Going from Southwest to Ryan Air?

[Beech Balls]

Please don't kill me for thinking of this.

I'm about to become a third-year FO at SWA, and am loving it.

However, there may be an opportunity to move to Europe. As bad as it can be, I do love Italy, speak a few languages, and think I could be happy there.

Ryan Air is apparently a tough place to work, but it would give me a good schedule and flexibility, and OK money.

Would anyone consider this move? or am I just nuts?

Thanks for the input!

[stansdead]

I won't comment on why you'd leave SWA to join FR. Everyone has there own sound reasoning.

What I will tell you is that:

1) You're not a Captain, therefore FR will not be interested in you currently. They only hire Captains (much needed) and Cadets (profitable);

2) You will need more than a passing interest in Italy and languages to eligible for employment in Europe. You need the right to LIVE and WORK in Europe;

3) You will need a JAA state licence of one sort or another, and;

4) If your JAA licence is not Irish, be prepared to convert at a cost of 300 to 400 Euro to an IAA licence.

Go figure............:eek:

[Beech Balls]

Thanks for the reply.

I wouldn't leave until I get the required flight time as a Captain, and I know that's 10-12 years down the road.

I have the right to work in the EU, so that's not an issue.

Apparently, I can go direct-entry captain with my FAA ATP, and I have one year to get the JAA, or they'll put me in a program to get it/transfer it. (I'm a little confused on this.)

300-400 euros isn't a big deal to convert. Unless I'm missing something, and it's not a one-time fee....??

Thanks for the time!

[Pugilistic Animus]

Leave Southwest:eek:

:ugh:

[seasexsun]

That's a bloody amazing idea to leave Southwest for going to Ryanair. If Ryanair treated its pilots like southwest pilots that would be the paradise on earth indeed!
Ryanair does have lots of bases in Italy mainland and Italian islands like Sicilia and Sardenya, however ryanair wont give a **** of what you want and where you want to be based. They will send you to where THEY want and that's it. You may end up in Germany or Glasgow if they need you there, and then you will have to wait months or years until they make you happy with a hypothetic transfer to italy. So bear that in mind.

You have the right to work and live in Europe, that's good for you, on the old continent there is not Green Card system, and this make your life easier for imigrating here, whereas for a european who wants to live and work in the USA it's far more complicated :yuk:

cheers dude

[Microburst2002]

Come on Beach balls...

What's the name of the girl?

She must be gorgeus indeed

;)

[stansdead]

Microburst,

Don't be dumb!!!

Her name must be Michelle O'Leary........:ok:

[Beech Balls]

I know I know....I doubt i'll ever leave. I'm just researching...
And SHE does exist....:ugh:

[ATPMBA]

Seems like the Euro is heading south, the experts say in one year it will be on parity with the dollar. EU socialists policies may take a dive and taxes may go up. I say there may be high unemployment over there but check out the expert's blogs.

Things change and the grass is always greener on the overside.

Lot's of guys would give their left nut to get a job with SWA.

[dirk85]

Lot's of guys would give their left nut to get a job with SWA.

I would give the right one as well.

[Floppy Link]

I'd give your right one...:uhoh:

[Mindthegap]

Sorry but are you thinking of doing this 10-12 years from now or?? Because if you haven´t been a Capt before Ryanair won´t take you.

[Beech Balls]

yes. please read above

[Sir Herbert Gussett]

I'm sure in 10-12 years you'll meet entry requirements for more airlines than simply Ryanair.

[A-3TWENTY]

Don`t take dcisions based in Shes....They go and you stay stuck in a ****y job. If they really like you they move where u are.

[cptbb]

Hi,

RE: "...They only hire Captains (much needed)":}

Please would you give me the Ryan Air HR / Chief pilots email contact.

Thanks so much:ok:

[Wizofoz]

Wow- is it really 13-15 years to a command in SW?

[seasexsun]

Beach Balls you are not a troll, are you?

No, I am saying that just because you are new on this forum, under this name, and you are telling us ridiculous things.
Try Lady Gaga, she is a bit italian :}

[stansdead]

Check their recruitment webpage. It is very clearly stated what the requirements are.

