What airline?

[ready2fly]

[ QUOTE ]
Unfortunately just before I was supposed to go to Flight Safety the insurance company said there was no way they were going to let it happen and it fell through.


[/ QUOTE ]
Therein lies the rub.

I would fly corporate in a heartbeat. I even have pretty decent connections (uncle's company has a Falcon 100 .... and he's the CEO), but it's my understanding that you have to have pretty steep TT just to be considered.

 

[TheWife]

For my husband he has always just said he wanted to fly for Delta, I think because he considers it "Brand Name" and he'd also be happy to fly for Skywest. He'd take a job with anyone, but he'd think he was pretty cool if it was Delta or SW. Now by corporate/bizjet does that mean like a buisness that owns a private plane and stuff like that?

As for you "Mr.- Song and JetBlue has groovy stewardesses"-why don't you just go ahead and set the airline industry back a few decades? We are all trying very hard to get away from the sterotype of pilot/stewardess after hours rendevous in the various hotels. People like you are going to keep that assumtion floating and you make it so that anytime I tell someone my husband is a pilot they will look at me with sympathy, assuming he is shagging a flight attendant while I am home with the pool boy. You may have meant it as a joke and I hope that really isn't your attitude, but it's not a funny joke nor is it going to accomplish anything.

 

[derg]

[ QUOTE ]
what airline/job and Why.

[/ QUOTE ]

It usually boils down to your experiences wth the airlines. Mine, when I was a kid, was United because they were my first flight, showed me all of the bells and whistles in the cockpit and sent me a UAL "Flying Colors" coloring book.

Those guys were like rock stars to me and since I lived in California, it was either UAL or Western.

Well, Delta bought Western and gutted the operation so when I was in college, it was UAL all the way.

 

[stuckingfk]

Great question Eagle.

As for me, I will not turn down many jobs if it means getting experience, but I want to go Corporate all the way. The variety of flying, the equipment usually being top notch, pay can be great, and the schedule.

When I toured Citation Shares, I guess this is a fractional), but their schedule was 7 days on call/7 days off. For me as a person, that is totally what I would want. Having 7 days off in a row that you don't have to answer your phone is great.

Last year I listened to Ed Forst, the cheif pilot for Duchossois Industries, Inc. After hearing him speak here at UND, I made up my mind that corporate was for me. He flies a GIV, and whenever his boss wants a vacation, he gets one too! I could live with that.

 

[stultus]

I've just always wanted to fly something big, and the airlines have always had that mysterious je ne sais quoi...though I'm beginning to see the reality.

Right now if I had a choice I'd like to fly for NW because I'd like to eventually settle in MSP. I wouldn't mind commuting for a while, but I definitely want to live where I'm based when I'm old and tired and have a family. Plus the red tails just look cool

 

[Bert]

[ QUOTE ]
Those guys were like rock stars to me and since I lived in California, it was either UAL or Western.

[/ QUOTE ]

Ahhhhh....Western. They had the coolest commercials way back when...with the talking moon sitting on the fuselage with his back on the tail.

"The OOOOOOOOONLY Way To Fly..."

 

[davetheflyer]

I think that it is mainly a matter of having a favorite airline. Growing up in Georgia, Delta was always my favorite. They had cool looking colors that covered ATL when I went there with my parents.

Of course, today any prospective professional pilot would be foolish to hold out for a job with a particular company. The way things are now, you are lucky to get any job offer. If you hold out, you may be competing against thousands more furloughed pilots.

I enjoy 121 flying, but I would definitely consider 135 if something happened to my present job.

 

[Snow]

I'd say it's a combination of routes and aircraft for me. I want to fly internationally so that elminates a lot of your budget airlines and I would imagine a lot of corporate work too. Also I'd like somthing with a nice pay scale, good benifits and job security and that all seems to point to a large airline. Also I'd like to fly the 747 some day so any airline that flys them would be nice and since United is the only US airline that flys to Australia and only one of two to fly 747s that's my goal. Although a gig with Qantas wouldn't be bad either, they just don't have as much vararity as far as routes and aircraft go.

Also I don't think a job is just a job unlike some (ahem Eagle) I believe there is such thing as job satisfaction and a satisfying career. I chose flying not just because I like flying, but I also love aircraft and all the technical chalenges that go with being able to fly one. it's hard to beat the satisfaction of flying a difficult instrument approach and poping out at minumums with the rwy right there in front of you. Just my opinion.

Oh and while I'm thinking of it Eagle, I can read my glow in the dark watch just fine in the cockpit at night.

 

[goldeneagle]

Great topic, Eagle, and it's made for some awfully interesting reads so far. But I believe we've all missed one important point that Doug has so eloquently articulated in the past: aviation is feast or famine.

Right now, since we are assuredly in a real famine here, of course it won't matter what airline we may aspire to work for or holding out for the right job offer. You'd have to be plain dumb or have some major source of funds to pass up on any offer from any operation 121 or 135 in such an employer's market.

But I know I'm not the only optimist among my fellow aviators, times will get better and we'll go back to feasting mode, and that point, I bet you'll start looking at the nitty gritty of contracts, terms and conditions, schedules and bases, times to upgrade and even family issues like school districts and spouse's preferences if you're married (man, I'm so glad that's not a factor for me yet, it'd be so tough to keep the wife happy and further my aviation career at the same time in an economy like this).

