RJSAviator76

Sure. But bear in mind, that’s what we get at 62% - they get it at 90.

Lake Chuck

Thanks for sharing the link. Looks like it’s game on starting in March!

Profane Kahuna

no, that other garbage is worse.

Ask any FedEx friends about midnight hub turns on the 75, or OAL friends about being the plug in NYC or SFO. It’s another level of garbage which is why so many avoid it.

Don’t get me wrong, having the option is an advantage IF YOU NEED IT. For example, a newhire who is 50+ and short on retirement funds. No question, go somewhere with early upgrades, take first available, suck it up and take the money.

poopooplatter

Went to the link, but couldn’t decipher the excel sheet. What is it saying?

GoCats67

SFO 737 Captain that is about 62% system seniority would be number 165 of 253 SFO 737 Captains. About 65% down the list of SFO 737 Captains
SFO 320 Captain that is about 62% system seniority would be number 97 of 160 SFO 320 Captains. About 61% down the list of SFO 320 Captains

So at 62% system seniority you would be a solid line holder in either narrowbody Captain seat in SFO

Of note, that same system seniority would buy you slightly better power as a SFO 777 FO and slightly worse power as a SFO 787 FO .

Narrowbody Captain vs Widebody FO is always an interesting dynamic. Different strokes for different folks I guess. Total $ is a little better as NB Captain, but $/day of work is better as a WB FO.

RJSAviator76

It's different strokes for different folks, but you're right. It's nice to have that option. Is being SFO based really bad if you live in the Bay Area or Sacramento? Or Allentown if you're based in NYC?


Thank you for that comparison. Would you be able to post what the schedule looks like? Also, where does 756 fit in?

rightseat

Let’s see……maybe you want to live in a 0% income tax state. Maybe you have a family in one of SW domiciles and don’t want to commute, maybe you really don’t like flying the back side of the clock, maybe you like the interpersonal interaction rather than hauling boxes, maybe you enjoy having greater schedule flexibility, maybe you have a significant other or family that loves the travel bennies. Oh - and they only have 5,000 pilots….when the down turn comes (and it will) the furloughs will be far deeper. There are about 10k regional pilots, with most wanting to get to a major or a FedEx or UPS. At 40 per week it will only take 21 years for FedEx to hire them all. Not everyone can go to FedEx.

Southwest fits some folks like a glove. FedEx fit others perfectly. Still others fit nicely at United or Delta. It is all about the quality of life you desire, the contract, the business model, the financial security, the domiciles, and yes, your financial needs and desires. Not every pilot out there needs to make $400k - $500k to support three ex-wives and two homes, etc. I am at almost five years, will approach $225k this year (yes -I work a lot$) and know I will likely have a 10-12 year upgrade. I am single, live in base, work only PM’s, have my house and my cars paid for, no credit card debt. I have no ex-wives or kids (that I know of). I will not upgrade until I can upgrade in base. If that is 8 years, that is fine. If that is 12 years, I will be just fine.

This whole thing of “if you don’t go to FedEx you are selling yourself short” is ridiculous. Do we need some contract improvement? - YEP!! Color me optimistic, but I think we will get it in time as we have a great pilot group! I am VERY happy at Southwest. I am confident I could have been happy at Delta, Alaska or Jet Blue and maybe United, but Southwest called first. I think I would have been miserable at American, FedEx or UPS. Different strokes for different folks. That is what makes the world go round, not money or sitting in the left seat.

End of rant.

CaptYoda

You hit the nail on the head.

RJSAviator76

You make it sound like we have monopoly on 0% state income tax. We don't. For example, if you lived in RNO or LAS, would you commute to LAX or SFO to be a captain? The difference is, at a legacy, you'll have to ask yourself that question rather quickly vs. upwards of a decade at Southwest. I'm not even gonna throw in the widebody FO into the mix even though that's what also allows a much faster upgrade there.

I've been labeled "Pollyanna" by many on this board. Where are you Eeyore, SlipKid, Lewbronski, bcz17? And they're right... Southwest has been very good to me and I have been a bit of a Pollyanna. I live in my domicile and I've been playing "Squid Games" with Scheduling since right after IOE. I've averaged 150-155 TFP monthly my entire time here and I'm a 6th year guy. Do the math. Even when we were overstaffed, I managed to hit those numbers because the game changed and I adjusted. This year, my W-2 will be in the high 200's. One can crush it at Southwest even as an FO, but that comes at a substantial QOL hit.

The point I'm trying to illustrate is that this is not 2008 with abundance of qualified pilots on the street and people both in the military and civilian world chomping at the bit to come here. In fact, when I was hired in 2016, we lost the equivalent of at least 2 full new hire classes to Delta alone. They were hiring quite a bit, United was sputtering a bit unlike today, Fedex hiring a trickle, American wasn't hiring as many either, etc. Not to mention that in 2016, we were in the heated contract negotiations and have 1000+ pilots picketing at various cities. The end result? IIRC, it was 15% raises, but the first year guys got the largest pay raises. We got 35% raise to first year rates, and apparently, it wasn't even SWAPA's request - it was the Company's request. The retention of the new hires got the Company's attention. Here we are, coming into 2022 and retention just might become an even bigger issue.

MudhammedCJ

Which is exactly why first year pay increases should be the *last* thing we agree on in this current negotiation. Leverage: Hope we learn to use it.