Which one you will take? if a airline give you a choice.

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LOCBC
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Which one you will take? if a airline give you a choice.

Post by LOCBC »

Dash 8 Captain or MD 82 Co-Pilot?
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Re: Which one you will take? if a airline give you a choice.

Post by CL-Skadoo! »

I'd fly a Cessna 150 if it had better working conditions (pay, schedule, lifestyle, stability). So whichever aircraft has the best situation.
Don't chase airplanes and seats, chase lifestyle.
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Re: Which one you will take? if a airline give you a choice.

Post by Brantford Beech Boy »

+1

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Re: Which one you will take? if a airline give you a choice.

Post by ScudRunner »

wow this just shows how little pilots think of careers all it comes down to is what type of plane. Who cares the type make a list Company A and Company B, and then list pay , sched , benefits, life style , company stability, advancement etc make a choice based on that. But if you are just chasing metal the MD-82 has more Aluminum in it and makes more noise and goes faster so maybe there ya go if that's all the criteria for a job selection.
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Re: Which one you will take? if a airline give you a choice.

Post by ajet32 »

Where do you want to end up. The middle eastern carriers with all the big "Iron" want jet time period. They don't give a care for how much command you have on a Dash8 or anything less than 30 -50Tons and a jet. They want jet time 2000 hours of it minimum and 4000 total.
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Re: Which one you will take? if a airline give you a choice.

Post by mbav8r »

Which one would make you more marketable if the company goes away? A Dash type rating or MD80?
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Re: Which one you will take? if a airline give you a choice.

Post by complexintentions »

It's all fine to say "chase lifestyle, not airplanes" but the simple truth is that generally, there is a correlation between the two. As much as it sounds cool to say "I'd fly a C152 if it had a better lifestyle", the fact is...(barring exceptions so miniscule as to be irrelevant)...it will never be a better lifestyle than flying heavier equipment. It isn't rocket science, just economics. Money isn't everything but I find they won't take mortgage payments in rainbows and unicorn farts.

So yes, if you find your niche and love it, hang on to it! But never discount the possibilities afforded by gaining experience in more capable equipment, it may come in handy one day...I'd take the MD82 experience any day as it opens more possibilities in the future. But that in no way denigrates Dash 8 pilots, just acknowledging that it's easier to move down in size of a/c than up...
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Re: Which one you will take? if a airline give you a choice.

Post by CL-Skadoo! »

complexintentions wrote:It's all fine to say "chase lifestyle, not airplanes" but the simple truth is that generally, there is a correlation between the two. As much as it sounds cool to say "I'd fly a C152 if it had a better lifestyle", the fact is...(barring exceptions so miniscule as to be irrelevant)...it will never be a better lifestyle than flying heavier equipment. It isn't rocket science, just economics. Money isn't everything but I find they won't take mortgage payments in rainbows and unicorn farts
Point taken, and I agree for the most part. I left my 705 job to fly an antiquated aircraft by comparison for a stable company. I see my wife now more than I ever have and my days off are MINE.

If this individual is qualified to sit in the right seat of a MD-80 and captain a dash 8, then they are in a fine position and do not need to add credentials (unless they want to move out to the litter box, then they'll need some jet time, agreed).

Other than that circumstance, I stand by the lifestyle statement. You can chase an MD-80 job straight into an organization like Jetsgo, if you want big jet time that badly.
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Re: Which one you will take? if a airline give you a choice.

Post by jet a1 »

i'm on the lifestyle bandwagon... i've always figured what's the point in going all over the place and collecting amazing stories if when you get home there's no one to share them with.
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Re: Which one you will take? if a airline give you a choice.

Post by iflyforpie »

CL-Skadoo! wrote:
complexintentions wrote:It's all fine to say "chase lifestyle, not airplanes" but the simple truth is that generally, there is a correlation between the two. As much as it sounds cool to say "I'd fly a C152 if it had a better lifestyle", the fact is...(barring exceptions so miniscule as to be irrelevant)...it will never be a better lifestyle than flying heavier equipment. It isn't rocket science, just economics. Money isn't everything but I find they won't take mortgage payments in rainbows and unicorn farts
Point taken, and I agree for the most part. I left my 705 job to fly an antiquated aircraft by comparison for a stable company. I see my wife now more than I ever have and my days off are MINE.

