UNDGUY

My four would probably be Envoy, Endeavor, Republic, and Skywest in no particular order. They all have their pluses and minuses, but I think those four are solid choices.

takingmessages

Just curious...
Why no PSA in that list?

Cefiro

This is just going to go downhill fast. Just choose the one where you don't have to commute.

UNDGUY

PSA seems to be a good choice as well. I live in Detroit. I want either a Detroit base or a Chicago base.

UNDGUY

And what happens when you choose a company because of their bases and then the base closes and you are commuting anyway? Look around the regionals. bases open and close all the time based on the whims of mainline. It can be a factor, but I wouldnt make it the only factor.

PDTFlyer

Commuting isn’t bad. Pilots just love to whine. I look at it as “me” time. I enjoy my Piedmont life.

AboveMins

This is quite possibly the worst bit of information in this thread. In my 13 years of airline flying, I've had every type of commute you can imagine- short hop, transcon, two leg, etc. I can't even begin to account for all the lost time away from my family and cost of hotel rooms, not to mention the added stress of jumpseating hub to hub during peak seasons. All that "me time" ain't worth it.

chrisreedrules

The reality of the company is reflected in the recent contract your pilot group voted yes on.

chrisreedrules

Eh, I guess it just depends on how you look at it. At PSA we have a SAP with zero restrictions on it. I can bid for overnights at home and then swap/pick up trips with overnights here in the SAP. I end up with 3-4 /month. I’m home more because of commuting than if I lived in base. My commute is pretty painless 8 flights /day mostly mainline.

Lvlng4Spd

Meh, it depends on a lot of factors. First and foremost, you have to have a compatible spouse or significant other. If you get into the commuting life thinking they will come around, you are in for disappointment. Kids and even sometimes pets can add additional stress and burdens, not that there is anything wrong in making those choices. My wife and I knew early where we stood with that and our careers and goals. I've been at PDT well over 6 years, and have been commuting 1-3 legs the whole time. My wife feels she sees me more now then when I had a non-flying job while I was also flight instructing. She also goes on the road with me from time to time, as we like to adventure around in certain locales as well.

People complain about our schedules here, and while they aren't fantastic I can typically be home in my own awesome bed (thank you triple premium trips) 16-17 nights per month. This is quite a welcome change from my Dash-8 days of 8-10 nights in my own bed. Still no complaints though, even then! My advice to all is to look at this as a lifestyle instead of just a career. If you don't want to live in a base (which I feel is always a risk and quite limiting and boring) then you have to have your ducks in a row at home before making the choice to commute. Personally, I have enjoyed my commuting experience.