Ameriflight Duty Day

[Maurus]

Depends on the run. UPS will load and unload us at the "hub"but many outstations require us to unload and load as they only send one driver to grab the stuff. Same goes with DHL sometimes.

AMFers have gone to JetBlue and Allegiant. United hired some during the last time United hired pilots around 2005-2006. Many go corporate, charter, or air ambulance. Some run off to a regional.

 

[STS-41B]

Thanks man.. appreciate it.
What's loading/unloading like when you have to do so? I guess I'm just not excited about being someplace where it's raining or 105degrees and having to sling freight.
Is W/B something you have to calculate each flight, or are you assured of it being at least w/in weight limits?

AMF seems like a decent option to by-pass the regional BS game.. most hired into the Metroliner I'm guessing?
On their website it says new-hires get OAK or PDX.. how can that be? Are those bases so awful that as soon as new-hires hold the seniority they jump to another base??

 

[Inverted]

I guess I'm just not excited about being someplace where it's raining or 105degrees and having to sling freight.

Then don't get into freight lol.

Edit: For the majority, DHL and UPS runs you don't touch the freight. I have flown some UPS runs where you had to load and unload, or just unload. The bank work, you load it.

 

[Inverted]

Is W/B something you have to calculate each flight, or are you assured of it being at least w/in weight limits?

AMF seems like a decent option to by-pass the regional BS game.. most hired into the Metroliner I'm guessing?
On their website it says new-hires get OAK or PDX.. how can that be? Are those bases so awful that as soon as new-hires hold the seniority they jump to another base??

W&B is done for all 135 legs. You calculate it before you depart. New hires go into the PA31. OAK no longer exists it is now HWD. HWD, PDX, BUR and PHX have PA31s. Thats where you will go if you get hired into the PA31. I understand they are having trouble filling slots for SA227 and BE99 so people have been getting hired right into those. Usually at really crappy outstations.

 

[Maurus]

Thanks man.. appreciate it.
What's loading/unloading like when you have to do so? I guess I'm just not excited about being someplace where it's raining or 105degrees and having to sling freight.
Is W/B something you have to calculate each flight, or are you assured of it being at least w/in weight limits?

AMF seems like a decent option to by-pass the regional BS game.. most hired into the Metroliner I'm guessing?
On their website it says new-hires get OAK or PDX.. how can that be? Are those bases so awful that as soon as new-hires hold the seniority they jump to another base??

Definitely no guarantee you can bypass the regionals. Most people right now aren't getting to mainline carriers directly out of AMF. Not sure if it is because of a highly saturated experienced pilot market or what.

I have had to unload upwards of 3000#s of freight. Don't usually load more than 700.

I would say about half the UPS/DHL runs require the pilot to load and unload somewhere. I know a UPS run where the pilot has to unload and load an entire metro. If you fly to a small town you will have to do the loading and unloading.

 

[STS-41B]

Thanks for the info!

 

[brian434]

The contract requirements are killing me. Last place I worked for that had like contracts had a very good reason for them. Absolutely no one wanted to stay there once they got a taste of day to day life.

Someone tell me it's not as bad as the contract requirements make it seem.

 

[Inverted]

It's all going to come down to what you can stand or not. Some people can deal with it for 30 years. I don't think the training contracts are all that unreasonable.

 

[brian434]

Is a 99 really $5,000 harder to fly than a King Air 90? Why a contract? Why not treat folks right and make them want to hang tight?

 

[Inverted]

The 99 is a King air. They are so similar. The contract is because they are spending money for your training. As for treating people right so they will stick around... Ummm ya lol. Sounds so obvious doesn't it?

 

[TallFlyer]

The contract requirements are killing me. Last place I worked for that had like contracts had a very good reason for them. Absolutely no one wanted to stay there once they got a taste of day to day life.

Someone tell me it's not as bad as the contract requirements make it seem.

So, does the "absolutely no one" include the whole top half of the list no longer on a contract?

 

[Maurus]

Is a 99 really $5,000 harder to fly than a King Air 90? Why a contract? Why not treat folks right and make them want to hang tight?

Eh. They cant enforce the contracts. Tons of people leave CVG with a metro contract well before the year term is up. They don't get touched.

 

[brian434]

Hey Cj. Funny how you assume the most suck place I've worked is your current employer.

 

[Polymox]

2 questions re: AMF. Firstly, are pilots responsible for loading and off-loading the freight? I know FedEx feeders are required NOT to touch the freight. But I have seen some freight pilots having to load/unload. (ridiculous in my mind - we're paid to FLY, not be freight slingers, but anyway...)
Secondly.. what are some of the jobs AMFers have moved on to, typically? Airlines? Or does the lack of crew-environment disqualify you? other 135 stuff, corporate, etc?

A: It depends. In the smaller aircraft you'll probably load/unload at the outstations.

B: All of the above. As in anywhere, networking is paramount. It is, however, harder to meet other pilots when you fly by yourself.

 

[Inverted]

Networking doesn't really exist outside of AMF when you work for AMF. That is a crappy part about it. But when friends you meet at AMF go places, they can give you recs etc.

 

[z987k]

Networking doesn't really exist outside of AMF when you work for AMF. That is a crappy part about it. But when friends you meet at AMF go places, they can give you recs etc.

That's more of an individual thing. I didn't have too much trouble meeting non-AMF pilots.

 

[Inverted]

Well I don't/didn't either. But I didn't meet any pilots while in an AMF uniform. I met pilots through other aviation activities while I worked there though. Going from base, to an outstation, and back day after day doesn't really allow anyone to interact. now if you park at an FBO that is different.

 

[Cal Goat]

I have had to unload upwards of 3000#s of freight. Don't usually load more than 700.

I would say about half the UPS/DHL runs require the pilot to load and unload somewhere. I know a UPS run where the pilot has to unload and load an entire metro. If you fly to a small town you will have to do the loading and unloading.

If you're a real freight dog, you unload and load with a cigarette dangling out of your mouth the entire time.

 

[Tommay85]

If you're a real freight dog, you unload and load with a cigarette dangling out of your mouth the entire time.

...and not once does an ash fall. You'd better have a 3 inch ash on that thing when you're done!

 

[sounddoc]

So it's possible to get hired into the metroliner? I'm a 980/70 MEII and looking at places to go sometime at the end of this summer and have my eye on dirty turboprop planes. Really have no desire to go to the regionals. I'd also like to stay around Boston but I think that'd be a pipe dream at AMF?