How long is the average wait before a choice domicile?

Hckey2477 · January 25th, 2008, 18:14

Forgive me on being none the wiser, but I am not sure how domiciles work. When you get hired by an airline do they always give you a base or do you ever get a choice? Also if you are given a base, how long is the average wait before you may request a change to a new one?

HighFlyingIL · January 25th, 2008, 18:41

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hckey2477

Forgive me on being none the wiser, but I am not sure how domiciles work. When you get hired by an airline do they always give you a base or do you ever get a choice? Also if you are given a base, how long is the average wait before you may request a change to a new one?

man... most of the time they tell you "your based out of xxxx airport."

As far as choice domicle I dont know. My friend was based in St. Louis for about 6-7 months and got jump flights the night before to go down to STL before his flight the next day. However, now he's based out of O'hare and loves it... he's moving to left seat sometime in the 2nd half of this year.

Nick · January 25th, 2008, 19:01

It depends very much on how badly pilots are needed in each base and how rapidly the company is bringing in new pilots.

If New York has 10 vacancies and Seattle has 1 vacancy, a new-hire class comprised of people who live in the Pacific Northwest is going to end up with half of that class not getting based where it wants to be based.

If, the very next month, Seattle has 10 vacancies and New York also has 10, perhaps the people in the previous month's new-hire class can transfer over to Seattle before it is offered to those pilots who are still in training. Not all companies do that, however -- you might have to wait until the next company-wide system bid, where all pilots put in an up-to-date bid of what they now want as far as base, seat, and airplane type. That could be three to six months of waiting for that bid, and you might not even get the base on that bid unless you are senior enough to take one of the open spots.

In short, the more rapidly the company is hiring people behind you, the quicker you will be able to get the base of your choice. If the base of your choice is the most junior, that will also help a lot.

January 25th, 2008, 18:14	#1
Hckey2477 Junior Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Sanford, FL Posts: 122	How long is the average wait before a choice domicile? Forgive me on being none the wiser, but I am not sure how domiciles work. When you get hired by an airline do they always give you a base or do you ever get a choice? Also if you are given a base, how long is the average wait before you may request a change to a new one? __________________

January 25th, 2008, 19:01	#3
Nick Old Skool Join Date: Jul 2003 Posts: 2,274	Re: How long is the average wait before a choice domicile? It depends very much on how badly pilots are needed in each base and how rapidly the company is bringing in new pilots. If New York has 10 vacancies and Seattle has 1 vacancy, a new-hire class comprised of people who live in the Pacific Northwest is going to end up with half of that class not getting based where it wants to be based. If, the very next month, Seattle has 10 vacancies and New York also has 10, perhaps the people in the previous month's new-hire class can transfer over to Seattle before it is offered to those pilots who are still in training. Not all companies do that, however -- you might have to wait until the next company-wide system bid, where all pilots put in an up-to-date bid of what they now want as far as base, seat, and airplane type. That could be three to six months of waiting for that bid, and you might not even get the base on that bid unless you are senior enough to take one of the open spots. In short, the more rapidly the company is hiring people behind you, the quicker you will be able to get the base of your choice. If the base of your choice is the most junior, that will also help a lot.

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