That being said, at a basic level of a professional pilot starting out, even in good times we'd be silly not to jump on the first good offer from a regional, for example, because of that almighty seniority number and the importance of jumping on that wagon ASAP.

For my part, I'm very ambitious, like my Aussie friend Snow, ever since my FSI days I've always aspired to fly internationally so my goal is to actually make it to one of the Middle East or East Asian carriers, Emirates would be number one then Cathay Pacific a close second.

The US carriers don't offer as much in terms of international flight, I mean, you'll spend years building up seniority and then you might get a route out to Heathrow or Orly or Schiphol, the usual. I'd like a shot at Singapore, Cape Town, Casablanca, Istanbul, Vienna and others. Very slim chance of ever getting a route flying to those cities for any US carrier, especially now with all these alliances. Just my .02

 

[I_Money]

I guess as some one said it is an ultimate goal - reaching for the top level. It is similar to a little kid saying I want to play football for the Cowboys!!!

When you are at the top you realise all airliners are pretty much fly the same whether it is a DL 737 or a UA 320 or a Atlas 747.

 

[Maximilian_Jenius]

Delta Airlines has always been a favorite airline of mine.

Everyone on this board prolly knows that.

But growing up as a child TWA was always my favorite

airline for different reasons.


It's no secret that I hope to fly for them in my professional

career. But I definately do not limit myself to only wanting

to fly for Delta. My second favorite airline is clearly

Continental Airlines


Why Delta/Continental you might ask?

Like I have said countless time prior there fleet of aircraft is

a major selling point which happens to be an all Boeing fleet.


Another major selling point for Delta/Continental are there

hubs most notably ATL,DFW,CVG and MCO. And IAH,CLE

on the Continental side of things


Having grown up in the southwest I have grown a strong

love of the southeast and the midwest. It is so very different

in direct comparison to the dry hot and brown dusty place

that is Arizona.


Furthermore I wish to be a domestic pilot for a 121 carrier.

Flying 737-800/900,757,767,777 and the 7E7 if it is built.

Point #3 for Delta/Continental they have excellent route

systems both domestically and internationally.


Lastly Delta is/was a damn good airline and many consider

them the industry leader both in pay and in prestigue. And

honestly who doesn't like being on the winning team.


Now I'm not stupid I don't HAVE to work only for Delta or

Continental. When I have enough hours to apply to the

majors Delta and Continental will be my first two choices in

that order.


But if I were to get a call back from US-AIRWAYS or United

or American Airlines or even Southwest I'd not be stupid

and hold out for Delta or Continental to call me up.

But honestly is there any harm in having favorites?



Matthew

aka katsuhara

 

[Maximilian_Jenius]

Southwest Airlines, Jetblue, Frontier and Air Tran are all very good airlines. and as mentioned above if I was offerred employment with either of the companies I'd definately not turn down the job.

But I was just wondering if anyone considers them maybe just a lil boring like I do?

Most of these airlines fly only one type of aircraft.

Doug has mentioned that flying the MD-88/90 has grown somewhat monotonous and that can fly the plane in his sleep (not literally tho).

Life is all about change and challenge at least to me. If I were to be hired at an airline it would be kool to have goals within that airline.

Example: Lets say I was hired in as a first officer for oh lets say Delta on MD-88/90 my first goal would be being a F/O. My next goal would be to transition up to captain.

From there my next goal would be transition to another aircraft once I had grown bored of flying a particular type of airplane. You know keeping things new and fresh.

But you really can't do that at Southwest or Jetblue can you because they only fly one type of aircraft.

It'd be fun at first and most notably for a very long time in fact but soon enough the job would become boring and monotonous I might imagine.

The larger airlines tho yes bigger and not turning profit like the smaller LLC still seem more exciting to me at least because of there different types of aircraft that they fly.


Matthew

 

[Flugmaschine]

I always thought UAL was the coolest. Growing up, my aunt was a stewardess (yes, Stewardess..this was the 70's) and eventually retired. She lived (still does) the life of Riley out in CA, and always talked about how much fun it was to work for them, how much fun they had with the pilots, etc. FFwd to today, I have been stripped of any such illusions. I used to think I wanted an airline job, but family time with my little guy is awfully important to me, and airline schedules (for jr. guys) are about the worst I could think of. My goal has become a corporate slot. The more thought I've put into it, the more I realize that that type of flying would suit me best, and being older, probably more lucrative in the long run. The hard part is finding the people to network with, at least it seems that way to me. You don't have to network much in the mil, so my game is a bit rusty. I'll soak up all the advice anyone can offer on that little subject.

edit: Not that I'd be dumb enough to turn down an airline job. Bird in the hand, and all that...

 

[tonyw]

The military has given you a tremendous networking opportunity right there, my friend. While it's not like it used to be, a significant number of people flying for a living got their training courtesy of Uncle Sam.

And if you can swap stories with them about your time in the service, well, that certainly helps get the relationship off on the right foot.

 

[Sprint100]

I'd fly for just about any company or your uncle Joe provided the benefits, pay, and maintenance is competitive.