jungle driver

Is the 15% 104k DC starting day one for a newhire? if not when does it kick in?

bigbugs2000

Yes, it starts on day one.

CruJones

With a vesting schedule. 20% per yr IIRC

leftfinal

Hello everyone,

I'm currently an FO at a certain Utah based 121 airline. I have an interview at Sun Country next month and have a few questions!
1) What does the training timeline look like indoc to IOE?
2) Any commuters on here? I commute now from WI to ORD and it's bearable, how commutable is Sun Country?
3) What do current upgrade times look like?
4) Is there a commuter clause in the contract?
5) How quickly are things moving over there? Reserve times? Seniority advancement (I know it changes, but if theres a ballpark)

Any tips for the interview? TIA!

KingChicken

I think I can help answer some of your questions, but other people should chime in if they have a different perspective on things, or if I’m wrong.

1) Training timeline has gotten considerably shorter. Probably close to 4 months to get from day one to done with IOE.

2)I don’t commute, so my perspective on this is not good enough to provide insight.

3) I believe you can upgrade as soon as you’re on property for one year. Being a junior captain suuuucks, so you need 0 seniority to hold it.

4) I don't know

5) Fairly quickly, but things have definitely slowed down. Nobody senior to you wants to upgrade and attrition has tapered off a bit. I would expect at least 6-9 months on reserve. But we’re still hiring and have several new airplanes coming in the next few years. We also have a few new gates being built at T2. I’d say the future here looks pretty good.

I came from SkyWest too and things here are waaaay better than that dumpster
fire. I don’t regret my decision for one second. It’s nice to go to work with people who like their job and company and every conversation you have in the flight deck doesn’t revolve around how badly you hate it and want to leave.

section19

I’m gonna add a little bit that wasn’t already covered.

No commuter clause. The closest thing we have is essentially a “flat tire” policy. If you can’t make it in you essentially just call in and the trip will get taken out of sick pay if you have any. This is not a commuter friendly airline by any stretch of the imagination right now. There is a small minority that does commute, but it is just that- small.

Seniority advancement is slower than it was a year ago. I know the person above me says 6-9 months on reserve but realistically this is probably closer to 8-12 months. We are more overstaffed on FOs than we ever have been. Combine that with a little slower seniority progression and you’re on reserve for a bit. Unless people decide to start upgrading at a higher clip (doesn’t look likely right now), then that is where the trend is sitting.

nibake

Seems like where in WI is rather germaine.

kangs

I beg to differ on the commuter policy. Most places have a “commuter policy” that involve having to be listed for multiple flights, adequate number of seats open, etc. all to end up being pulled off, no pay, and no discipline. It’s not that you’re gonna be pay protected at sunny, but you’re not gonna have to sit and explain yourself to the chief pilots office either. Just tell them you tried and it was full. Done. Arguably the better kind of commuter policies

section19

I mean that’s fine if you have enough sick leave (which we accrue at a glacially slow pace) or just are fine taking the hit to your pay for that month.

It’s not really a “policy” because we don’t have a true commuter policy. It’s more a bandaid in place of a policy, with the benefit that it’s not punitive.

nibake

This is an aside but I would recommend seeding your own sick time bank during the good months.