rogerthatbravo
Well-Known Member
Must be nice (no state tax) lol
Still worth it?
- Thread starter Jay13
- Start date
bbmikej
Well-Known Member
One thing I have noticed is that states with lower income tax make it up with other taxes. Like property tax.
rogerthatbravo
Well-Known Member
Yes:
Realistically you start off in a regional make 23/hr (maybe 6-18 months , you are eligible to start around 80k for a mid tier company like Allegiant/Frontier/ Global crossing etc.)
Probably in 2-5 yrs you can get picked up by a major. (Majors probally gonna start at 100k topping out 160-200kish)
Or you don’t go to a major because you will probably be junior man for years and you realize the more money you make, the more you pay in taxes , probably better to stay at the mid tier airline and get seniority.
Overall yes it’s good to go in dispatch:
If you wanna go to the majors maybe 2-5 years, nobody really knows. They hired so much younger dispatchers your schedule will suck for years and if you are okay with having a messed up schedule, majors is the way.
If there is a regional airline that is in your home state, maybe you stay at the regionals for the convenience.
Or if you wanna start around 80k-ish and top out around 140ish, a mid tier airline like frontier or Allegiant or B6 is the way.
(I would check the spreadsheet for similar airlines too)
Your certificate cost 5k, you don’t have to go to UNI and you could travel for free lol
Really comes down to are you chasing the almighty dollar lol or work for a lower tier airline and have a better quality of life , better for your health
LastMinuteAirline
Well-Known Member
Hiring has always had ebbs and flows. Yes its been gangbusters lately but pre/during covid it was not. It was very competitive. You had to network and make yourself competitive. It was normal for it to take 3-5 years to make it to a major. But once you make it, however long that takes, it is in my opinion, the best job ever. I take zero work or stress home with me every day. Zero emails, calls, etc. I'm not even sure who my boss is because in my entire career, I have never been talked to about any decisions I have made. Almost any time I have an unexpected expense, I can pick up overtime. I have 4 day weekends every week. I can travel relatively easy to anywhere in the world. You may get stuck on midnights for a few years....worth it. You may get forced to take double time on a junior assignment...worth it. You may have to celebrate Christmas on the 23rd...worth it. All of the annoyances of being junior, are just that, annoyances. They pale in comparison to the incredible quality of life this job provides.
2 years at a major, and my biggest 2 week paycheck is over 10k gross. You definitely work for what you want if you have some long term or short term financial goals.
rogerthatbravo
Well-Known Member
Before spending 5k of your hard earn money:
I would shadow or take a tour of a SOC/GOC near you. Sit near a dispatcher for a shift and ask questions. I have seen dispatchers work the line and quit within a few months because it wasn’t what was imagined (this forum is great for networking)
I would shadow or take a tour of a SOC/GOC near you. Sit near a dispatcher for a shift and ask questions. I have seen dispatchers work the line and quit within a few months because it wasn’t what was imagined (this forum is great for networking)
rogerthatbravo
Well-Known Member
Yeah I agree, personally I’m not sure if I would ever buy a house working in the aviation industry
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gopherdx
Well-Known Member
Why not? Home ownership is fantastic as you build equity rather than just paying rent without anything in return. I grew up/lived in NYC my whole life in apartments and buying a house a few years ago was the best financial decision I’ve made. After P&I, taxes, insurance and escrow my monthly payment is $3000 which is lower than rent for a one bedroom (in some cases a studio) in the VHCOL metro areas. I wouldn’t let property taxes deter you from home ownership, ever.
rogerthatbravo
Well-Known Member
I’m not fully against buying a house. I would buy a house for investment purposes and rent it out. You just never know with the airlines. Just the history of the airlines such as Panam and TWA. Or airlines buying other airlines out, or 2008 recession or what happened few years ago, when people got furloughed.
gopherdx
Well-Known Member
Valid point but that goes for any industry. Just look at what’s happening with tech. An industry that was once booming and hiring like crazy is now laying off their employees in double digit percentages. Every industry goes through peaks and valleys but allowing that to deter you from owning vs renting doesn’t make all that financial sense. I do understand the reluctancy, though. To each their own!
balloonenthusiast
Well-Known Member
Make good impressions with the people you work with! When the hiring does slow down, the impression you leave on people will be much more important because you never know who’s gonna get in.
Even during this hiring frenzy, I’ve still seen people get their application tossed because they were god awful to work with and people weren’t afraid to say that.
Even during this hiring frenzy, I’ve still seen people get their application tossed because they were god awful to work with and people weren’t afraid to say that.
OttoPilot13
Well-Known Member
You're only as good as your reputation and in an industry this small, word travels fast.
who'swho
Don't hesitate. Penetrate!
Not enough like buttons for this.
Burrito
You ARE Freaking out. Man.
No -- *don't* push the buttons with the people!!
bbmikej
Well-Known Member
I'm a simple man. I see a button I push it. Kinda explains some things now.
Pepwave1
Well-Known Member
Listen...to be blunt, we work in an industry with small people who have big egos and not enough common sense.
No one wants to hear this, but the regional airline space is filled with people who are pros...they come to work, they do a good job, they go home.
