Hey!
I was wondering if you were switching aircrafts would you have to start over in seniority or would it resume from where you left off? For example if I flew as a captain for 5 years on a B737 and then transferred to a A320 would i continue on Year 5 captain seniorty/pay or start all over again on year 1 first officer?
Thanks, Androu
Androu,
First off I’m not sure why you’d want to go from a 737 to a 320 as that’s pretty much a lateral move (unless there was a particular base or route you wanted) but that’s not really relevant, well it might be but anyway here we go.
There’s really 2 types of seniority, system (or overall) and relative. You’re system seniority is your seniority within the airline. It starts when you’re hired and you continue to accrue year after year. In your scenario if you’ve been at the airline for 5yrs, you would never again be a 1st year anything. You’d be a 5th year Capt or FO on whatever equipment you can hold so that answers the pay question.
As for your relative seniority that refers to your seniority on a certain airplane, base or position. For example I’ve been at Hawaiian for 9yrs. When it comes to bidding, schedules etc, I’m currently a mid seniority 717 Capt. I could be a junior A321 Capt or a mid seniority 330 FO or a super senior A321 or 717 FO. At every airline there are senior and junior airplanes (usually due to the size and pay), senior and junior bases and of course Capt seats are more senior than FO seats (again depending on the plane). This is the reason why some people wait before they switch to a new airplane or even upgrade. While they may want the pay bump, it will most likely effect their quality of life. These are individuals choices and you need to do what’s best for you.
Adam
Androu,
I just switched from being a 320 Captain to a 737 Captain. While this is a lateral move, I did it because the schedules and routes are better (at least at United) on the 737. Also, I was never a fan of Airbus and the strange logic they use to fly an airplane.
When I went to the 737, I came in at the seniority level that my company seniority afforded me. I am actually a bit more senior on the 737 than I was on the 320.
Chris