Will Fly For Food Pilot Forums: Rerouted - Viewing Profile

Hello Counselor! I left a regional carrier named after a certain bird a couple of years ago after a few years of service. I enjoyed the work and had a spotless record, but couldn't afford to work for peanuts anymore and left seat pay wasn't coming fast enough to keep up with increases in my cost of living. I have managed to stay in the aviation field in a management position, but don't spend much time flying. Here's the deal: I can't afford regional pay anymore. I can't even come close to those numbers for any period of time again. I am reading about a potential bottle neck at the regionals since so many pilots there can't afford to move on (golden handcuff theory in action). Do you think this will cause the main line carriers (such as they are) to hire people in my situation? While their first year pay is pretty rough, it does come up a lot quicker in most cases than regional pay. Thoughts? Opinions? And no - slinging hash while working for a regional isn't in the cards. I like my current job...but the call of the wild is getting louder.