Can I afford to take this job? - Page 2

sjoo · 08-17-2007, 02:13 PM

Just do it...every day you wait, you lose a day of seniority. I came over from the FAA/ATC with expenses appropriate to what I was making. This first year is gonna suck, but it will get better from the second year on. Thank goodness for credit cards!

ChinsFive · 08-17-2007, 05:52 PM

I have four questions:

- What are your times?
- Where do you live?
- Where would you lke to live?
- Whats important to you? Uprgrade? QOL? Location?

skipro101 · 08-17-2007, 09:47 PM

2300 tt, 1000 multi turbine pic, yada yada

I want to live near the mountains (I like to ski and mountain bike). So denver, slc, and to a lesser extent, portland/seattle.

I have been giving this the thought it deserves, and I'm pretty much decided that its not a smart move for me. Im not even sure I want to end up at a major airline. Plus, I intend to enter training for the ANG (pilot) in the next 2-4 years (I start applying this fall, and they hire 2 years in advance of openings). So, if that goes well, I would be leaving express for the military right about the time the pay gets good. Doesnt make sense to do that if I'm not sure that I want to go airline, and I could fly air medical or something similar right now for 50k/year. Overall over the next 3 years (assuming I enter military training in about that much time), I would make approx 150K if I fly king airs or something similar, and at expressjet (25K first year+35 second+60 third) 120K at express assuming upgrades stayed at current levels...plus the added negative of very low inital starting pay which would incur more costs on interest etc for not being able to pay loans/cc etc.

Overall, the decsion is hard because expressjet is such a good company and I know I would learn a lot there...Unfortunately, I have no choice but to admit that it just isnt right for my situation.

Thanks for your posts and such, hope every one of you is doing well there.

Cheers

Allen

XSive · 08-30-2007, 12:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by schoolio

The other end of the spectrum:

I'm a will-fly this month, and I won't break guarantee here in IAH. My paycheck is in the $670 range after fed & state taxes and 401k (not counting per diem). I don't do the health insurance (my wifes insurance is better). So tack on another few hundred bucks for per diem and my take home works out to around $1500. I made almost as much flipping burgers at Six Flags in 1995.

Granted I haven't been as aggressive as some of the other guys as far as trying to fly, but even if I had, my calculations say that I may have just barely broken guarantee (less than 10 hours over).

If it wasn't for my wife's job (she's a nurse), I'd have to go back on active duty to pay the bills.

Sounds like you're doing good in trying to plan. Just realize that while some guys are bringing home nearly $2K a paycheck first year by picking up trips and what not, us guys on reserve aren't being utilized as much and are bringing home guarantee.

Good luck with your decision.

I'm on reserve and the only month I got paid guarantee was the month I did IOE, after that Ive managed to go way over guarantee every single month. There is work if you want it. You can pretty much make your own schedule by using the aggressive pick up window. For all of you new hires reading this, know this much, you can either sit around and wait for crew scheduling to call you on your reserve days to assign you a trip (this is how you'll probably never go over guarantee) or you can call the day before your reserve days start and pick up a trip thats is available on open time (basically creating your own schedule). By doing this I have managed to consistently build my self a line value of over 90 hrs a month. I haven't had a problem making end meat since I've been here. Hell, I've actually been able to put some change in the ol' savings account.

schoolio · 08-30-2007, 08:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by XSive

I'm on reserve and the only month I got paid guarantee was the month I did IOE, after that Ive managed to go way over guarantee every single month. There is work if you want it. You can pretty much make your own schedule by using the aggressive pick up window. For all of you new hires reading this, know this much, you can either sit around and wait for crew scheduling to call you on your reserve days to assign you a trip (this is how you'll probably never go over guarantee) or you can call the day before your reserve days start and pick up a trip thats is available on open time (basically creating your own schedule). By doing this I have managed to consistently build my self a line value of over 90 hrs a month. I haven't had a problem making end meat since I've been here. Hell, I've actually been able to put some change in the ol' savings account.

Believe me, I've been using the APW to pick up trips, but so is everyone else. Yesterday I was trying to pick up a trip for today, and I had three different trips I wanted disappear before I got through to CS. I finally got one, and even then a lineholder did a trip trade with me. Lucky for me the trip I got handed was more time than the trip I originally had.

Bottom line is you can use the APW to pick up trips, but with reserve coverage as high as it is, you're fighting with every other pilot out there trying to do the same.

lovetba6 · 09-06-2007, 11:23 AM

[quote=skipro101;164657]2300 tt, 1000 multi turbine pic, yada yada

Dude, with that kind of total time, why don't you apply to a "legacy" carrier. Starting pay is around the same possibly more and you will get your seniority going at the "major" level faster.

Also on a side note, why don't you defer your loans for a year or more, like I am doing. Still broke second year FO.

Just a thought, good luck in what you do.