Second (under COS 99) join as a Freighter FO for 3 years, then switch to US Based Pax FO for years 4-10 as an FO.
Third (under COS 08) join as a US based unified FO for years 1-10.
Under the previous version of COS '08 which included U.S. freighter scale increases of 3% in both '08 and '09, I calculated that you would make approximately $11,500 USD more in total over ten years if you were to stay on the freighter scale initially and then transfer to the current pax scale. My assumption was a transfer to the pax scale at the 3.5 year mark. However, with a 3% raise to the freighter pay in '08 only (can someone verify this?), it's probably just a wash now. On the UFO scale, you would make a little more money up front. With compounded interest, etc. you could potentially make more over the 10 year period.
My question is, can someone who is currently on the freighter scale jump over to the UFO scale and fly pax immediately? In the short run, this would provide significant benefit to my roster. But, after the 3.5 year mark, I would be stuck with freighter flying and would not have the beautiful NA pax only roster that exists now. However, if you are a stickler for diversity in flying, the UFO option could make things a bit more interesting.
SikeMo