[captjns]

Beach Ball... 10 to 12 years to command? Hang tight at SWA and revisit the issue in some 9 to 11 years. By then... who knows?

With the new required pay scheme for contractors, you will be behind at FR vs. SWA.

[Uncle Wiggily]

BeachBalls: Please put the crack pipe down for a moment. You are a pilot at Southwest. You want to go to RyanAir?? WTF? Man, enjoy your life at SW, if you need a taste of Euro life so bad, go out and buy a scarf and super-intellectual glasses, buy a purebred dog, learn to become a bad tipper, learn not to say hello to strangers and offer to donate 50 percent more in taxes to your government. Have at it, man.

[Pugilistic Animus]

Don't {Duit}:}

that Jetblue girl gets around...:}

[Lrjetcap]

I emplore you......please leave for RyanAir....it will give the rest of us a chance to work for the highest paying/best benefits/best scheduled/best run airline in the US. Not to mention the fact we are in year 4 of the age 65 rule. Upgrade should be shaping up to be more like 3-5 yrs. :=

[seasexsun]

BTW, in order to compare the 2 airlines, can anybody tell us what crew bases do they have at Southwest? what's the salary FO/capt and how many flight hours do they do per month/year? What are the entry requirements at Southwest? I suppose they don't give a **** to the crapy european system which consists in hiring 200 hours underexperienced cadets... :bored:

Finaly, do you think that Ryanair will become as good as Southwest in the future? :ouch:

[Uncle Wiggily]

the Capt got off before us. I saw him leaving the car park in a convertible s2000 with the hood down ( in the rain) with '-------FLY' on the registration plate and WORST of all he still had his bars on so everyone could see him. ( i think on a leather jacket)

I think he even had highlights in his hair.

In 20 years in the airlines I've NEVER seen such a knob.


Oh...that is so disgusting that it's hilarious!! Let me guess...he also had a sticker on the back of his s2000 that read, "I'm not driving fast, I'm just flying low"....and on his off-days he probably loves to wear a t-shirt that says, "Bad Attitude" depicting an offset Attitude Indicator.

[Lrjetcap]

Crew bases are all over. Most senior is Dallas, last time I checked most junior is either Oakland or Baltimore.....
FO:
Yr 1--$52
Yr 2--$88
Yr 3--#98
Yr4--108

Cap:
Yr 1--$174
Yr 2--$176
Yr 3--$179
Yr 4--$181

Max @ yr 12
FO-$131/Cap-$198
Guarantees Line-78hrs Reserve-79hrs

And they arent hiring for this year....my guess is that they are looking around 8k-9kTT for competetive times. Toughest/Highest paying airline job in the US now. Dont know how you could even think of leaving.:ugh:

[Lrjetcap]

It is truly an amazing to watch the gate agents, to the pilots, to the attendants, to the bag throwers. Every team works together unbelieveably well. Quality of life @ SWA is the best by leaps and bounds. The on-going joke is that Southwest taking over ATA's gates in NY-LGA and no one thinks their consistant on-time arrivals will continue once they take over gates at the airport with the worst on time performance in the country. Its amazing what happens when the human spirit is happy everytime it shows up for work. Rare indeed.:D

[Beech Balls]

I'm no troll, nor do I truly understand what that means. However, I have no information on European companies, and thought i'd simply ask.

SWA is unbelievable. Don't get me wrong, I don't want to leave it. However, I'm just thinking years down the road what it might be like to work in Europe, if there is something close to SWA..

I quite fully realize working at SWA is a big deal, I'm just thinking of different possible paths for my life.

Thanks for the info. I'm not about to quit.

[Rananim]

Pilots dont leave SWA.It is without doubt one of the best airlines in the world and I say that not as a Yank but as a pilot.Fedex is a good carrier.Of the international airlines,Qantas,SIA,Lufthansa.But Ryanair?Well,it sounds like a sweat-shop with a lot of disgruntled staff.Who'd want that?

[BigNumber]

I reckon this chap means Air Southwest, the UK turbo prop gig. Not the holy grail SWA State Side.

Might be wrong but doubt anyone would leave the latter.

[169west]

Europe is a beautiful country to live but it is not so easy to reproduce the same quality of life you can find in the States.
Be careful where you want to be based in Italy! Same places are really wild!

