are all in DTW. While AS does fly SEA-DTW, there is none to PIT/CLE, and it would always be a 2-leg nightmare non-rev or confirmed tickets, which is going to add up big time. I like to do at least 4 trips to PA per year and it's so easy by just driving it in. Plus, family can come here relatively easily.

I lived in the Bay Area for ~15months and that's where we had the baby. It was basically like living in exile with the distance away from family. Given a choice, I'm an east coast boy. As an added bonus, I'm basically back in NJ in the same exact area that we first moved to this country in 1992. My grocery store and local park are the same that my dad took took me 20-25 years ago. Now I take my son to those same places. Nostalgia, or whatever it's called. There's a certain value that can't be put on something like this. Plus, dad's side of the family is in Manhattan and mom's side in Toronto. I literally have no family west of DTW.


Bimmerphile where did you get hired, CommutAir?
 
Cherokee_Cruiser said:
I think it's a pretty area. Done the Boeing factory tour and took a cruise out of SEA.

At this point, it's all about the family. Have one kid, probably work on a second soon, and parents/brothers are all in PA which is a driving distance from NJ. Inlaws are all in DTW. While AS does fly SEA-DTW, there is none to PIT/CLE, and it would always be a 2-leg nightmare non-rev or confirmed tickets, which is going to add up big time. I like to do at least 4 trips to PA per year and it's so easy by just driving it in. Plus, family can come here relatively easily.

I lived in the Bay Area for ~15months and that's where we had the baby. It was basically like living in exile with the distance away from family. Given a choice, I'm an east coast boy. As an added bonus, I'm basically back in NJ in the same exact area that we first moved to this country in 1992. My grocery store and local park are the same that my dad took took me 20-25 years ago. Now I take my son to those same places. Nostalgia, or whatever it's called. There's a certain value that can't be put on something like this. Plus, dad's side of the family is in Manhattan and mom's side in Toronto. I literally have no family west of DTW.


Bimmerphile where did you get hired, CommutAir?
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I hear ya, if I see a scene in the Sopranos I can probably tell you where it was shot. I like NJ and love the people here, but man it gets old. Family is a different story, I don't have any kids (as far as I know) to raise and it would be nice to be close to the relatives I'm sure.

But no snow shoveling, no plowing, no rust on classic cars, pretty gals and stunning landscape with tons of things to do is a tough siren's call to ignore...

and yes, I will be riding the baby Dash into the sunset at C5
 
Cherokee_Cruiser said:
@Derg @Richman
and others


What about the scenario of the new AS. Rumor is they may close the NYC base. I live 20 minutes to EWR and about 1 to 1.5 hrs to LGA/JFK. If the base closes, I'd have to commute 2,000+ miles to SEA, PDX, SFO, or LAX. I love the company and I'm sure I'll love the combined carrier. Now I get your points that one shouldn't leave an airline for another one for a base-only decision. But what about NYC? It's the most junior place at AA, DL, and UA. While bases come and go, NYC is the largest city in the country and arguably the most important strategically. Even Pan Am's last stand was in New York. If AA, DL, or UA were to abandon NYC in terms of basing, it would certainly be a suicidal-type move?

In this particular situation, would you say trying to leave to maintain a NYC base would be worthwhile? Moving is out of the question. I've already moved 3 times for an airline base, and I am not moving again.
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Risk, reward.

If you're happy where you are now, that's a factor.

if you're happy, but driving to work is more important, that's a factor as well.

It depends! Say you go to AA or DL because of their NY presence, but you really hate the working environment...
 
Derg said:
Risk, reward.

If you're happy where you are now, that's a factor.

if you're happy, but driving to work is more important, that's a factor as well.

It depends! Say you go to AA or DL because of their NY presence, but you really hate the working environment...
Click to expand...

IMO, I could fit in almost any place (as I think most pilots can). There's really nothing negative about DL or AA in terms of the work environment. Sure, contracts can be better, pay, scope, JV protections, etc. But at the end of the day, we are paid to move metal in the matter prescribed by the company and to do so safely. If I'm at AA once the final SLI is out, I'm all ears for any CA beotching about the SLI, and will hear their grievances with a coke and a smile. We'll eventually talk about family, kids, etc.

I don't get worked up over the small/trivial stuff. I've had some CAs (past and present company) get all riled up on things that, at the end of the day, you can't control so there's really no point stressing over. It's like, chill out man, you'll live longer.
 
Rumor Probability Factor:

Heard from:

Instructor: -1000
CheckAirman:-1000
Flight Attendant:-10000
Random Admin type: -10000
Chief Pilot:-100000
Personage of Management:-100000 to -1e-99999 (variable depending on level of management)
Ramp Dude: -10
Seeing new aircraft type painted on the lead-in lines: -1
Girl who heard it from their brother's girlfriend's cousin, who saw Ferris pass out at 31 Flavors last night: +100 (it must be pretty serious)

Richman
 
Cherokee - We share the same stage in life. Early 30s, married, 1 child, moved back home to be around family, emphasis on driving to work vs long commute via aircraft, etc... I would pull the ripcord from VX/AS immediately. Who the hell knows what will happen in the future with them, but all we can do is make the best decisions with the information at hand. Alaska is a predominantly western airline and you are living in an outpost base on the east coast. Sure, NYC is the largest city in the US, but when I rank the Alaskan bases in terms of which ones are the most likely to stay open over the next 30 years NYC is at the very bottom. But let's say NYC remains a base at AS. I would still leave for UA/DL/AA. You're 32 years old! You live in a junior base at all three legacies that has a high probability of remaining open over the course of your career. Your seniority will be artificially high which, as you know, means your QOL, earning potential, and choice of trips/aircraft will be amazing.

You're asking for advice, and I get the sense that you want encouragement to bail. I'm happy to provide it because it's exactly what I would do, and I can't believe you haven't done so already. BTW, my advice has an 84% chance of career success so take it for what it's worth...
 
Derg said:
Risk, reward.

If you're happy where you are now, that's a factor.

if you're happy, but driving to work is more important, that's a factor as well.

It depends! Say you go to AA or DL because of their NY presence, but you really hate the working environment...
Click to expand...
If you think it's weird to call trips "rotations", open time "slips", or affix the word tactical to cost index SJI may not be the airline for you.
 
Richman said:
Rumor Probability Factor:

Heard from:

Instructor: -1000
CheckAirman:-1000
Flight Attendant:-10000
Random Admin type: -10000
Chief Pilot:-100000
Personage of Management:-100000 to -1e-99999 (variable depending on level of management)
Ramp Dude: -10
Seeing new aircraft type painted on the lead-in lines: -1
Girl who heard it from their brother's girlfriend's cousin, who saw Ferris pass out at 31 Flavors last night: +100 (it must be pretty serious)

Richman
Click to expand...
That's funny... I spend most of my months now in the training center, and people come down all the time asking for sweet, sweet instructor rumors.

"Dude, they don't tell me jack down here. I was hoping you had some good rumors from the line." :p
 
dasleben said:
That's funny... I spend most of my months now in the training center, and people come down all the time asking for sweet, sweet instructor rumors.

"Dude, they don't tell me jack down here. I was hoping you had some good rumors from the line." :p
Click to expand...
"Got any good rumors, Mr. Rep?"
"Nope. (1) They don't tell me anything and (2) Even if they did, I can't tell you - do YOU have any good rumors?"
 
Also for you moving to the PNW ;)

Get-off-my-lawn.jpg
 
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