State of hiring for the mediocre.

SteveC said:
I will be uber curious to see how it all works out for you!

Also curious what some of the current line pilots are saying about their experience. I invested a lot of time and effort into that place, and I really hope it’s continuing down a good path.
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So some things have now changed. I was asking the wrong question so I was getting the wrong answers. That said. The wrong answers are great! Sadly, they are wrong. Here is what I found out asking the right question... Who is Speedbird? And how did this new company pop on the radar and somehow become part of NJM? And why can't anyone at NJM even remotely tell me about the "Florida Operations". Not even some of the actual NJM management team can not speak on what's going on in "Florida".

Answer. NJM is a great company and a great history. NJM is where you want to work. Speedbird is a terrible new company that is a couple years old run by a young entrepreneur that somehow convinced NJM a merger was a great idea. My guess and many others, the kid needed NJM name and some cash flow since he tainted his own name as great marketing and vision did not result in operational happiness for anyone touching these aircraft. NJM now suffers at the hand of this combination and may be quietly trying to fix a problem, yet the new kid on the block wants no advice from daddy.

As a pilot, you absolutely do want to work at NJM (in MI). It's an established great company. And as a pilot you should fly fast and far away from the Speedbird folks part of NJM if you want your sanity. This part of the pilot group is not happy from what I have learned since the vision is not reality and the reality is grim.

So. PSA, here I come. NJM, which is actually Speedbird trying to rebrand a mess by hiding behind a new name, adios.

I hope the NJM folks fare well long term as you all are an amazing bunch and truly great people. But the Speedbird crowd, oh how I hope they eventually break away from NJM and get out on their own under a different brand because they may taint the NJM name.
 
TexasFlyer said:
So some things have now changed. I was asking the wrong question so I was getting the wrong answers. That said. The wrong answers are great! Sadly, they are wrong. Here is what I found out asking the right question... Who is Speedbird? And how did this new company pop on the radar and somehow become part of NJM? And why can't anyone at NJM even remotely tell me about the "Florida Operations". Not even some of the actual NJM management team can not speak on what's going on in "Florida".

Answer. NJM is a great company and a great history. NJM is where you want to work. Speedbird is a terrible new company that is a couple years old run by a young entrepreneur that somehow convinced NJM a merger was a great idea. My guess and many others, the kid needed NJM name and some cash flow since he tainted his own name as great marketing and vision did not result in operational happiness for anyone touching these aircraft. NJM now suffers at the hand of this combination and may be quietly trying to fix a problem, yet the new kid on the block wants no advice from daddy.

As a pilot, you absolutely do want to work at NJM (in MI). It's an established great company. And as a pilot you should fly fast and far away from the Speedbird folks part of NJM if you want your sanity. This part of the pilot group is not happy from what I have learned since the vision is not reality and the reality is grim.

So. PSA, here I come. NJM, which is actually Speedbird trying to rebrand a mess by hiding behind a new name, adios.

I hope the NJM folks fare well long term as you all are an amazing bunch and truly great people. But the Speedbird crowd, oh how I hope they eventually break away from NJM and get out on their own under a different brand because they may taint the NJM name.
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Sorry to hear that, both for you and for the good people I know that have to deal with that mess.

(Small point of clarification - NJM Michigan also has a small base in Naples FL. Great folks there.)
 
SteveC said:
Sorry to hear that, both for you and for the good people I know that have to deal with that mess.

(Small point of clarification - NJM Michigan also has a small base in Naples FL. Great folks there.)
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It took awhile for the Speedbird folks to talk. The few that seem to exist that I found. And it makes sense. No one likes to say bad things about where they work. It made me sad to hear that theme since the non Speedbird folks love the place. The difference is quite extremeb
 
I've been hearing bad things about PSA the last few days from IPA folks who have kids that work there. I guess they implemented PBS and things didn't go well. Moral is not good and PSA is asking for voluntary LOA's. Just passing on what I've heard the last few days.
 
ClearedForOption said:
That's awesome. It'll be like putting on a old pair of shoes. Not the best traction, but it's gonna fit just right.

I hope that you'll be able to leverage currency into something bigger and better if the opportunity presents itself.
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Yeah. Once I get a year back under my belt at PSA, things will get back on track for me.

My resume will look odd but the story make sense.

PSA 2013 to 2014
Mesa 2014 to 2016
PSA 2016 to 2021
PSA 2024 to Present.

Love the old shoe analogy. Sure is like a pair of old shoes.
 
TexasFlyer said:
Yeah. Once I get a year back under my belt at PSA, things will get back on track for me.

My resume will look odd but the story make sense.

PSA 2013 to 2014
Mesa 2014 to 2016
PSA 2016 to 2021
PSA 2024 to Present.

