Many of us would prefer to stay at a LCC than go to a major. Heresy you say? For some of us, quality of life (aka, seniority, location, and job security) is more important than pay. I don't think you will see a lot of people leaving AirTran, JetBlue, Southwest, etc - if ACA becomes successful, I don't think you will see many of us leave either. There is also the age factor - not important for some of the young guys but for others, it is crucial. I wanted to be in and out of a regional within 6 years, ain't gonna happen, BUT, ACA growing into a LCC is better than I could have hoped for.iflyjetz said:Ah, the crux of the problem. Regionals and the military have historically been apprenticeship positions for pilots. To view them as anything other than steppingstones to the majors is foolhardy.
The current upgrade stagnation at ACA has nothing to do with UAL; it is industrywide. You'll have to sit in your right seat a bit longer than you planned; I'm furloughed. No big deal; that's all part of the industry. Upgrades will (would) return at ACA when the majors start hiring again and ACA's captains move on to the major airlines.
If you're pinning your career on Independence, I'd highly suggest that you work hard on that nonflying backup. Otherwise, just view ACA as the steppingstone that it has always been.
UKRidge, UAL will not be abandoning its Dulles hub. Just wishful thinking on the part of a few. Thanks for the report on the upguaging of equipment. It bodes well for the future; I imagine that UAL will be upguaging and increasing frequency on multiple routes.
Also, ACA was supposed to get over 120 CRJ's for UAL, when UAL decided to outsource to MESA, there went all of our upgrades. Oh well, that's life.
Finally, just because I believe that UAL will eventually exit the East Coast doesn't mean that I want it to happen. (and I didn't originate that idea - it was being bantered around by analysts) If UAL left a void, JetBlue and AirTran would be certain to fill it. I would rather take my chances fighting a legacy carrier in Dulles than two growing LCC's.
Don't worry about my backup plan. First masters will be completed this quarter and then starting the second (ya gotta love the GI Bill....) with some Naval War College to fill out the resume. And as BusDrive said earlier, I'm trying to find a billet that will get me a TS, they are quite beneficial. As I don't like flying enough to start over at the bottom; the next job will be one where I come home everynight.