Charter vs. Regional with Family

[UKcats06]

So we are back in CVG now, and dh has a job with a flight school here. Once he gets 500 hours (about 175 from now) then they said he can have the job as a charter pilot, in which he will get paid a significant amount more than he is getting paid now, enough to support us both. Its a Mon-Friday job and he will be home every night. He's not sure when/if he wants to go to the regionals because he is so happy right now with this place, and the hours and money of charter also.

Because of the hours and the money I would love to start a family while he is home doing this. I would love for him to be home for the first few years more than he would be working for a regional.

The big issue I have with that is I would have to go back to work for the insurance, because he wouldn't get that with the charter. That was one thing I really wanted was to be able to stay home when I have kids.

So do you think it would be better to have kids while working at a regional and dh not be there as much, or have more time for dh to be there, but less time with the kid yourself (by having to work)?

This isn't going to be something to happen next month or anything we are obviously going to wait and make sure everything works out like it's supposed to, as things have a way of turning around on us out of nowhere (hense us being back in CVG sooner than planned). This is something I knew you ladies would be able to answer, knowing the industry. My family has all kinds of answers, but they have no idea how this industry works. One this my SIL mentioned is that kids don't start recognizing and remembering when a parent is there until about 2, so she thinks it would be better to wait.

Oh and I have a new job (again!!), too! I am working for Delta (woo hoo!) in the reservation center, so here come the flight bennies!

[lucky81698]

Originally Posted by UKcats06

So we are back in CVG now, and dh has a job with a flight school here. Once he gets 500 hours (about 175 from now) then they said he can have the job as a charter pilot, in which he will get paid a significant amount more than he is getting paid now, enough to support us both. Its a Mon-Friday job and he will be home every night. He's not sure when/if he wants to go to the regionals because he is so happy right now with this place, and the hours and money of charter also.

Because of the hours and the money I would love to start a family while he is home doing this. I would love for him to be home for the first few years more than he would be working for a regional.

The big issue I have with that is I would have to go back to work for the insurance, because he wouldn't get that with the charter. That was one thing I really wanted was to be able to stay home when I have kids.

So do you think it would be better to have kids while working at a regional and dh not be there as much, or have more time for dh to be there, but less time with the kid yourself (by having to work)?

This isn't going to be something to happen next month or anything we are obviously going to wait and make sure everything works out like it's supposed to, as things have a way of turning around on us out of nowhere (hense us being back in CVG sooner than planned). This is something I knew you ladies would be able to answer, knowing the industry. My family has all kinds of answers, but they have no idea how this industry works. One this my SIL mentioned is that kids don't start recognizing and remembering when a parent is there until about 2, so she thinks it would be better to wait.

Oh and I have a new job (again!!), too! I am working for Delta (woo hoo!) in the reservation center, so here come the flight bennies!

Personally, my husband would choose the regional route. Not that there's anything wrong with the charter route, I just don't think it would appeal to him. I think in the long run, I would prefer that too. Of course just my opinion, everyone needs to do what will work out best for themselves.

Congratulations on your job with Delta! I did that for a little over a year. If you make friends and sit in a bay with nice people, it is okay. But if you end up with a pain in the butt supervisor and sit with people that are strictly business, it gets old very quick. I sat in the "perfume free" bay with a group of people that had all been displaced to res from the gate and ramp with upwards of 15 years seniority. They were hilarious! Sometimes supervisors make you sit with your team, but you can use the "perfume free" excuse to get out of that if you don't want to! I found the training to be very easy, but I have always worked for an airline, so I knew quite a bit before I even started. If you have any questions, PM me and I'll try to answer them, if I remember anything!

Good luck with your decesion on charter or regional!

[Delain]

What kind of equipment would he be flying? Would one better his career more than the other?

Congrats on the job!!!!!

[czechmate]

Have him work at the charter job for a few months to get a feel for it.

The job description (weekends off, decent money, etc.) might change once he gets started.
Also since insurance isn't included, does he get retirement, bonus, profit sharing, etc.
What happens if the company needs to downsize -- is he protected?
Is there a training bond?

I would make a pro/con list for both to help make a decision.

Good luck.
Jen

Opps -- Congrats on the new job!!!! Do you work downtown??

[UKcats06]

Thanks for the replys! I think I worded my question wrong, though. He has decided as long as the charter goes well, which it seems like it will, he will work for them for a while.

The question I was really asking is would it be better to start a family while he is home more, working the charter place, or wait until he is established at a regional? He will be home more while working for the charter but we will still need to make the change to a regional at some point, in which he won't be home as much. Also, he doesn't have insurance so I would have to go back to work after having a baby, just for the insurance.

So better to start a family sooner while he is home more (charter) or wait longer for when he is at a regional and is gone more, but has insurance, so I may be able to stay home with the baby?

And yes I will be working downtown. I am excited, I start tomorrow but I have SO much stuff I have to know, I have been studying like crazy! I have to know domestic AND international codes and other like skyteam partner airlines, domestic and international again, and I only had 10 days to memorize, but I think I have most of them down!

[Bigsweetie]

I think the answer to your question really lies within you. What I mean is... How badly to you want to be a SAHM? If you're o.k. with doing the daycare thing, then go ahead and do it now? Will your child remember that your DH was home with him/her when he was 6months old? Probably not.

I am a SAHM because it's what I wanted out of life. This time i've had with Emily has been just as much for my benefit as hers. I don't think daycares are horrible places at all! I just really wanted to be home with her for ME and I was fortunate that DH's job was able to pay for it! Not everyone has that opportunity.

DH and I also discussed this before we got married and decided that, since he was going to be gone so much, that it was important for one of us to be home as much as possible for things like Little League games, ballet recitals, Girl Scouts/Boy Scouts, etc. Those things don't happen til MUCH later though. That's why I say that right now, i'm home because this is what I want, as she gets older she benefits even more from it than she does now.

Hopefully that helps!!

[flyershoe]

As a few others have said, the choice is yours & DH's to make. I'm sure there are many pro's and con's to both sides.

Personally, I would wait until the regionals just because you might as well see what it's going to be like in the long term. You could also try to plan it so that your DH would be pretty high in seniority as an FO and could be home a lot... maybe even more than he would be doing this charter gig. What does your DH think about it?

In our situation, we would like to delay kids until my bf is in his 2nd year with a major. Since the majors (or an LCC like SWA) are his ultimate goal, it would fit into our life plans better to put it off until then. I would like to stay home until the kids get in school, and then work PT or maybe FT when they get older. Having kids is such a personal decision and each person's situation is unique. When you factor in this kind of lifestyle, the equation is a little trickier with trying to balance family life/time and money. Make the pro & con list, try to consider all of the options and make sure that you look long-term, retirement, paying for your kid's college, or whatever the plans are. I know that all of that seems a long way off, but the earlier you start planning for retirement, the better off you'll be when that time comes.