Pros
So I may write a lot but it’s to help , I used to be where you were in regards to dreaming of being a F.A. For starters flying benefits , extreme schedule flexibility , layovers , ability to move up in position , pay increases , union , decent culture , etc. Also lots of overtime available , health insurance , dental insurance , pay training etc.
Cons
Now here’s the bad. Low starting pay JetBlue is starting at about 25 dollars hourly. Which sounds good at first , but once you understand the in and outs of the game and how everything works you realize that 25 hourly is really 16 a hour. This is not your regular 9-5 job and your pay reflects that. Each airline is similar with pros and cons but the one thing most of them share is you don’t get 80 hrs a pay period/every 2 weeks. You get pay for hours flown. And working 80 hrs biweekly is pretty much impossible and unrealistic. Why? Well for starters it’s already hard enough to fly 80 hours in the air in 14 days. But also because of FAA regulations and having rest and etc. So when they say your guarantee 70-75 hrs a month that means each check you get is like a 35 hour pay check which is like 600-800 dollars after taxes. I’ll say it for you , that is not going to cut it. Another con is reserve life and being on call. It is not easy it is not fun it gets lonely and your away from home to not be used often. A pro is you get paid whether they use you or not. But on the flip side it sucks because unless you pass the 70 hr monthly cap regardless of how much you fly your going to get paid the same as if you didn’t fly at all the whole month. For JetBlue your only are allow 20 hrs of OT a month. Anything extra will go to your guarantee for the month if you haven’t already hit your 70 for the month. Which rarely will happen because you are on reserve. So your kind of working for free at that point because there not going to pay you more then your monthly guarantee if you haven’t literally physically work your 70 for the month. All in all it’s really up to you and what makes you happy. You can move up as a FA and make more money but lose a lot of your flexibility. Or you can wait for a line/shift which can take 2-5 yrs and make little money have a lot of free time.
