who controls the pilot's union: very senior pilots.Most airlines are made of a lot of junior pilots. Junior is a relative term because you can be with the airline for a decade and be considered a junior. The senior pilot making $300k is an anomaly at the airline, like the Welfare Queen in politics. So when the airline wants to cut salaries these dozen (for a large airline) or so senior guys, that are almost near retirement, are the ones put on the press release as the big bad pilots. To the guy making $300k taking a 25% paycut, its not a big deal, the guy making $16k taking a 25% paycut, BIG fucking deal.
And just like politics, airline pilot unions don't always vote rationally. They could vote in a system that randomizes schedule according to availability, but they'd much rather keep the bid system. I guess its a case of "I got mine" where the senior guys get to choose the priciest routes. And the junior guy wants what senior has even if its costing him. Taxes on the rich are the same, they are an easy target but the middle class don't want it because they might be one of them one day.
I don't think you'll find a person alive willing to say I, with 25+ years, is okay with you firing me if the junior gets to keep his job. No one wants to be furloughed and as you get higher up in the company the stakes get higher so don't expect this piece of union contracts to change. Not for pilots, not for detroit, not even in the IT sector; you know, last hired first fired.
If airlines paid workers according to personal experience and skill rather than seniority within their particular airline, pilots would be more likely to live near where they worked.
Capt. Sully could stay in SF but there are more senior pilots who are just as experienced as him, there. To move up the ladder he chose to go to NC. Hell, even Heather Poole, FA blogger on gadling, chose to take NYC while living in LA. Your choice is either to get experience working at a different FBO, or be on reserve, sitting in the terminal, not getting any experience. Tough choice, huh?
An airline that is successful and growing will enjoy lower costs because of the new pilots being hired for almost nothing.
If you are referring to LCCs most are just a proving ground for pilots until they can make it to mainline carrier. So you have cheap, inexperienced pilots and lots of churn with the best, most experienced pilots leaving for better conditions. I'd like to point out that LCCs like Jetblue and SWA are anomalies. Most LCCs operate on razor thin margins and are usually just a few months away from bankruptcy. The good ones grow the bad ones you never hear about.
Also, for airlines the biggest expense is the plane itself. labor is such a minuscule part of the operating budget that if they are in trouble cutting there is just laughable excercise. The pilots, the flight crew, and the ground crew know this. A declining airline will, in this order, cut routes, crew, and then aircraft. With the aircraft being the 800lb gorilla in the room.
The author is type-rated in the Canadair Regional Jet and Cessna Citation Mustang and has more than 3500 hours of flying experience
Most mainlines require 5000 hours. For now, you couldn't get a job with the big boys even if you wanted to. Anyway, when you do cross that threshold and see things from the other seat I wonder if you'll have the same opinion. In any case godspeed with your career.