[Beech Balls]

Umm...no.

I meant THE Southwest Airlines from Dallas, TX.

Europe isn't a country.

I'm simply researching, and I've been steered towards Ryan Air, whose website doesn't delve into QOL issues. Hence my reason fro being here.

I'm not about to leave SWA. I'm interested in living in ITALY, however...
A Milan base would be awesome. I could handle that, but I'd only go there as a direct entry Captain.

SWA is an amazing company. It takes great care of its employees. However, in the end, a job is a job, and not necessarily the rest and end-all be-all of one's life. That's why I'm looking for info.

Thanks again for all the input!

[captplaystation]

Enjoy the view,

Well done for a lucid , informed, non hysterical summing up.

So refreshing (on a Ryanair thread) to read the odd post every now and then that actually tells it like it is, rather than the usual weighted claptrap.

[169west]

Europe isn't a country? Yes Europe is a mix of Countries with different languages... BUT definitely you need a EUROPEAN passport if you are willing to work in EU, and probably also a JAA ATP!:}

[Obi Wan Kirk]

First of all if you are an FO rated on B737NG RYR will not take you. Why? Because they can't make any money out of you. They are in the business of selling type ratings.

The company has a very good roster system and very good maintenance. However, as a pilot you are treated badly. I hear SWA is a great place to work, so if I were you I'd stay there.

If you are looking for a change of scene why don't you try one of the Middle Eastern carriers such as FlyDubai. Emirates, Qatar Airways or Etihad?
Also there are quite a few jobs going in China and packages are improving.

[STC-8]

Europe isn't a country? Yes Europe is a mix of Countries with different languages... BUT definitely you need a EUROPEAN passport if you are willing to work in EU, and probably also a JAA ATP!

Fwiw There is no actual 'European' passport.

Every European country has it's own passport.

The European Union is made up of 27 member states.

Persons who hold a nationality from one of the EU member states have the right to freely move, reside & work in any of the other member states. In theory.

European Union - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Union)

[Beech Balls]

Like I said before: I have the right to work in the EU already. I have dual citizenship.

[FRying]

Seriously, beech balls, forget about all this non-sense. Get back to reality. One year into employment with RYR, you will hang yourself wondering how on earth you got to the point of leaving SWA for RYR, with no turning back to SWA. Come on, have a drink, reconsider and forget about it...

Plus, RYR is about to see all their experienced/good quality people leave to greened pastures (for instance, EK is about to hire 700 pilots over a handful of months...). This will understaff the airline and make life there miserable, even more so than today.

[Beech Balls]

thanks guys.
I'm not leaving SWA.

[clunckdriver]

Beach Ball, if this feeling to switch from your present position comes over you again, may I sugest a glass of warm milk then rest in bed untill the urge goes away!

[GSMini]

Well, I´m gonna give you another point of view...

IF and only IF you can leave Southwest on an unpaid leave, and after some time, you can go back to SWA, maintaining your seniority etc...Go and give a try to RYR.

It will be a good experience for you. If you weren´t loving SWA...You will start loving it from the very first day you fly in RYR.
You can also see how your money "flies". Taxes, specially now, are painful.
If you get tour base in Italy, Spain...well life down here is good..nice weather, good looking girls, even better food, nightlife is awesome...And hey! We do say hello to strangers! Specially to hot babes:E. Not everything is good of course..I´ll let that to people from the upper Europe,

I´ve been living for some time in Ireland..and I got depressed (Not in RYR), Rain, wind, cold, food is...well,was that food at all?, Expensive place and nightlife was ---- compared to the one in Spain.
On the other hand, you´re never ever going to see a greener place on Earth..Easy, taking into account how much it rains there!

Now, being serious, Europe is a good place...but so is the USA, and if you have the perfect pilot job...Give a try to Europe, BUT..secure your job in SWA first!

PS. Uncle Wiggily, you just described what I think about the French

[GlueBall]

. . . And in EU you'd be paying a lot more than Texas taxes. :{

[169west]

Thank you... now everybody is happy that you are staying at SWA! Now, just for fun, let reverse the initial statement...
from RYR to SWA ... how?