Originally Posted by
flightpathgolfer
Ah, ok, fair enough. Thanks for the reply. Do you know what the CA requirements are at the moment for SH? And if the ~5 years wait time is accurate for now?
Thinking out loud, but I plan to try and end up as a LH CA. Based on what I've understood on this forum and how seniority impacts lifestyle, I am thinking SH RHS/LHS (probably 15-20 years) until a move to LH would give me some roster control and maybe a command bid not too far away. Aiming to try and get into the LHS LH for the last 10-15 years or so of the career. If the SH isn't working with the commute, then I would look to move to LH FO asap and just suck it up being junior.
Dont have the requirements to hand but i think it has been answered already on this thread.
The time to command for the last few years has been very fast indeed, like as soon as you meet the requirements (keep in mind that we bid for it annually for the following year so when we say it happens quickly you still have to wait for that process). But there is a plan to make SH CA more attractive next year so how that changes the dynamic is anyone's guess.
You will be junior for a long time as SH CA or as LH FO but once you have been in for a while you will be able to gauge what that means for your lifestyle and commute.
Of course becoming LH CA at 20 years will see you being junior again with no roster control, but that is a long way away.
You certainly can go from SH CA to LH FO for a few years if you want, but you would have to take the pay cut and the pain of another command course later on.