Considering SWA, have questions
01-11-2023, 08:52 AM
#23
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Dec 2015
Posts: 312
I imagine that United MCO will be much the same as SWA MCO in that Captain side is going to be very senior as the kids move out of the house and momma is over Chicago winters. It’s where the empty nesters go to prep for retirement regardless of what’s on the side of your aircraft. That equation changes at Frontier because they have multiple FL bases and a relatively young pilot group. I’d stay away from JB as you’re about to get stuck behind a bunch of Spirit guys.
Now at United you have the possibility of them expanding MCO beyond a single-fleet NB base at some point. That would be a game-changer.
Now at United you have the possibility of them expanding MCO beyond a single-fleet NB base at some point. That would be a game-changer.
01-11-2023, 10:03 AM
#24
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Jun 2010
Position: DOWNGRADE COMPLETE: Thanks Gary. Thanks SWAPA.
Posts: 6,803
Honestly if you HAVE to be in MCO then go to F9 and upgrade in 3-5 years. You DO NOT want to be stuck in the 737 cockpit for decades.
As for UAL…..east coast WB trips are usually commutable on both ends and I can’t fathom their MCO base going more senior than ours.
As for JBA and being “stuck” behind 9000 combined JBA/NK pilots…..well, you could be stuck behind 10,000+ SWA pilots. Furthermore, JBA/NK has three different fleet types whereas SWA has one.
Translation: having different fleet types usually creates MUCH faster upgrades on one of them or if you’re not interested in upgrading then you can go to the fleet type that offers the quickest seniority progression as an FO.
Honestly, why the hell come to SWA? Perhaps for the financial stability but let me let you in on a little secret:
Many of us are doing the math on how many years we have until retirement, how much $ SWA has in the bank, and how long before they pi$$ it all away into bankruptcy due to the gross ineptitude and mismanagement that we witness everyday.
Still want to come here?
As for UAL…..east coast WB trips are usually commutable on both ends and I can’t fathom their MCO base going more senior than ours.
As for JBA and being “stuck” behind 9000 combined JBA/NK pilots…..well, you could be stuck behind 10,000+ SWA pilots. Furthermore, JBA/NK has three different fleet types whereas SWA has one.
Translation: having different fleet types usually creates MUCH faster upgrades on one of them or if you’re not interested in upgrading then you can go to the fleet type that offers the quickest seniority progression as an FO.
Honestly, why the hell come to SWA? Perhaps for the financial stability but let me let you in on a little secret:
Many of us are doing the math on how many years we have until retirement, how much $ SWA has in the bank, and how long before they pi$$ it all away into bankruptcy due to the gross ineptitude and mismanagement that we witness everyday.
Still want to come here?
01-11-2023, 06:49 PM
#25
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Oct 2006
Posts: 2,920
Honestly if you HAVE to be in MCO then go to F9 and upgrade in 3-5 years. You DO NOT want to be stuck in the 737 cockpit for decades.
As for UAL…..east coast WB trips are usually commutable on both ends and I can’t fathom their MCO base going more senior than ours.
As for JBA and being “stuck” behind 9000 combined JBA/NK pilots…..well, you could be stuck behind 10,000+ SWA pilots. Furthermore, JBA/NK has three different fleet types whereas SWA has one.
Translation: having different fleet types usually creates MUCH faster upgrades on one of them or if you’re not interested in upgrading then you can go to the fleet type that offers the quickest seniority progression as an FO.
Honestly, why the hell come to SWA? Perhaps for the financial stability but let me let you in on a little secret:
Many of us are doing the math on how many years we have until retirement, how much $ SWA has in the bank, and how long before they pi$$ it all away into bankruptcy due to the gross ineptitude and mismanagement that we witness everyday.
Still want to come here?
As for UAL…..east coast WB trips are usually commutable on both ends and I can’t fathom their MCO base going more senior than ours.
