Professional Pilot Career Journal

August 25, 2003 – Goldilocks

Well, lots of news since my last update of two months ago. I’ll try to think back that far.

In June we were in heavy negotiations with United Airlines to continue our status as a United Express carrier once they came out of bankruptcy. Well, negotiations broke down and instead of flying as United Express, ACA will now be its very own, low-cost airline. We will be competing directly with airlines like Southwest, JetBlue and AirTran and will sell our own tickets, do our own advertising, and attempt to make a name for ourselves (the internal project name is called “Goldilocks”, but our airline will actually be changing its name to something a little more catchy than Atlantic Coast – it better not be Goldilocks or I’m quitting!) It’s really quite exciting but is extremely risky and there is a good chance we will fail. However, if it works, it will be better in the long run than continuing to fly for United. We will be starting up our own operations in the spring of next year with the addition of at least 20 Boeing 737 or Airbus 320 jets to our existing fleet of 87 CRJs. We will be closing down Chicago and moving all operations to Washington DC’s Dulles airport. The furloughs that were supposed to happen in September have been officially cancelled and they are even talking about recalling the already-furloughed pilots sometime next year after we start flying the largest aircraft. It’s cool that I will have the opportunity to fly large jets without ever having to leave for another airline, but being so close to the bottom of the seniority list it will be many years before that will happen and my job is still in a shaky position since I would be the first to go if any downsizing is needed. But I’m hopeful.

As in my last report, I’m still waiting for a possible phone call from SkyWest to have me start flying for them probably in December. Still not a for-sure deal but it gives me a nice cushion if things don’t go so well with ACA. It will be a difficult decision since I don’t think I’ll have all the information I’ll need if and when I have to make it. I just want to be wherever I can still have a job in 10 years, but that’s hard to predict these days.

I have moved to Chicago! I was tired of commuting to Las Vegas and didn’t see the need to be paying rent in two places anymore when I was hardly ever going back to Nevada anyway. I have a 3-bedroom apartment with 2 other pilots right in the city. It’s great – a nice area with lots of things to do right within walking distance, and only a 10-minute train ride right into the heart of downtown and the lake. It’s further from the airport than my crashpad was but I think it is worth it. I really do like Chicago so I’m glad to be here but when we shut down our operations here I plan to move to Dulles. Just don’t want to commute anymore and I would have to compete for the jumpseat with a whole bunch of other guys who already live here and are being forced to Dulles as well.

After holding a scheduled line last month, I’m back on perpetual reserve but am being called to fly every day. Getting plenty of flight hours (now over 500 hours in the CRJ) and I get a 59% pay raise in three weeks as I finally get off probation. It’s going to be great, after three years in this career, no longer making food-stamp wages. Still not software engineering wages, but much better than what I’ve been earning since I left Jeppesen.

That’s the news. I’m still having a great time in the job and lifestyle. I’m going to Denver tomorrow for a couple of days to do some hiking in the Rocky Mountains with my friend Mike. After months in this flatland it will be nice to breathe fresh clean air again for a couple of days.

I really enjoyed a brief trip I did to Austin a few weeks ago where my brother and his wife life. I got to show them my airplane and my brother and I sat in the cockpit goofing off for a while like we used to do when we were kids. A very memorable moment and one of the things that makes this job so great.