The regionals are also filled with people who are awful to work with. They think they're god's gift to dispatch but have bad passdowns on a daily basis and still don't know how to derive alternate minimums after 5 years on a desk. Sometimes a regional is filled with dispatchers who advance to line/sector supervisor-type jobs (at some places they are called "coordinators") without enough experience in dispatching. They think they're God's gift to dispatching because they got offered the chance to move into that job after 2 months or 3 months on a desk. They're often snarky, arrogant, and rude, and like a cowboy who is all hat and no cattle...no substance.
Like every job, you have personal politics at play. Some people really are just unkind...and in this business you're going to meet a lot of them who smile at your face and talk badly about you behind your back. They'll make your life hell for no reason.
Others are kind. They'll share knowledge, and they'll be great to work with.
Don't worry so much about cultivating a reputation as just coming in, doing your job, and being affable. People are going to like you or not...that's not really any of your business except as it affects your actual job.
If you spend too much time worrying about your reputation, you'll go nuts...and besides...who wants to be liked by some of these people anyway? Small people with fragile egos belong on the flight deck...not in ops.
Small people with small egos thinking they can affect your career in the long term and like to say things like, "it's a small community...don't burn bridges because you won't make it very far"...seriously...they're in the exact same place you are at right now...and are likely stuck there. Be you...do a good job...let the chips fall where they may.
No one wants to hear this, but the regional airline space is filled with people who are pros...they come to work, they do a good job, they go home.
The regionals are also filled with people who are awful to work with. They think they're god's gift to dispatch but have bad passdowns on a daily basis and still don't know how to derive alternate minimums after 5 years on a desk. Sometimes a regional is filled with dispatchers who advance to line/sector supervisor-type jobs (at some places they are called "coordinators") without enough experience in dispatching. They think they're God's gift to dispatching because they got offered the chance to move into that job after 2 months or 3 months on a desk. They're often snarky, arrogant, and rude, and like a cowboy who is all hat and no cattle...no substance.
Like every job, you have personal politics at play. Some people really are just unkind...and in this business you're going to meet a lot of them who smile at your face and talk badly about you behind your back. They'll make your life hell for no reason.
Others are kind. They'll share knowledge, and they'll be great to work with.
Don't worry so much about cultivating a reputation as just coming in, doing your job, and being affable. People are going to like you or not...that's not really any of your business except as it affects your actual job.
If you spend too much time worrying about your reputation, you'll go nuts...and besides...who wants to be liked by some of these people anyway? Small people with fragile egos belong on the flight deck...not in ops.
Small people with small egos thinking they can affect your career in the long term and like to say things like, "it's a small community...don't burn bridges because you won't make it very far"...seriously...they're in the exact same place you are at right now...and are likely stuck there. Be you...do a good job...let the chips fall where they may.
autosave36
IROP Food tester. You're welcome.
Yes- There are bad dispatchers, ignorant sector sups, Duty managers who will try to make you send illegal stuff at the regionals. There are people who have big egos for no reason. All that is true. Yet, I still disagree with you on your main point. I get the impression by this post and others you've made that you're at a regional. When you get more time in and go to the majors you will see things more directly. Sure, you can't be paranoid about what your reputation is and you shouldn't be a kiss up at all times. But you need to be mindful of the things you say, the things you do and the quality of your work. If you get a reputation for always being behind, always asking the exact same question, being a know-it-all (especially if you are usually wrong,) or being someone who just isn't pleasant to have around for various reasons, it definitely CAN and HAS kept people down. Some of those people saying "Don't burn your bridges" are speaking from experience.
Some are lifers by choice, but know people because they've been in for a long time. Some are lifers by not choice. But most of the people that I worked with at a regional 5 years ago now have moved up. There's only a handful still dispatching. ALL but one are likely to stay there by choice until the day comes that they retire. The vast majority of people I worked with either are at a major, a ULCC, or something similar but are no longer dispatching at that regional. MOST people move up.
I know one person who somehow got on the wrong person's bad side at the regional. They'd been in the field for years and knew management at a lot of places. And that person put in a bad word for the other person at every attempt they made to get out of there. Eventually they did get out of there, but it set them back a couple years to do it.
Another person who worked at a different shop had the reputation of being "That guy." Always knew everything (yet was wrong), butted into conversations to the point where people in the office just made a group chat on skype and talked in there, and was just generally a loudmouth. Word got out he was applying to the major I work at because someone who worked with him at his 2nd airline talked to a former coworker who had worked with him at his first and currently works at the major he was applying to. That person told everyone at that carrier that had also worked with him that he was applying. A few sent emails to the training manager. This person who had passed the test and was invited for an interview very rapidly got a TBNT.
So yes, be pleasant to work with. Be friendly to those you meet. Always strive to learn and do better at your job and above all else don't microwave fish. That reputation DOES matter.
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safetyfirst
safetyfirst
There is no timeline honestly... Market are short staffed all u need a good and perfect time to be picked up.. So keep shooting your resumes.
who'swho
Don't hesitate. Penetrate!
So.... Have a REPUTATION for doing your job and being friendly?? Reputation matters in this industry. That's not to say it's a popularity contest but rather a reputation for work ethic, teamwork, approachability etc etc. If you think these things aren't important in this industry you're dead wrong. I have given negative reviews about former coworkers when management have asked for input and likewise given rave reviews about others. Negative reviews don't get you hired. Reputation.
