Average days off @ AA
05-01-2017, 04:38 PM
#81
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Apr 2013
Posts: 523
Your wife makes more than enough for you two to live very comfortably. Your income doesn't even pay the taxes on her income.
Presently you work 5-7 days a month on reserve. You will not do that at AA on a narrowbody. I haven't looked at the widebodies but they are running with leaner reserves almost every bid it seems like. It will take a very long time to hold DFW 777/787.
Stay where you are. Enjoy the time at home. Use the job for what it is to you - a hobby. I have previously worked blocks and am back to reserve just because I can't take working 70+ a month. I think it would kill me to do more than a month of that.
SWA will give you more hard days off but you'll be working every one of your reserve days. Also their trips are pretty tough. It's a regional type schedule.
Presently you work 5-7 days a month on reserve. You will not do that at AA on a narrowbody. I haven't looked at the widebodies but they are running with leaner reserves almost every bid it seems like. It will take a very long time to hold DFW 777/787.
Stay where you are. Enjoy the time at home. Use the job for what it is to you - a hobby. I have previously worked blocks and am back to reserve just because I can't take working 70+ a month. I think it would kill me to do more than a month of that.
SWA will give you more hard days off but you'll be working every one of your reserve days. Also their trips are pretty tough. It's a regional type schedule.
Average Trip?
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05-01-2017, 06:55 PM
#82
Gets Weekend Reserve
Joined APC: Jul 2007
Posts: 3,764
SWA guy here... I was looking to see how much you guys credit per month and found this thread.
Here are my .02 cents from SWA guy's perspective:
1) You'll get DAL base within a month or two of finishing IOE, which you'll be able to finish in DAL.
2) While on reserve, historically, you'll work most if not all your reserve blocks. We did get a new reserve callout system, but we'll see how it works. Your best flexibility is with a line. Wanna sit at home and collect guarantee while flying maybe 20 hours in a month? Don't come to SWA!
3) We don't have PBS. Learn the contract, learn the tools, and you can clean house here. As a guy fresh off probation, I'm working 11 days this month including a day overlap from April, and not one weekend. I ended up having a 3-day trip dropped due to conflict and thankfully the company can't just tag on something to put me in the bid window like at PBS places.
4) If the missus decides to trade you in for Rico the Pool Guy, you can make some serious money here as the airline is built on greed and premium time seems abound. I made 6 figures my first year here, and I'm not counting per diem or retirement contribution, and I wasn't eligible for profit sharing for last year.
5) Flying... no, we don't fly 12 legs a day between Dallas, San Antonio and Houston. For example, my next trip I do 3 legs, the next day 2, and a single leg on day 3. Scheduled to block 13 hours, but paid 19.5 trips as that's our min pay for a 3 day trip. You want transcons, you can have them. Want near international (Mexico, Central America/Caribbean)? Got that too. Want Texas Two-Step or Cali Shuttle? It's all there and it's really up to you as there's always stuff to trade with the company. We do not fly heavy iron. Wanna cross oceans? Go to AA.
One thing you won't do here is sit in a hotel during the day and fly a transcon redeye... at least not for now. You also won't have 30+ hour layovers here. My longest layovers here were Cabo for 22 hours and that was on an AM trip, and Liberia, CR for 21. Most of our layovers are 13-17 hours.
6) Upgrade will definitely take longer here than at AA, and despite what you've read, upgrades here won't be 15-20 years unless something drastic happens. Just to give you an idea, I've been here a year, and I moved up 7% off the bottom of the list and our junior captains are right at 60%. Given the hiring forecasts, I'd guess my upgrade time will be around 7-8 year mark.
7) Want variety of aircraft to fly? Don't come to SWA!
My advice? Can't go wrong whichever way you choose. Different strokes n all. Personally, I'm OK with working, and I've done the long haul work and been jet lagged so the kind of flying we do suits me as it's got everything *I* like. Perhaps you may be happier seeing a sunrise over the Atlantic on your way to London. If you live in base, you should be loving life no matter where you end up, as long as you get out of the regionals.
Good luck!!
Here are my .02 cents from SWA guy's perspective:
1) You'll get DAL base within a month or two of finishing IOE, which you'll be able to finish in DAL.
