I need your help!! Thinking about quitting XJT

Brian,

I remember when Skywest offered you an early start date on the Bro. You turned it down because you did not want start first year pay and decided to stay at PCL. I respect that decision, it has worked for you, but if you would have started then you would have been a line holding captain in less than a year, at a base close to you home, making almost double what you make now. My point is a lateral move can be good sometimes.

I didnt take the bro, not because of first year pay, but because i was holding out for the CRJ. SJS, not exactly.......anyways, at times I do wish I had made the move to skywest, but oh well. I dont mind it here. BUT if Skywest had an LAX or ONT base, I would have left pinnacle in a heartbeat.

For greenday pilot, he is wanting to leave a good airline with a domocile where he lives for another good airline with a domocile CLOSE to where he lives. big difference. Any other airline besides XJT and possibly horizon, I would say bolt to skywest. But XJT....stay there. build seniority, get based in LAX or ONT in a few months. Even if it takes a year its worth it. Because as long as i am with my airline I will NEVER have to NOT commute. sucky!

GDP stay at XJT, you'll be glad you did.
 
I've been thinking of quitting XJT and moving over with SKYW. It will suck going through training again and starting at the bottom of the list at another carrier, but I think it might be a choice.

The main reason is that XJT stuck me at EWR and initially it was only gonna be a couple months before I can get my base of choice (LAX or ONT), but now that that they stopped hiring and won't start back up until maybe spring/summer it might take a long time. I don't know how long I can stand this 5+hour commute to get home, sometimes for only 30 hours in LA. Of course, its 30 hours during the week when all my friends and family are working so I really dont get a chance to hang out with anyone. Upgrade is now looking to be at least 3 years. If I move to SKYW, which is hiring through 2008, I'll be based west of the mississippi (better commute) with upgrade as low as a year. Hell, I'd actually love to fly the e120 over the jet (although I doubt they still have classes going for that).

Anyway, this EWR base is killing my life. I'm sure a lot of people will say to just stick it out and what not, but its really not for me.

What do you guys think?


jtrain and shortone, I don't know how you guys are dealing with it.


Sorry this is late .... but ...


are you retarded?
 
Point of clarification...

Just about every day of the week... Jtrain and GreenDay are gaining in seniority without even realizing it. Not from a perm-bid... Not from new-hires... Not from upgrades... but from pure attrition. No where is your move up the seniority list greater... than from the bottom of the seniority list... as long as the majors are hiring that is... ;)

Pilots in the mid-top range of the seniority list are being hired at CAL, DAL, NWA, FedEx, NetJets, etc...

"Every time a bell rings... a pilot get's their wings..." ;)

You are in a seniority based industry. Think of it this way... if you and Jtrain were to leave XJT during this process... the folks less senior to you would move up two slots... and that's with no new contracts... no upgrades... no perm-bid... etc. It is movement... slow movement... but movement nonetheless.

Bob

As usual, an extremely good point and something I can't argue with.

There are options and options on each side of the fence with this one. Right now, I'm staying put for a few reasons. Right now my base sucks, but I just got my January schedule and got my first pick out of the reserve lines (after relief, long call and floating lines), so life could be worse. I'm holding 3 blocks off at a time, which gets me home for 2-2.5 days a week, so at the present time I can't complain too much, though I'm sure I'll continue to :)
 
reserve lines (after relief, long call and floating lines),

Do your relief/long call lines go senior? Ours do. Also what is your long-call call out time? Those are the best deal IMO if you don't like to work and are happy @ min pay, also really really good for commuters.

Heck with all the over staffing I was almost about to bid reserve...almost!
 
I don't believe they do, but to be honest with you I never really looked into it.

Our long call is a 12 hour call out, and it's good if you're a commuter if you live fairly close to base. You're on a 24 window, so you can be called out at 10:00 p.m. to show at 10:00 a.m. the next day.
 
I don't believe they do, but to be honest with you I never really looked into it.

Our long call is a 12 hour call out, and it's good if you're a commuter if you live fairly close to base. You're on a 24 window, so you can be called out at 10:00 p.m. to show at 10:00 a.m. the next day.

