Hold on, so your saying the majors will hire from within with no dispatch experience at all? Maybe I should drop doing line service and start throwing bags lol.
I have heared FedEx and UPS doing this with their people but I thought the cattle carriers wouldnt go near people with zero experience.
FedEx hires a lot from within, but mostly people who had 121 experience get the job. Lots of dispatchers by day, box throwers by night working around the system get in. I think (no real info) a lot of the Pinnacle openings in MEM are a result of this.
UPS has in the past hired a lot from within, but of late they require experience. Lots of box throwers have quit, gone and put some time in somewhere else, and rehired. However, UPS isn't expanding at the moment and has recently been threatening furloughs.
Haven't seen UAL postings in a long time. In he past they posted for a Assistants or Notam editor jobs, and you hoped to move through. AA also hasn't posted in quite a while, only recently (last year???) brought back the last of the TWA people who were on furlough there.
COA has some openings over the past few years and they seemed to go external, though now with the pending merger with UAL I wouldn't expect to see anything in the near term.
DAL almost exclusively hired from within. They even maintain and internal dispatch school to get candidates the licenses. So, conceivably you can have no dispatch license or schooling and get hired internally. Though, in the past that took a long while in other positions, usually some management time. They also preferred to train you their way. They have rarely gone external when not enough internal apps made it through the tests. Once in the late 90s (??), and again back in 2007. With the NWA merger complete, I haven't heard how they're staffed.
Jetblue and Virgin are rumored to pay well (i heard around $50K to start) but the cost of living in those areas so high it almost negates it. I heard Airtrans new contract is a big improvement, but not sure where it starts/tops at. SWA also has a pretty good payscale, and texas can be affordable, but they tend to lean toward internal candidates also.
Otherwise, I think everyone one else out there may start around the $30k/year range. Though maybe Hawaiian and Alaskan are higher??? Keep in mind that some of the charter guys pay pretty well, World, Atlas, Polar come to mind, but usually want int'l experience to talk to you.
My biggest advice is don't chase the money too much, if you find a company you can make ends meet and like to work, it may be better than running to the majors. Then again, it may not... try and find some god input beyond the smoke and mirrors the HR people talk. And also, remember, it's a small profession. Chances are some one at another carrier knows how to get info on you unofficially. If you have personality problems for instance, it'll come to light quick. And if you see a job that requires experience or strongly requests it, apply anyway. You never know...