Love the old shoe analogy. Sure is like a pair of old shoes.
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Screenshot 2024-08-01 at 3.17.47 PM.jpg
 
DE727UPS said:
I've been hearing bad things about PSA the last few days from IPA folks who have kids that work there. I guess they implemented PBS and things didn't go well. Moral is not good and PSA is asking for voluntary LOA's. Just passing on what I've heard the last few days.
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I worked at PSA 2014 - 2020 and looking back at it, man what a good time FLICA/SAP was. I still cannot believe management let us have that in contract 2014, forever grateful @BobDDuck . I literally never worked a weekend or holiday that I didn't want to the entire time I had a line there, which was the entire time. Not much to "pref" when you're just flying CRJs around Charlotte and Philly, but I hope the kinks get worked out... the good times never last.
 
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I came over from 91/135 to PSA as a DEC. Been here for almost a year (not counting the 6 months I was on the payroll without having to do a thing).

I can say the implementation of PBS has been a disaster for most it seems. Nobody seems happy with their August schedule. We finally have a somewhat better reserve grid, but now they’re saying we’re overstaffed (which is bs, we’re just overpaid in their eyes probably).

It’s constant chaos with ops. For my experience with 135 it’s not really that bad (cause 135 sucks and I’m used to that part), but it is nowhere near what I expected from a 121 op, even from a regional.
 
averettpilot said:
I came over from 91/135 to PSA as a DEC. Been here for almost a year (not counting the 6 months I was on the payroll without having to do a thing).

I can say the implementation of PBS has been a disaster for most it seems. Nobody seems happy with their August schedule. We finally have a somewhat better reserve grid, but now they’re saying we’re overstaffed (which is bs, we’re just overpaid in their eyes probably).

It’s constant chaos with ops. For my experience with 135 it’s not really that bad (cause 135 sucks and I’m used to that part), but it is nowhere near what I expected from a 121 op, even from a regional.
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Very unfortunate. I know Endeavor has a terrific PBS system in place from what I hear and when I was at Mesa PBS was terrific. A shame PSA has a mess with the change from line bidding to PBS. Hopefully PSA gets the bugs worked out and Envoy has a smoother transition. I believe Piedmont uses PBS for some time now, but I do no know anywhere there that can comment on how efficient and effective their PBS is for bidding.
 
If I just told ya'll what happened now, you would be in disbelief. So I won't. Just stay tuned.
 
drunkenbeagle said:
What's Vague-booking called here?
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I had to change directions. I expect one thing to be constant in aviation, and that's change which requires flexibility. But a few things can not change rapidly, such as training standards and safety protocols. Communication is beyond confusing at NJM.

Today out of nowhere, I get an email stating my first day with NJM will be at FSI getting a type rating, prior to even a meet and greet with anyone at NJM. No indoc, no ops specs, no company orientation, etc. Just show up at FSI for a few weeks to get a type and 135 check before even stepping foot on company property. So I emailed my contact and asked if this is the normal standardized process since this is not something I was expecting and not something I seen in the 121 or 135 world.

I get a response pretty quickly with an apology that I never received my welcome package that will explain everything. And I was assured that the process would be company onboarding followed by Indoc (ops specs, 135 regs, profiles, etc) and only after that would I be going to FSI. I was grateful to see that the standard process since a standard process insures safety and quality and that nothing is missed or rushed in an abnormal way.

Then an email 5 minutes later from another person completely uproots the standard training footprint stating due to circumstances the standard training in my case will not be followed. It will be FSI first for the type and 135 check. Then after that online training and then last indoc. Never any onboarding.

I did not receive the conflicting info well so I terminated my pre-employment process since only a week ago I had a very long conversation about these very concerns; lack of standardization, acquisition integration struggles, internal communication issues, etc. And that was from a lot of strange things occurring with scheduling over the last few weeks and information I uncovered from various sources. So I am back to the conclusion I had before. NJM has a terrific Michigan operation but something has gone seriously astray recently and the expansion into the CJ3 fleet is a real struggle and it will take a special person to be a part of that. For me, it's not the proper employee-employer relationship.

That's the update. I will say, if someone currently flies Part 135 and has a lot of recent hours, this may be a great place for them to get in on the ground floor and truly make NJM a great place over time. But for me, a person who only flown 55 hours in the last 6 years (Part 91 in a DA40), this is not the place for me to make entry safely and confidently as a Part 135 CJ3 Captain. I am confident in a standardized process I would excel, but coming off from my extended aviation absence I do not feel this hap-hazard approach is the right fit for me. So, decision made. Not the right fit for me at this time.

So, that's half the story.... other half of the story will come soon since as I was emailing my pre-employment termination letter, the phone rang with something that is the right fit if it actually happens.
 
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