2) While on reserve, historically, you'll work most if not all your reserve blocks. We did get a new reserve callout system, but we'll see how it works. Your best flexibility is with a line. Wanna sit at home and collect guarantee while flying maybe 20 hours in a month? Don't come to SWA!
3) We don't have PBS. Learn the contract, learn the tools, and you can clean house here. As a guy fresh off probation, I'm working 11 days this month including a day overlap from April, and not one weekend. I ended up having a 3-day trip dropped due to conflict and thankfully the company can't just tag on something to put me in the bid window like at PBS places.
4) If the missus decides to trade you in for Rico the Pool Guy, you can make some serious money here as the airline is built on greed and premium time seems abound. I made 6 figures my first year here, and I'm not counting per diem or retirement contribution, and I wasn't eligible for profit sharing for last year.
5) Flying... no, we don't fly 12 legs a day between Dallas, San Antonio and Houston. For example, my next trip I do 3 legs, the next day 2, and a single leg on day 3. Scheduled to block 13 hours, but paid 19.5 trips as that's our min pay for a 3 day trip. You want transcons, you can have them. Want near international (Mexico, Central America/Caribbean)? Got that too. Want Texas Two-Step or Cali Shuttle? It's all there and it's really up to you as there's always stuff to trade with the company. We do not fly heavy iron. Wanna cross oceans? Go to AA.
One thing you won't do here is sit in a hotel during the day and fly a transcon redeye... at least not for now. You also won't have 30+ hour layovers here. My longest layovers here were Cabo for 22 hours and that was on an AM trip, and Liberia, CR for 21. Most of our layovers are 13-17 hours.
6) Upgrade will definitely take longer here than at AA, and despite what you've read, upgrades here won't be 15-20 years unless something drastic happens. Just to give you an idea, I've been here a year, and I moved up 7% off the bottom of the list and our junior captains are right at 60%. Given the hiring forecasts, I'd guess my upgrade time will be around 7-8 year mark.
7) Want variety of aircraft to fly? Don't come to SWA!
My advice? Can't go wrong whichever way you choose. Different strokes n all. Personally, I'm OK with working, and I've done the long haul work and been jet lagged so the kind of flying we do suits me as it's got everything *I* like. Perhaps you may be happier seeing a sunrise over the Atlantic on your way to London. If you live in base, you should be loving life no matter where you end up, as long as you get out of the regionals.
Good luck!!
05-01-2017, 07:23 PM
#83
Are we there yet??!!
Joined APC: Apr 2006
Posts: 2,010
05-02-2017, 04:20 AM
#84
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Aug 2016
Posts: 287
I am consistently working 20 days a month. 16 days with 4 more commuting on days off. Narrow body flying is time consuming. I spend a tremendous amount of time in hotels. Even when I was a super senior FO I worked that many days. AA narrow body scheduling is painful. If they could figure out how to make wide body schedules worse they would do it. It's a lonely lifestyle. I have picked up a couple hobbies that I can do while killing time away from home. My family misses me. Yes my bank account is growing but I have little time to enjoy it. My current plan is to save as much as I can so when I have enough I can bid wide body and work as little as possible. Instead of retiring early I will have to stay for healthcare costs. My wife is younger than I and by the time I retire it will be rather spendy to cover her.
05-02-2017, 05:26 AM
#85
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Jan 2017
Posts: 156
I think SWA is the much better place to be. Delta also. UAL is mixed results. AA has a long way to go. Best advice is take first job that is offered and move on based on future offers. You just never know how its going to work out. Look pre 911, no one went or stayed to FedEx, UPS and SWA unless they could not get hired at one of top 5 pax carriers. Now look how it worked out for them. I forecast the bottom guys at UPS and FedEx will not see the same outcome as those guys. If you are young go to DAL, AA, UAL, SWA. Fly days and don't bet the pension will be there in 25 years.
05-02-2017, 06:08 AM
#86
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Dec 2013
Posts: 321
Varks,
I'm trying to understand your post. I'm not a super senior FO and I never get less than 17 days off per month at 30% seniority in base. Under PBS i range from 17-20 off. I only bid trips that are commutable on both days so I never spend a day off commuting. I don't have a crash pad because I've never been in base on a day off. My layovers range from about 11 hours to 18 hours. Certainly not a tremendous amount of time in hotels. Widebody flying will definitely have longer layovers. How could your schedule be so much worse? Where are you based?
I'm trying to understand your post. I'm not a super senior FO and I never get less than 17 days off per month at 30% seniority in base. Under PBS i range from 17-20 off. I only bid trips that are commutable on both days so I never spend a day off commuting. I don't have a crash pad because I've never been in base on a day off. My layovers range from about 11 hours to 18 hours. Certainly not a tremendous amount of time in hotels. Widebody flying will definitely have longer layovers. How could your schedule be so much worse? Where are you based?
05-02-2017, 07:21 AM
#87
You scratched my anchor
Joined APC: Feb 2011
Posts: 4,948
Varks,
I'm trying to understand your post. I'm not a super senior FO and I never get less than 17 days off per month at 30% seniority in base. Under PBS i range from 17-20 off. I only bid trips that are commutable on both days so I never spend a day off commuting. I don't have a crash pad because I've never been in base on a day off. My layovers range from about 11 hours to 18 hours. Certainly not a tremendous amount of time in hotels. Widebody flying will definitely have longer layovers. How could your schedule be so much worse? Where are you based?
I'm trying to understand your post. I'm not a super senior FO and I never get less than 17 days off per month at 30% seniority in base. Under PBS i range from 17-20 off. I only bid trips that are commutable on both days so I never spend a day off commuting. I don't have a crash pad because I've never been in base on a day off. My layovers range from about 11 hours to 18 hours. Certainly not a tremendous amount of time in hotels. Widebody flying will definitely have longer layovers. How could your schedule be so much worse? Where are you based?
Filler
05-02-2017, 07:34 AM
#88
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Jul 2011
Position: Airbus button pusher
Posts: 2,448
I am consistently working 20 days a month. 16 days with 4 more commuting on days off. Narrow body flying is time consuming. I spend a tremendous amount of time in hotels. Even when I was a super senior FO I worked that many days. AA narrow body scheduling is painful. If they could figure out how to make wide body schedules worse they would do it. It's a lonely lifestyle. I have picked up a couple hobbies that I can do while killing time away from home. My family misses me. Yes my bank account is growing but I have little time to enjoy it. My current plan is to save as much as I can so when I have enough I can bid wide body and work as little as possible. Instead of retiring early I will have to stay for healthcare costs. My wife is younger than I and by the time I retire it will be rather spendy to cover her.
Call the PBS hotline next time ya bid
05-02-2017, 08:17 AM
#89
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Nov 2016
Position: 6th place
Posts: 1,826
I am consistently working 20 days a month. 16 days with 4 more commuting on days off. Narrow body flying is time consuming. I spend a tremendous amount of time in hotels. Even when I was a super senior FO I worked that many days. AA narrow body scheduling is painful. If they could figure out how to make wide body schedules worse they would do it. It's a lonely lifestyle. I have picked up a couple hobbies that I can do while killing time away from home. My family misses me. Yes my bank account is growing but I have little time to enjoy it. My current plan is to save as much as I can so when I have enough I can bid wide body and work as little as possible. Instead of retiring early I will have to stay for healthcare costs. My wife is younger than I and by the time I retire it will be rather spendy to cover her.
If you can hold g2 captain why not just bid g4 FO? Hope you get it figured out bc it sounds like you're bidding incorrectly.
05-02-2017, 09:39 AM
#90
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Nov 2013
Posts: 2,756
I think SWA is the much better place to be. Delta also. UAL is mixed results. AA has a long way to go. Best advice is take first job that is offered and move on based on future offers. You just never know how its going to work out. Look pre 911, no one went or stayed to FedEx, UPS and SWA unless they could not get hired at one of top 5 pax carriers. Now look how it worked out for them. I forecast the bottom guys at UPS and FedEx will not see the same outcome as those guys. If you are young go to DAL, AA, UAL, SWA. Fly days and don't bet the pension will be there in 25 years.
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