If this individual is qualified to sit in the right seat of a MD-80 and captain a dash 8, then they are in a fine position and do not need to add credentials (unless they want to move out to the litter box, then they'll need some jet time, agreed).

Other than that circumstance, I stand by the lifestyle statement. You can chase an MD-80 job straight into an organization like Jetsgo, if you want big jet time that badly.
Mortgage payments don't come from rainbows and unicorn farts, but alimony payments can cut into that bigger paycheque quite a bit as well, and estranged kids are an even harder loss to value. I know more divorced or single airline pilots than happily married ones.

I never did and probably never will make it to 705. but I doubt that an airline job would have given me every Christmas off for the last four years, the last five Sundays off to go snowboarding with my son, the last two Wednesday evenings off to take my daughter to dance class, every evening to have dinner with my family, and be able to go out to a nice Valentines dinner every year.

Unfortunately, seniority is wasted on the old...
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Re: Which one you will take? if a airline give you a choice.

Post by Never Mind »

Some guys use their MPIC on a large aircraft to get them to a jet job. Can you bypass the Dash 8 job, land the MD80 First Officer seat and advance to captain at that company? Find YOUR place.
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Re: Which one you will take? if a airline give you a choice.

Post by brooks »

DASH 8 captain. MD80 = highway to ass rot.
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Re: Which one you will take? if a airline give you a choice.

Post by KK7 »

I think that people who say "chase lifestyle, not airplanes" often forget how they got to where they are now.

Simply put, sometimes to chase a lifestyle, you have to chase airplanes.

I'm chasing a lifestyle, but I need to chase airplanes to get to that lifestyle, because that lifestyle comes with a requirement to have a certain type of experience (and no it isn't even remotely related to airlines or big iron). In the process, I've had a blast, made new friends I would have never made before, and seen and done things that have changed me (in a positive way) and how I look at the world, that I really appreciate.

My advice is choose something that you will enjoy doing, because the journey is just as important as the destination.

But we don't know anything about this individual, he left a very cryptic post severely lacking any details. For some, chasing airplanes is a lifestyle they enjoy. There are a few lucky people out there that have spouses happy and willing to follow them through their career. I just don't think any of us are in any position to give advice here unless LOCBC wants to give us some more info like:
Where would he like to end up?
Where does he want to live?
What kind of lifestyle would make him happy?

(replace he/him with she/her as required)
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Re: Which one you will take? if a airline give you a choice.

Post by SunWuKong »

Hard to answer because we don't know what you are flying, where you come from, and what you want in your career.

The MD 82 has no future. It's an airplane of the past. All airlines are getting rid of it, and fast.

The Dash 8 (Q400, then Q400X...) is an airplane of the future.

Fuel barrel is increasing again, which will make the Q400 even more attractive, and the MD82 a burden to sell while it is still possible.

Whatever, the most important is here: which position has the best salary?
Try not to go from a turboprop position to a turbofan position if there is no salary increase. Because by doing so we break the logical patern of career improvement in our profession.
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Re: Which one you will take? if a airline give you a choice.

Post by GRK »

Lifestyle or metal...depends where the job is...is it a Dash 8 in Indonesia or Africa...? Then it's command time with two VERY different lifestyles...MD82...? USA or Europe...one most likely a junior seat and not much money, or lotsa cash but not home...it's a conundrum...contract job versus Legacy carrier with a seniority list? Lotsa choices...my thoughts? Command takes ya farther when it's time to find another job. Jet time in the RHS only works when a company needs warm bodies in a hurry. What are the chances for upgrade? How long for that? My experience (on both sides of the desk and around the world) is chase the Command, then use that to get the lifestyle. Currently I have 10 years to go, I am sitting in a super place, flying serious metal and the principles are great to work for, and getting huge smiles when I look at what will be there when I retire...and my family is happy..also very nice! (I chased seats,at first cause I had too, then to find that great job, and now have 5 jet types on 3 ATPL's and a schedule that lets me spend way more time at home than in a jet...and before I get jumped on for being too happy, don't worry, I am not trying to poo poo other pilots choices, just pointing out that Command always gets ya farther...just keep it in mind.
Fly safe!
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Re: Which one you will take? if a airline give you a choice.

