DeltaCat

Move to msp if that is your long term goal and take a A320, MD88 or 73n to NYC or DTW. You will have a line pretty quick in NYC and the commute is a lot easier than getting to ATL from MSP (lots of senior NW pilots and admin folks commute from msp to Atl). Some brand new hires just got msp A320s in the last AE before they finished training. DAL is planning to add 73N to msp this winter. I would guess it may only take you six month to get there if you get one of those planes. If you get something else(717) you can bid msp and retrain at the one year mark.

Now go get hired! Good luck.

badgerned

Even if he bids a non 73n category if they open up the 73n in MSP it will be new and the seat lock won't matter.

Cheers.

jeffmjohnson53

I'm in the same boat. Interview coming up. If hired, I'll be looking for whatever gives me a commutable (from the FL panhandle) line out of ATL the quickest.

Thanks

Chakerik

Has anyone heard what the predictions are for summer classes? Any 7ER to new hires like last spring/summer? Or probably the usual MD, 717 73N and occasional 320?

tunes

i wouldn't count on 7ER at all.

DeltaCat

True. Only as long as they are junior to me! It'll be interesting to see you many try to jump on the 73N MSP bandwagon.

Chakerik

What's the tentative plan for that base size initially for the 73N? Pure growth, or replacement to other airframes?

DeltaCat

I'm not a crew resources guy but the md88s are slowly being phased out with several retiring in the next 3-5 years.

We currently have about 135 737s and still have another 60-70ish rolling off the assembly line. So mix of retire 88 and some ERs and growth of 73N fleet. Not sure of the planned #s but the category is growing and there is much rejoicing. I doubt a relatively new hire would have enough seniority to bid in to the category when it is first advertised this fall but I still don't think it'd take that long to get there. Msp is pretty senior so it won't move lightning fast like 73N NYC (plug to <60% in less than a year).

During walk around you can eat off the landing gear and wheel wells of the new 900s. 88s not so much...trust delta will squeeze every last drop of blood from them. They make the company a ton of money.

Gunfighter

On occasion a new category will go junior on the initial bid, while the senior pilots sit on the sideline. Senior pilots will dog pile on top as the category grows and they get a better sense of where they will fit in as it stabilizes. I was at 75% of a new category and for the next three AEs watched as senior pilots filled EVERY vacancy. To make matters worse, some junior pilots bid out and the contingent vacancies were also filled by senior pilots. It got me into a category I wanted, but my relative seniority slid about 12% before finally recovering to my initial bid threshold. Bid what you want, want what you bid.

Chakerik

Interesting. Thanks for the info!