US regional vs. a King Air FO position?

[SeattlePilot]

I have been furloughed from a us regional for almost 18 months. After the furlough I applied for a King Air position overseas where I was hoping to get hired by the national airline. (Haven't finished my JAA conversion yet)

US Regional :
Pros:
- Airline flying
- Jet FO
- No training contract

Cons:
- Crappy pay.
- possibly two leg commute

King Air FO:
Pros:
- Top pay (about 4 times of US regional)
- guaranteed upgrade to left side

Cons:
- Not a transport category airplane
- Not a jet type
- Training contract of 3 years with no pro rate.
- Based on location

I already am in done interviewing with the national airline , done with English profeciency , face to face interview and sim eval, there is still no guarantee that I will get hired by them. But eventually I'd like to work and live in that country as the compensation in 10 years is not even comperible to the 10 year of regional income in US.

What would you do , given these circumstances?

[IrishJetdriver]

If no family ties. Pack your bags!

[Blackcoffeenosugar]

I am really sorry to hear that you have been out of a job for that long :(

I do not fully understand the comparison, have they offered you a return to the US regional?
The part regarding training bonds is only applicable when/if you want to leave.
Do you have any relations in the country of the carrier that flies the KingAir?
Is the basic question whether or not you can suffer the "degradation" of going from a jet to a small turboprop?? If so- :mad:

I would go for the better T&C's! I never flew the kingAir but I flew something similar and it was great fun!! :)

What ever you choose I wish you all the best of luck!:ok:

[SeattlePilot]

Thanks for responses , family ties to US and a business tie that is being run by my better half when I am gone. On the other hand, both me and missus are from the foreign country, even though we have been away for more than 2 decades.
And yes, I am being called back to the US job. Interestingly, the training dates are a week apart :) .. Whoever said 'when it rains it pours' was correct :)

[NGjockey]

It is not so easy for an outsider to give you sensible advice with the information you gave us in your post. Such decisions depend on many circumstances, like do you have a family to support or to take with you? What experience do you already have? How many hours have you flown on a jet? What are the perspectives for an upgrade with the regional company? There's lots more to consider...

I've been in this business for 19 years, and the one decision that I have been regretting for most of that time was to take a job as PIC and Flight Operations Manager on a Piper Navajo instead of a right seat position on a regional jet. I managed to get stuck on propeller aircraft from then on, because every time I interviewed for a jet job I was asked how much jet time I had (NONE!), and that was pretty much it. I made captain on larger turboprops (also regional operators), and from then on the verdict was "...too much PIC time for a F/O position, but no jet time, so a direct entry command won't be possible, either..." Only during the latest economic peak, when everybody was desperately looking for pilots did I get my lucky break and a decent job on a jet.

Long story cut short: Where do you want to go? Do you want to fly the big jets eventually? Then don't get stuck on a small turboprop. Get the experience you need and build your network.

If you don't care about the type you fly, go have fun and make money! But one word of advice: It's not ALL about money! I have been flying part time for a couple of years now and even though I make a lot less than before I would NEVER go back to full time! Life has got a lot more to offer than big salaries, but that is only a personal opinion not so easily understood in places like the U.S. of A. ;)

One more question, though: Why would a two leg commute be a problem? If you are seriously considering moving overseas, moving to your new base in order to avoid that commute should be a lot less complicated. And it would save you money, too.

[GlueBall]

Why would a two leg commute be a problem?

. . . There's a very long thread about a turboprop crash at Buffalo where it was discovered that both pilots had commuted live into their flight out of EWR; one from Florida, the other from Seattle, a lengthy 2 sector commute.

Commuting [U]is a problem because it eats up your off-days; and if you commute on your rostered workday it shortens your rest period and technically makes you illegal duty wise, because "commuting" is not part of a rest period.

It's a self evident, common sense sort of issue. :eek:

[Lightheart]

Hi Seattle Pilot,

You are the only one who can really answer this. Go within and ask your higher Self, Lord God of your Being, or whatever terminology you want to call it, and your answer will come to you. Trust in being able to make the correct decision for yourself.

Great place the Pacific Northwest....Yelm, Olympia.

By the way, there is no such thing as "degradation" from a jet to a small turbo prop. It's not important what you fly, but WHO YOU FLY FOR AND HOW THEY TREAT YOU.

Having flown a King Air I can tell you, you'll really enjoy the hand flying. The PIC on a twin turbine will also put you in good stead for the future.

I am based abroad from my home and work a roster and enjoy the opportunity to work in a different environment.

Good luck whatever you decide.

[cortilla]

I have very limited experience in the commercial world. I havn't in the grand scheme of things been employed that long in the commercial world.

However i was told 2 things a long time ago.

1) Never turn down a type rating

2) Never turn down a command.

Now i don't know your exact circumstances and so can't give you a great deal of advice.

But do you currently have command experience?

If not, command on a turboprop is surely more valuable in the long run than F/O ship on a jet (and being a regional i'm guessing an EMB145 or CRJ700 ish type). I'm assuming command time is just as valuable in the US as it is in europe.

Now despite all that I also know first hand how tough it is to be away from family for a long period of time. It really really sucks, but to get my first job a few years ago i really didn't have a choice. But it's been very tough and i'm so glad it's coming to an end.

Just my tuppence worth.

[zlocko2002]

Sometimes I am fascinated with differences between Europe and USA. turboprop, jet, command time, and so on...
Most of my friends started flying for commercial airline usually A320 and Dash-8 Q400 and there was no difference whether one fly C-172 and Pa-44 and had 220h flight time, or Mi-8 helicopter, or MiG-21, or some biz jet, or MD80 and has 2000hrs.

They took ATPL exam(just part of it), English language test, aptitude test and check ride on FNPT II. those that got contract, type rating and 200hrs of line training within company after which they are promoted to FO.

[NGjockey]

@ zlocko2002:

True, but not always. It depends on the situation. If a company is looking for type rated pilots, a type rating will be worth a lot more than PIC time.

I also doubt that King Air PIC time is really appreciated by the airlines. First of all the King Air is not a JAR 25 aircraft, and as far as I know it is not necessarily a multi crew rating. What airlines like to see is experience on JAR 25 airplanes, which basically means that someone has an idea of handling a turbine airplane in a multi crew environment. If I had to hire pilots for an airline operation I would definitely prefer pilots who know what the "pilot flying - pilot monitoring" - concept is about. Years ago I was working in the training department of a regional operator, and no offence to the GA guys, but some (let me stress the word SOME here!) of those 2000+ hour King Air pilots who applied for a job were unable to adapt to a multi crew cockpit. That doesn't mean that the other guys with multi crew experience were better pilots, but as a result of that applications of multi crew experienced pilots would be preferred, even if they had flown only as F/O.

It really depends on the market. In good times all you basically need is a current licence. In lean times sometimes not even a current 747 PIC rating will get you a job...

[SeattlePilot]

Thanks for all the input guys/gals. I turned down the KA job. Both jobs were SIC and the 170/190 line was a better option over all. Especially would like to thank the gentleman who warned me about the Navajo experience.

Seattlepilot

[stilton]

You made a very good decision.

[Fly4Fun]

Good decision mate. You wont regret it.
happy landings :ok: