Morningstar

[757 Driver]

Upgrade to captain on the 757 has shortened dramatically in the last couple of years. Most recent upgrade went out to a pilot with just over three years with the company.

[schnitzel2k3]

I was wondering about the Caravan pilots at Morningstar. I saw the recent ad for 757 FO , I thought for sure they could have easily hired from within already?

They say you can fly the caravan for a year and upgrade to FO on the 757. I find it odd they don’t mention upgrades to the ATR.

Anyone have some insight.

I know someone with 1200 hours on Caravan but it’s single pilot Day VFR only, not sure how well that would stack up for a Morningstar gig in Wpg or YYZ. They’re interested.

ATR is Mirabel only, and it flies to Quebec City and back. Occasionally spots open on the ATR, but it's rare.

Bids typically go through the Caravan pilots prior to going public, but most Caravan pilots learn to enjoy the lifestyle. Some want career progress, but it means switching to the backside of the clock. If you are seeing a 757 opening, it means the current set of Caravan pilots have passed on it.

The Morningstar 757 is a wonderful well kept aircraft, and it is a great company to work for, but night cargo can be tricky to get used to.

Last I checked, upgrades were between 9-10 YOS and require 500 hours on the 757 to qualify for. Nothing stopping you from bidding back and forth.

Contract is public, I believe Unifor is still watching over the fleet and you can view their current agreement online. They are in negotiations now so expect good things in the spring of 2020.

Best of luck.

Interesting, thanks for some insight.


Question, what do you mean you can bid back and forth? Does that mean you can fly both the caravan and the 757?

Also, how is it operating out of a massive airport like YYZ with a caravan.? Probably just the same as any other plane out of YYZ. I wonder what kind of commute most pilots have. Public transportation? Or fight through the traffic? What’s a typical commute time these days? 45mins?

That sounds pretty good about new negotiations, looking forward to seeing what happens this spring.

Did you work for them at some point?

Cheers

When bids open if you don't feel like flying the jet and need a little vitamin D, you can bid back to the Caravan and vice versa.

Flying the Caravan in and out of any major airport where most of the jets on your tail are dropping full flaps just to stay at your VMO takes some talent to fit into the pattern, but you get used to handling the radios and flying the bird all by yourself.

I had no idea the left seat '57 bids were as low as THREE years?! Man, times change.

Thank you for correcting my very out-of-date information 757.

[Crazed Windscreen]

Does anyone know what a typical monthly pairing schedule looks like on the 57?

And what would the commute be like from the west coast?
Whats the min block for the month?
Cheers

Crazed

[Chaxterium]

I can't speak for the commuting aspect as I don't personally commute (although I do live 2 hours away). But regarding the pairings it's a bit of a mixed bag. Our longest pairing is 4 days but they don't happen often. It's been once a month for me. The majority of the pairings are two days (well really two nights). You'll leave your house around midnight, fly through the night, get to the hotel around 5 or 6 am and then fly back to Toronto that evening. Usually home anywhere from 1-5am.

Personally I love it because I get to have dinner with my family, put the kids to bed and then head to work with no traffic. Then I work all night and get to the hotel and sleep. When I come home I'm home before the family wakes up so I still get to see them off in the morning and then grab a few hours of sleep in a quiet and empty house.

If you can handle the nights the schedule is actually pretty damn good. I worked 9 days in December and I'm working 8 days in January.

[TonicBear]

I can't speak for the commuting aspect as I don't personally commute (although I do live 2 hours away). But regarding the pairings it's a bit of a mixed bag. Our longest pairing is 4 days but they don't happen often. It's been once a month for me. The majority of the pairings are two days (well really two nights). You'll leave your house around midnight, fly through the night, get to the hotel around 5 or 6 am and then fly back to Toronto that evening. Usually home anywhere from 1-5am.

Personally I love it because I get to have dinner with my family, put the kids to bed and then head to work with no traffic. Then I work all night and get to the hotel and sleep. When I come home I'm home before the family wakes up so I still get to see them off in the morning and then grab a few hours of sleep in a quiet and empty house.

If you can handle the nights the schedule is actually pretty damn good. I worked 9 days in December and I'm working 8 days in January.

Is the flying credit based?

[pecessix]

Hi everyone,

Any information about the ATR job from Mirabel? Schedule, conditions, etc.
It used to be one week rotation several years ago, is it still the same?

Thanks!