Hello,
I am currently working on my bachelors degree and as a result another regional airline’s program has caught my attention. Two regional airlines currently on top of my list are Envoy and Commutair. Envoy because of the flow program to American and Commutair because of their program that selects the finest Captains at commutair to interview for future employment at United. I plan on building PIC time on a cessna 182 and a Cessna Caravan at a local airline in my home country to build the 1000 PIC “at a part 135 airline” to enter as a DEC at commutair. Since I am completing my bachelors I won’t be relying fully on these programs to one day work at the major 3 but they are too good to not participate in one if not both.The career path at commutair requires u to complete 1000 hours as PIC 121 and should take approximately 2 years. The career path doesn’t guarantee a job at United but the flow program at Envoy ,however, guarantees a flow to American but it may be lengthy and can stop at any point. Now to my question. If you completed 2+ years as Captain at commutair but you were not chosen to participate in the career program, would you give up your 2+ years of seniority and use your 121 experience to work at Envoy as a DEC? Would that effect your position in their “flow program”? I assume you would be ahead of all the new hires, specifically first officers in the flow. As I said earlier I will make use of these programs to build PIC time but I won’t fully be dependent on them to shoot myself into a major airline quicker. At the end of the day I will still have plenty of PIC time built in a fixed wing aircraft, a turboprop, and a turbojet which I assume is more valuable than SIC time built as a FO at other regional airlines. My true goal is to be competitive in the hiring process for the big 3 and this is my plan to accomplish that goal. I know there’s a possibility that commutair and envoy might not have their programs by the time I build my PIC time at my local airline. Any feedback about my plan is appreciated. I am looking forward to the answers you guys have as well.
Destin,
To be honest, it seems as though you are looking for a short cut and there really are not any in this industry. Those airlines might advertise that they hire direct entry captains, but I doubt that they are actually doing much of it, plus they will be looking for people with something more than caravan time.
One more thing to think about, let’s say your plan works and you do go straight from a caravan to being the captain of an Embraer 145. Will you really feel that you have the experience necessary to safely perform that job? Is it fair to your fifty passengers and crew to take command of a jet and go flying through the sky with them?
To directly answer your question though, entering Envoy as a direct entry captain would not put you ahead of anybody. The program works off seniority and that goes off date of hire. Period. The direct entry captains might be captains, but they stay the most junior captains until their seniority catches up, which takes years.
Chris
Why would you assume that? I’m at Hawaiian and we have hundreds of local 135 pilots with TONS of PIC hours who apply daily. They’re all told to go fly for a Regional and get some experience. As Chris said it does appear you’re looking for short cuts (which is fine, it’s your life and your career) but there’s more to it than just checking boxes. A Regional FO is flying at a 121 partner carrier flying in and out of the hubs and often to hundreds of airports around not only the country but the North American continent. They know and operate within the airlines system AND are also networking. If you look at the CommutAir website they say things like “immediate Captain upgrade OPPORTUNITIES” and “Captain Review Board”. They’re going to look at the flying you’ve been doing and if it’s legit 135 and you’ve been a few places then sure. But if you’ve been flying the same 50nm between the same 2-3 cities, well don’t be surprised if the Capt Review Board recommends you get some right seat time in the trenches (despite your vast SINGLE Engine PIC time) before you get that “opportunity”.
Further as Chris said seniority wise you’re not leap-frogging over anyone in the flow-line. Do you think you should? EVERY Major US airline is union and the system is entirely based on seniority. I can tell you as a Master Executive Council rep if that were to happen Alpa (Airline Pilots Association) would be there tomorrow walking in circles with your picture on signs. How do you think that would affect your shot at a Major?
Destin it’s not just about the numbers and checking boxes. Sure doing so might get you an interview but at some point you’ll be sitting in front of a bunch of real pilots from one of those big 3 airlines you aspire to fly for. They want to see a professional with solid experience and character. Think about how the route you propose (zig zagging to get ahead of someone else in line) would appear to them. If you think it’s all good then by all means but if it’s someone like me you’re sitting in front it might not go so well?
Adam
PIC time on a cessna 182 and a Cessna Caravan at a local airline in my home country
Destin, you say my home country? Are you an American citizen or permanent resident ?
Thank you for the responses. You guys aren’t wrong in assuming that I was trying to find a shortcut. I’m pretty sure everyone has considered a shortcut once in their life but as I stated, “jumping the flow” was just an assumption I made on my own. I really had no faith in my “jumping the flow” question producing a favorable answer for me but it was a question that I couldn’t resist asking 
. As Chris stated, transitioning from a turbine prop to a turbo jet is quite challenging and for this reason I am leaning more towards an AA wholly owned regional like Envoy so I can learn from and observe experienced Captains in the airline industry. Julia has also brought up a bump in my “plan”. Although I am a permanent resident in the US, I am originally from a Central American country. I plan on flying for an airline in my home country to build my PIC time but I’m not sure if it would count as part 135. The airline provides charters and cargo operations like a part 135 airline but I’m not sure if my time built there would be part 135 since the FAA regulations don’t govern the aviation branch there.