Post by UKPilot »

Personally without knowing any of the specifics, command 100%. As mentioned above several times, that could easily change in a hurry with a few more details.
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Re: Which one you will take? if a airline give you a choice.

Post by winds_in_flight_wtf »

It is humorous when pilots try to play the "humble" game. As if you do not have a dream platform , rather one you wish you could take with you everywhere . Nope, a 172 is just as good as a 747 ....... a King Air over a C17 .... no preferences whatsoever!
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Re: Which one you will take? if a airline give you a choice.

Post by iflyforpie »

winds_in_flight_wtf wrote:It is humorous when pilots try to play the "humble" game. As if you do not have a dream platform , rather one you wish you could take with you everywhere . Nope, a 172 is just as good as a 747 ....... a King Air over a C17 .... no preferences whatsoever!
Yeah, if I could keep my current schedule and have zero reductions in pay on the way there, it would be nice to fly a 747 rather than the 172 I fly now.

But my dream bird is a lot more fun than some big hunk of iron. Plus, I will have the satisfaction of building it myself.

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Re: Which one you will take? if a airline give you a choice.

Post by flying4dollars »

Far too vague of a question for anyone to answer. Conditions? Sched? Pay? Progression? What are you coming from? Because if it's coming from a Navajo, it's a lot different than coming from an A320.
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Re: Which one you will take? if a airline give you a choice.

Post by Panama Jack »

It depends a little bit on the weight of your resume, but I will weigh in on the side of ajet32.

Yes, the MD82 is where the B727 was a few years ago, but I knew a bunch of guys who flew MD82's who were put onto the 767 at one airline. Turboprop guys simply are not considered at many international jet jobs. Sorry.

Now my next question is: are you getting a job at Dynamic Aviation? In which case, get your MD82 time while you can and scan the horizon for other opportunities.
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Re: Which one you will take? if a airline give you a choice.

Post by winds_in_flight_wtf »

That is quite awesome portie . Now tell me though, in the event money was no object......Would you enjoy building this and flying it around for fun? Or (like some others here), would you decline for the sake of it being excess aluminum blah blah blah blah .

Do not be fooled...this MIG29 was rebuilt and is flying in Seattle.

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Re: Which one you will take? if a airline give you a choice.

Post by complexintentions »

Mortgage payments, alimony payments...both result from choices made, and both are easier to make if you make a decent living. And that GENERALLY is linked to the machine you fly. Again, not elitism, just fact. I'm the ultimate family man, I wouldn't trade it for anything. But I simply couldn't support them the way I wanted to on a GA wage, so there it is...best point made in this thread is, everyone's situation is different...
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Re: Which one you will take? if a airline give you a choice.

Post by loopa »

Lifestyle band wagon. But as well, what do you want your lifestyle to be. See, a guy with a wife and kids will want to have a different lifestyle than the bachelor who doesn't mind waking up at 5AM.

I think deciding between airplanes for the sole reason of flying "that airplane" is wrong. You want to focus on where you want to be in your flying career. See I think way too many pilot's get caught up in the answer of "I'm a pilot" when asked "who they are." No, pilot's are people. And people have personal life goals. Setting FLX thrust is a form of piloting, and confirming gauges green is another form of piloting. Choose the job that gives you the life you either HAVE right now, or are pursuing. Don't forget, that you'll always want to challenge yourself with new ideas. But as time passes and more people become an important entity to you, you will start evaluating risk with those challenges. So if the risks of going on an F/O job in hopes of ending up somewhere is something you're not looking for (due to having a family for instance), then take the stable captain job. Reverse, if you have a life situation where the MD time will take you somewhere better, then do that. Don't foget, being a pilot is not who you are, it's what you do. Take a look at who you are and where you want to be in life, and base your decision on that.

Good Luck!
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Re: Which one you will take? if a airline give you a choice.

Post by co-joe »

No seriously, which one would you take if the airline gave you the choice?

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Re: Which one you will take? if a airline give you a choice.

Post by fish4life »

Do we have to choose?
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