Originally Posted by
WannaBeBiggles
...it's not really in my nature to simple pickup a position in the USA, get an ATPL and bail.
WBB,
Just as addendum to your thoughts, circumstances with the regionals these days are that they don't really expect an applicant to spend years there. Everyone knows regionals are a steppingstone for the majority of applicants. In fact, for example, some pilots retiring out of the military will spend a brief time ( a few months to a couple of years) in a regional to get current again and move on to a legacy spot. I get the impression no one's feelings are hurt by this.
The only complication I can see is the acceptance of sign-on bonuses which carries some length-of-service restrictions to avoid having to repay some or all of the money.
Historically, there was even a time when
NO legacy carrier would accept pilots from another legacy even if they were laid off ( I know because I tried to help some friends but to no avail)...some sort of gentleman's agreement I suppose. Nowadays, people are freely jumping around from one career-destination carrier to another at any point if their personal circumstances require...even when not laid off. No harm...no foul.
I'm not advocating anyone do something they consider unethical. But we're living in
very different times here lately and all involved parties know it.