Southwest Pilot Needs?????

E

ERJ-135

New Member
People Statistics: Currently, Southwest has 4117 pilots and projects that the pilot headcount will approach 10,000 by 2012 due to growth and attrition.

Got this information on their web site. Is this a "pie in the sky" true projection or do you think this is an unrealistic projection?
 
Man, I'm totally banking on it.......they still have about 200 -700s scheduled for delivery though 2012. I'm not sure of the how many crews per plane they staff,but the last rumor I heard was 700+ airplanes/10,000 pilots by 2012. If you wanna become a SW pilot now is the time to get yourself situated for it....those 737 type ratings are gonna be as good as gold pretty soon.
 
Maybe somebody in the know (Doug,pretty please?) can help us figure it out,but the way I figured it is the currently have 10.6 crews per airplane now and by current estimates will have 14.2 crews per airplane by 2012. That seems a little bit high considering that they try to schedule most crews to fly between 5-7 hours. But then again I just used simple math,maybe one of the math geniuses here can further fine tune these caluclations
 
Looked on the Boeing web site and it says SWA have 115 737-700's on order at the moment, but it could be wrong since the website isn't that accurate. Anyway I have a question or two: What kind of money do SWA pilots make? Would they make a significantly lower salary than a 737 pilot working for a major airline, or? Anyone know?!?!?!?...
confused.gif
.
 
pilot salary table

This shows what SWA pilots made a year as well as all the other airlines. Keep in mind that this is from 2002 so its alittle outdated due to all the recent reductions in pilot pay at many of the majors. Also its a survey from Air Inc so it may or may not be accurate, who knows what Kit Darby will say.
 
737 Dude,
Maybe I missed it from another thread, but with that Jet Blue tail for your pic and your screen name as 737 Dude, I'm wondering which airline you have got your sites on: SWA or JB?
wink.gif
Make up your mind.
grin.gif
It would seem easier to go blue since you have experience with them.
 
[ QUOTE ]
737 Dude,
Maybe I missed it from another thread, but with that Jet Blue tail for your pic and your screen name as 737 Dude, I'm wondering which airline you have got your sites on: SWA or JB?
wink.gif
Make up your mind.
grin.gif
It would seem easier to go blue since you have experience with them.

[/ QUOTE ]

Here is a list of airlines I would love to fly for:
1-Southwest
2-JetBlue
3-Frontier
4-AirTran

I'll leave the big iron to you guys.....a 30 year career at one of these fine airlines is all I want. 6 leg days,here I come
wink.gif
 
This may be a dumb question that's already been answered before, but is it possible to get a 737 type rating independently from an airline training you? In other words, is it possible to get a 737 type rating without being trained in one as a new-hire for an airline? If not, how else are you supposed to be able to get a type rating prior to applying to Southwest?
 
[ QUOTE ]
This may be a dumb question that's already been answered before, but is it possible to get a 737 type rating independently from an airline training you? In other words, is it possible to get a 737 type rating without being trained in one as a new-hire for an airline? If not, how else are you supposed to be able to get a type rating prior to applying to Southwest?



[/ QUOTE ]

a. Yes
b. Yes
c. See above

FlightSafety, I think, runs a 737 type program as well as a lot of other organizations around the country.
 
Great article, my favorite quote:

[ QUOTE ]
The Boeing 737 is nothing more than that fine Piper Seneca on steroids. I loved it. I want one!!

[/ QUOTE ]
 
Plenty of places that offer 737 type ratings, they typically run between $6000 to $8000, some include free lodging, and/or
free travel. Just watch the one you choose, some are not as good as others. K&S as well as well as Higher Power are popular with the troops

Here is a site that I came across some time ago, if you are curious about the 737.
http://www.b737.org.uk/quiz.htm

As part of Operation Homeline Defence, they will screen you, if you are a US Citizen passport holder, piece of cake, foreign nationals have a tougher time getting screened.
 
That pay table shows that United B747 capt max at $25,000/month. No wonder they are bankrupt. Thats great money for flying one or two trips per month and doing somthing they love. This is the career for me!!!!
 
[ QUOTE ]
Plenty of places that offer 737 type ratings, they typically run between $6000 to $8000, some include free lodging, and/or
free travel. Just watch the one you choose, some are not as good as others. K&S as well as well as Higher Power are popular with the troops

[/ QUOTE ]

Also America West,Southwest and Continental run type rating schools too. But since a good buddy of mine is a P/T instructor at Higher Power, I gotta give um a shout out!
grin.gif
 
Here's a question: Say you get the 737 type rating and interview with SWA. Say, then that you are hired. Can you write off a portion of that expense as having a 737 Type Rating is a condition for employement with SWA??
 
Nah, way more than two trips per month for a major airline pilot. I'm on my third day off in two weeks and I'm about to leave for a 5-day training event in the morning.

Plus, you typically only make large international widebody captain your last few years of your career. I'll end up being #4 on the seniority list at Delta before I retire, but I'll be lucky to have been able to fly 777 captain for more than 14 months before the "long vacation".

Check out what some of the dock workers make on the west coast or the Mississippi Riverboat captains!
 
Doug- just off the topic- have you ever been banged by the canoes or flaps of those MD-90's? The wing is so low to the ground and there is so much crap under that wing that i might lose my head one of these days! Preflight could be very dangerous at night under the wing-they are really Mad Dogs!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top