As for JBA and being “stuck” behind 9000 combined JBA/NK pilots…..well, you could be stuck behind 10,000+ SWA pilots. Furthermore, JBA/NK has three different fleet types whereas SWA has one.
Translation: having different fleet types usually creates MUCH faster upgrades on one of them or if you’re not interested in upgrading then you can go to the fleet type that offers the quickest seniority progression as an FO.
Honestly, why the hell come to SWA? Perhaps for the financial stability but let me let you in on a little secret:
Many of us are doing the math on how many years we have until retirement, how much $ SWA has in the bank, and how long before they pi$$ it all away into bankruptcy due to the gross ineptitude and mismanagement that we witness everyday.
Still want to come here?
This place is fine if you don’t care about upgrading, want days off and don’t care what plane you’re in.
01-11-2023, 10:32 PM
#28
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Feb 2018
Posts: 1,264
"AM's" and "PM'S."
AM's mostly report 0400-0500L. PM's mostly report 1100-1230L. Some PM's report as early as 1000L.
Duty days mostly 10+ hours. Overnights mostly 14 hours or less.
Four leg days seem to be most common. Five legs becoming more and more common. Some six-leg intra-Hawaiian island days. Three legs pretty common. Two- and one-leg days pretty rare.
Don't know your life situation, but all other things being equal, put your app in at DL or UA and go to one of those places 1,000 times before you go SWA. The culture is dead (except, from what I hear, at new hire training), and flying the 737 three to five legs per day for years on end may sound fine before you actually do it, but trust me, it gets super old pretty quick. They guys you may hear about with giant W-2's work themselves to the bone for it. It's not sustainable. Something will eventually have to give (like your family or your health).
But you do you.
AM's mostly report 0400-0500L. PM's mostly report 1100-1230L. Some PM's report as early as 1000L.
Duty days mostly 10+ hours. Overnights mostly 14 hours or less.
Four leg days seem to be most common. Five legs becoming more and more common. Some six-leg intra-Hawaiian island days. Three legs pretty common. Two- and one-leg days pretty rare.
Don't know your life situation, but all other things being equal, put your app in at DL or UA and go to one of those places 1,000 times before you go SWA. The culture is dead (except, from what I hear, at new hire training), and flying the 737 three to five legs per day for years on end may sound fine before you actually do it, but trust me, it gets super old pretty quick. They guys you may hear about with giant W-2's work themselves to the bone for it. It's not sustainable. Something will eventually have to give (like your family or your health).
But you do you.
Last edited by Lewbronski; 01-11-2023 at 10:43 PM.
01-11-2023, 10:35 PM
#29
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Oct 2006
Posts: 2,920
"AM's" and "PM'S."
AM's mostly report 0400-0500L. PM's mostly report 1100-1230L. Some PM's report as early as 1000L.
Duty days mostly 10+ hours. Overnights mostly 14 hours or less.
Four leg days seem to be most common. Five legs becoming more and more common. Some six-leg intra-Hawaiian island days. Three legs pretty common. Two- and one-leg days pretty rare.
AM's mostly report 0400-0500L. PM's mostly report 1100-1230L. Some PM's report as early as 1000L.
Duty days mostly 10+ hours. Overnights mostly 14 hours or less.
Four leg days seem to be most common. Five legs becoming more and more common. Some six-leg intra-Hawaiian island days. Three legs pretty common. Two- and one-leg days pretty rare.
My last 2 reports were after 1600. 7-8 hr duty days with 2 legs and 16-18 hr overnights. Rarely do 4 leg days. Not sure where you’re based, but sounds like those trips suck ass.
01-11-2023, 10:54 PM
#30
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Feb 2018
Posts: 1,264
Not sure where you’re based, but I’ve been here close to 20 years, so it’s not like I’m junior and it’s not like I don’t attempt to bid for fewest legs and shorter duty days. There simply aren’t a lot of trips like you’re talking about out there - at least where I’m based.
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