Saturday, March 17, 2018

Nothing new...but nothing bad either

I'm sitting in a hotel room in Omaha, Nebraska. I have stayed in Omaha many times before at my old airline....but this hotel is a bit nicer.

Everything is nicer at American versus my last airline. I've flown about 60 hours total...but every airport I've flown to has been one I flew to in the past. Nothing new. The hotels are all better...and I get actual crew meals!

This was a Frankenstein one off MD-80. Digital Gauges from a legacy TWA MD-80, FMS from a legacy AA MD-80 and laser touchscreen ACARS from...some museum. 

I'm still the bottom guy on reserve...but driving to work means there's zero stress. I should have 9 under me by the end of April and 20 by the end of May.

Flying the MD-80 is easier than I thought. Don't get me wrong there's a lot to do. My seat has been often described as the busiest seat in the airline.

I still have many friends at my old gig. News isn't good. There's a severe shortage of Captains. The shortage is so bad that they've halted hiring any new hire that doesn't qualify for an immediate Captain position. They've also sent instructors back to the line to fly as there's such a shortage.

And for those of you wondering....my easy button is still with me.


2 comments:

  1. Hi Geek Pilot, I wanted to ask you how you selected the flight training school to do your flying with? My team and I have done a lot of research over the past years as we read a lot about the pilot shortage and thought that there wasn't a good online source where individuals who wanted to become pilots could go to for them to see all the available Pilot Schools and funding options. With this in mind we created our website, https://www.aviationfly.com/pilot/training-institutes/ which features over 200 Pilot training schools in the Asia Pacific region. It would be great to hear your thoughts on it. Thank you in advance.

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  2. Congratulations on the transition to the Majors! What are your thoughts on the current climate at the regionals right now for someone who is getting ready to start applying? Is there one regional that you would recommend over another? If you were starting at a regional right now which one would you be aiming for?

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