zscheidker

Hi, I am flight instructing right now, waiting to pounce on an opening and was wondering what I could expect as far as schedules. I know this is like asking how much a private pilot ticket costs, but even a ridiculously rough estimate is fine. I know some companies have 1- and 2-day trips and I was wondering how common those are and how much I could rely on those trips either as a junior or senior FO. Is it feasible to have a 2-day and a 3-day in a 2-week period, and if so, would that sacrifice my ability to pay the bills? I probably would not commute.

Basically my girlfriend does not like the idea of me being away from home for half the month.

Thanks!

bryris

You'll be gone more than half the month. If you don't commute, expect 10-11 days "off" per month. These are movable at the company's discretion (you usually get 3 non movable days off per month). You might have a weekend planned with said g/f, then have it robbed away from you to fly a trip. On reserve, you'll get the scraps and it hurts.

Once you are a junior line holder, you'll get 12-14 days off, typically 4 days trips with 1 or 2 days off in between. No weekends, early shows and late arrivals back to base, long overnights, inefficient trips, etc.

Basically whatever you don't want is what you'll get because the senior guys are getting the good schedules. As hiring continues and attrition plays out, you'll get better and better schedules and the guys hired under you will take over the $%^#.

Fr8doggie

Don't bother going to Part 121 if you aren't willing to commute somewhere. You are limiting yourself already and haven't even started. If the girlfriend becomes a wife she will have to get over you being gone.

Purpleanga

Get a new girlfriend. I would seriously consider anything else before a regional.

nicholasblonde

Depends on what company, how fast they're hiring, and whether you live in base or not...

If you live in base, you'll be fine...if you're sitting reserve for someplace like Pinnacle where you have to do airport reserve 9 hours a day, 20 days a month, you probably won't last with a needy gf...

Your first 121 groundschool/checkride are also not good times to have a needy gf.

Not saying your gf is needy...but if she is, you're going to have to be upfront with her about the fact that she's going to need to get used to you being gone a whole lot more for the first 2-12 months of your career...

There is a reason pilots have a high divorce rate...I'd say 50% of the guys in my new hire class weren't with the same serious gf by the end of year 1...not saying you won't be fine...but you should definitely be aware of the fact that there will be a serious strain on your relationship...and it's better to deal with and discuss those issues now b/c if/when you get a regional job, the relationship stress will hit the fan real fast...

Don't bust a checkride for a girlfriend...

NWA320pilot

Either find a new girlfriend or profession. You will be gone for at least 1/2 of each and every month for the rest of you career.

BoredwLife

And this is under the best circumstances.

Seriously listen to us. If she can't handle constantly changing schedules, you being gone 2 months at a time for training, and you only being home for 10 days a month, lose her. I was a FO in a pretty decent bidding spot. I was grabbing the max days off that our schedules were built to. That was 4 on 3 off. If she can't handle that, toss her back. But I would honestly say that it is your fault for not explaining this to her when you met. One of my first old timer instructors told me "Explain what the life is like to any woman you start dating, BEFORE IT GETS SERIOUS. Don't sugar coat it. Explain the long periods of being gone, the crappy pay for years, the constantly changing schedules, the constant moving or commuting. Explain that when you have your first child she will be alone for 4 days at a time and she better be able to handle that."

My suggestion. HAVE HER READ THESE RESPONSES!! And as others have said, Training is intense and the last thing you need is a needy girlfriend to cause you to fail your first professional checkride.

250 or point 65

I got some amazing advice from my Chief Instructor at the flight school I worked at when I started getting serious with my girlfriend.

She told me, no matter how cool/chill/understanding/supportive a girlfriend may be, DO NOT put a ring on her finger until you have been at an airline for at least 6 months to a year.

Seriously, she knew my girlfriend (now ex) was awesome and still gave me that advice. I couldn't even imagine what it'd be like with a girlfriend similar to what you're describing.

3XLoser

You need to educate your girlfriend or get a new one who is independant enough to exist without you for more than half of your career, or go into dentistry.

You'll start out on reserve, which theoretically isn't bad duty if you live in base and your company has a reasonable call out (a couple hours). You're committed to 19 or 20 days a month, and those days might be movable if you don't have good work rules. If your company tries to staff on a shoestring, you may very well get called out every day, and expect multi-day trips.

Your crew base may very well have out and backs, or other day trips, but expect those to go senior, which brings up another point; Only one pilot in your seat (domicile, equipment, seat) really has seniority, EVERYONE else has juniority.

If your contract has trip rig, the company is motivated to build good schedules, lest they have to pay you even when you don't fly. Without trip rig, it'll take a lot of multi day trips to get a month's worth of credit. I don't know what's typical at a regional, but you can most likely expect a four day trip every week. There will be two and three day trips too. At my airline, the back to back two day trips tended to not be worth as much as the four days, but they were fine if you wanted an overnight at home in the middle.

If your contract doesn't have duty rig, expect lots of ineficient stand up lines. If you don't know what a stand up is, it's when you report in the evening, fly a leg to an outstation and stay on duty all night (at the hotel) and fly back in the morning, without having a legal rest period. If you have duty rig with premium rig after midnight, these go very senior because you can get about seven hours of pay for flying a couple of hours. If you don't have duty rig, you're better off flipping burgers.

You need to make sure your girlfriend has realistic expectations, so that she doesn't become an unhappy ex-wife. It forced my wife and I to improve our communication skills, but my kids hate four day trips, which breaks my heart.

If your girlfriend has money, tell her you'll have lots of time at home while you're furloughed.

zscheidker

I would live in-base and I'm fully aware that life sucks as a new-hire. I'm hoping that I can at least be one of the first in the door at the beginning of the next hiring spree. I figured I'd have to tell her there's no compromise, at least at an airline. Just wanted to verify.