Have you considered a floating reserve line?
 
Have you considered a floating reserve line?

HA!!!!!! HA HA HA!!!!!!! wait hold on a second..........HA HA HA HA HA!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sorry, couldn't help myself. I'm bidding #77 in the reserve pool in Newark, and I'm a U36XX if that gives you any idea of where I'm sitting.

I could hold a relief line in Cleveland, but I'm not even coming close in Newark.
 
Wow that's crazy, I think you'll see it drop off, if not come to ORF nobody works down here, it's great.

Hopefully it drops off a bit. This should be my last month of reserve anyway. I'm sure the lines that I can hold won't really be much better than my reserve lines, but at least I'll know when and where I'm going ahead of time!
 
I COMPLETELY disagree with Doug re: go to CAL before getting the PIC turbine.

HUGE mistake. Hundreds of US Airways pilots did that in the late 90s and, once furloughed, discovered they were not qualified to go to any of the companies that were hiring.

Sorry Doug. Gotta part ways with you on this one.
I knew a Captain here who went to United before he had the 1000 TPIC and was furloughed. He had to get hired again at SkyW, and then before he took his rehire, got his 1000. I am going to get 1300 (in case SWA goes up again) TPIC before I go somewhere else (if I go) at this point.
 
Yeah some people have told me to quick where I am and go to a regional. I'm not going anywhwere until I get 1000hrs TPIC. And hopefully then I'll be able to make a move up and not down. It wouldn't even be a lateral move by that point.
 
Like someone else said, what about IAH? I haven't looked into the particulars of base trading out of EWR to IAH, but at least it would make your commute somewhat easier.
 
Yeah some people have told me to quick where I am and go to a regional. I'm not going anywhwere until I get 1000hrs TPIC. And hopefully then I'll be able to make a move up and not down. It wouldn't even be a lateral move by that point.

Yeah man... definitely stay at AMF and get it. You'd be crazy not to, in my opinion. Bear with me for a second while I step out of character and toot my own horn, but I left there with close to 1500 TPIC, and I'm so glad I stayed. If you're even remotely interested, become a training captain and check airman in something turbine, too. When I hardcore started trying to get out of there, I had job offers from two of my top three choices and an interview invite to the third all within about two weeks. In fact, my first day of class was THE day that my contract at AMF was up. Flying the tube single pilot made getting a Lear type child's play, and the experience of shoving UPS boxes into every last nook and cranny translated well to loading bags for a family of five who normally rides on a Challenger. :D

I know I'm not telling you anything you don't already know, but I also know how peak can sometimes make you want to quit and work at taco bell instead. Enjoy it while you're there though, because in a lot of ways, I will always miss it. Hope peak wasn't too rough on ya, and that you have a Merry Christmas whenever you get a chance to celebrate it. :)



Now back to your regularly scheduled thread...
 
Yeah some people have told me to quick where I am and go to a regional. I'm not going anywhwere until I get 1000hrs TPIC. And hopefully then I'll be able to make a move up and not down. It wouldn't even be a lateral move by that point.

Seriously. At this point you'd be a complete tard to leave Amflight without getting your 1,000 TPIC. Even if you've gotta go to a crappier carrier after that to check X box you want to check, stick around until you've got that one taken care of.
 
Like someone else said, what about IAH? I haven't looked into the particulars of base trading out of EWR to IAH, but at least it would make your commute somewhat easier.

Personally? I think it's hilarious and insulting at the same time to hear this kind of stuff. A lot of people say to me, "Why'd you go to Newark?" when I tell them I live in Salt Lake City. We didn't exactly pick our bases out of training, and nobody would do a commute like the ones me and Miguel are doing right now just because we thought it'd be a good time to spend 4.5-6 extra hours getting to work, especially when Miguel has TWO bases at home.

There are no base trades happening and we can't simply switch bases on a whim. We'll have a chance to bid for a new base in March, and until then we're realistically sitting in Newark.
 
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