US regional airlines under scrutiny

Interesting vid. As a person who works in a profession with a highly irregular sleep/work schedule and requires rather fast and sound descisions, I agree whole heartedly that the scheduling and rest requirements need to be looked at.

For one thing, some of your time off periods assume that you are going to be able to go to sleep just because it is time to do so. That isn’t the way it works. An unusally stimulating arrival/approach may interfere with your ability to get to sleep when you get to the hotel. Compound that with a different time zone, a different point in your sleep cycle and the group of 7th graders staying in the room above you, it doesn’t provide a very restful experience.

The problem with your gig (as in mine) is that its a desirable job. One that is worth paying your dues for a long time to earn a job in something with more than 76 seats. As long as people are willing to do it for 25K a year, the right seats are going to be filled. I get it, I do. I did my job for free for almost two years to build my resume. I am getting the payoff now.

What is the solution? Legislate longer rest periods may help. As far as the pay thing, I really don’t have a clue. I would like to see a situation where the regional system is a career path that can provide a good living for the people who fly in it.

Its not like the old days where the mainliners were flying jets and the regionals were flying old Convair 440s, martin 404s etc. The equipment you fly are just as fast, fly just as high and are just as sophisticated as the majors. Sometimes even more so.

I hope it improves, I just don’t know how. Good luck
Bob M.