I'm with Scratch on this one. Just two days ago I had a 15.5 hour duty day with multiple ground stops, whining pax, no food, and a reduced rest overnight to boot. The ground stop/delay programs are very tiring on a 5 leg day, then running to the only open place to eat which is ALWAYS McDonald's.
Of course the best part of the regional pilot 15.5 hour duty day is only getting paid for 7.5 of those hours.

I'm itching to try something different. It'll be nice to get rid of the smart a** comments from the pax too, as if it is my entire goal in life to make them late. I personally fired up my weather and tornado machine the other day just to screw with them......give me boxes quick!

rjmore,

Sounds more the life of a third tier carrier than SWA. Agreed, no life and no money is not a good job.:)

cpdude,

SWA is the same life just for A LOOOOOTTTTTT more money. They get more days off too since they really pack in the flying when they do work. All my buds over there like it but they are also always exhausted. It's the multiple legs that get so tiring, especially when you add in all the other stuff like ground stops, deicing etc.

Anyway, any regional airline here is definitely third tier in the biz. How some guys make a career out of it is beyond me.

...... so the real test is..... how many leave SWA? Just those retiring and kicking screaming about it! Just look at who has spearheaded the retirement age change to 65 in the US.

Everyone there as happy as a pilot could be...., who would want to work there?

Exhausted? Probably. It takes a lot of energy to laugh at work all day, then continue to laugh all the way to the bank.:ok:

Well, guys who aspire to SWA aim for it and are very happy to get it. It's not for me though so I have no intention of applying. Those that do, more power to ya! Maybe I'll change my tune soon enough but not just yet.

Although, it is not quite as utopian as it seems either.

I think SWA's days of unprecedented financial success and fantastical pilot wages are coming to an end. Look at what they get paid. Look at fuel prices and the expiration of their fuel hedges. Look at the saturation in the U.S. domestic airline market.

They are going to have to change their business model... i.e. larger aircraft and international routes if they want to maintain their profitability. They are looking into it with 787's, but it is going to be a tough transition. However, their management may just be sharp enough to pull it off.

People have been predicting the dethronement of SWA for a long time. I'll believe it when I see it; they seem to have the whole biz model thing down pretty well.