United vs UPS
03-27-2022, 08:52 PM
#12
On Reserve
Thread Starter
Joined APC: Dec 2021
Posts: 14
good luck with your decision. You speak of QOL and then ask about how early can you expect to upgrade to CA. Quick upgrades and QOL shouldn’t even collide in the same forum, let alone the same post. There is a reason why it goes junior. You seek advice and here’s what I got. Pick either company. Be an FO on whatever fleet offers you the best seniority and wait for your QOL to improve. When you can bid 50-60% or better as a CA, then make the jump. Want to make money? Pick where you can make CA quick, do it, and then enjoy working a solid 18 days a month and watching your bank account grow and in 5-10 years you can think about QOL. Maybe.
Solid advice! So helpful to understand the trade offs.
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03-27-2022, 08:59 PM
#13
Occasional box hauler
Joined APC: Jan 2018
Posts: 1,804
If it is about QOL, go UPS, live on the western side of Lexington (pick some small town about 75 minutes from Edgewood) and buy the house next door for your in-laws. The difference in cost of living is so big you will still come out ahead. UPS is also a better bet financially than United, but I think this can be overblown. Odds are good that a career at United will be financially rewarding and easily meet your family’s needs.UPS offers greater financial rewards and a pension on top of the B plan. The upgrade at UPS is to widebody captain pay and you will be making widebody FO pay as soon as you hit year 2. Either choice should serve your family well. Finally, find some cush non-flying guard or reserve gig and finish out your twenty, especially if you go United. It’s worth it.
03-27-2022, 10:28 PM
#14
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Apr 2016
Posts: 305
Boiler, how’d you like Frederick? Wife and I are looking for somewhere to put down roots in the DC area as we transition out of AD, and it’s high on our list of possibilities.
03-28-2022, 12:09 AM
#15
Gets Weekends Off
Joined APC: Nov 2015
Posts: 186
I ended up turning down UPS for UAL primarily based on the bases and commute. I know UPS has great commuter benefits like travel banks and mileage point accruals but I simply can't do it anymore. I also think they will be first in line to go single pilot if and when it becomes available and I've got 30+ years left in this racket.
03-28-2022, 03:29 AM
#16
The NeverEnding Story
Joined APC: Sep 2005
Posts: 7,619
I’m was a midwestern kid, but liked Frederick quite a bit. Town has grown a LOT in the last 15 years - no big surprise there - but still keeps a semblance of the small town feel. Less expensive than closer in but still not exactly inexpensive.
If I never drive 270 to the Beltway between 0530-0830 again I’ll be a happy man, though…
If I never drive 270 to the Beltway between 0530-0830 again I’ll be a happy man, though…
03-28-2022, 07:50 AM
#19
The NeverEnding Story
Joined APC: Sep 2005
Posts: 7,619
While it is clinically proven that shift workers have shorter lifespans than non-shift workers, there have been no studies that show cargo pilots have shorter lifespans than passenger pilots.
03-28-2022, 08:00 AM
#20
New Hire
Joined APC: Jul 2009
Posts: 7
Hi. 25 year UA guy, preceded by 2 years at DHL. Either way, finish 20 in the mil. As I'm crunching the retirement numbers, healthcare costs are a significant hurdle, and I'm envious of the guys with the tricare deal. That said, I do maybe 3-4 redeyes a month. Night hub turns at a cargo carrier ain't that. Two years of the nightly freight thing made me at least 10 years older. Our big changeover at DHL was Monday night/Tuesday morning, and when you walked into the ready room you could tell by looking at them who was on day one and who was on day seven. If you're not at an airline now you probably can't jumpseat, but if you can I HIGHLY encourage you to jumpseat into SDF, sit through the sort, and jumpseat out. If you really want to taste the sweet nectar of night freight, do it for a week. Those guys aren't making bank because Mama Brown loves them (she doesn't, but that's beyond the scope here.)
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