CloudSailor

That's partly true. It also very much speaks to the fact that >70% of our guys commute.

PurpleToolBox

Where isn't seniority important?

This is no different than DAL MD88 Captain in NYC going to 2014 hires.

Most people commute to Memphis. And commuting to Memphis has become much more difficult with Delta pulling out. Commuters aren't going to travel to Memphis three or four times for reserve, eating up 6-8 days off for traveling.

golfandfly

Man, I'd like to see these before I make a final decision on this bid. Really would like to have at least an idea when I might train. Not great info since it changes so much, but it's better than nothing...

Albief15

As large as this bid is, odds are IF you decided to upgrade and IF you have a date that didn't work...somebody else probably will trade with you.

I've traded up for training every single time. That tells me there is usually someone who wants to postpone the training. Outside the occasional unhappy camper who blocks a training swap it seems to generally work out.

Good luck to all. There are going to be a lot of very junior captains on this bid.

Pakagecheck

With the exception of if you are senior and you are inside of 45 days of your class start date, you are SOL. So senior guys plan on loosing your summer vacation plans.

pilot141

You mean loosening up their vacation, right?

Because you don't lose your vacation, you just gain the opportunity to re-schedule it!

Pakagecheck

Not your FedEx vacation but your personal vacation plans... you know the ones where you have to tell your wife that you now can't go with the family because you will be stuck in memphis. A lot of people especially senior guys don't need vacation time to go on vacation.

loosing was the 4 am typo

FXDX

You don't have to be senior to get hosed on training dates, although if you are senior you should plan on going to training sooner than later. One of the biggest gains in our current contract, in my opinion, was the ability to bid for training. Alas, that won't be in play for this bid. So whatever your seniority, be prepared to get hosed on your training date, and then you won't be disappointed.

Fortunately there aren't any excess awards this time around, so there shouldn't be much of a need for them to train out of seniority, but that doesn't mean they won't. I've been trained way out of order, and it really dorked up a HUGE family reunion for me (I was the only one to miss it) and there wasn't anything I could do about it. Tried swaps, but nobody wanted a short notice two month vacation to Memphis in the middle of the summer. Certainly couldn't blame folks for passing on that opportunity.

Bottom line, be ready to go at any time, have no personal plans for the next two years and you will be GTG.

KC10 FATboy

I agree. I also think this is going to significantly impact chances for passover pay.

I know several people with bid awards to the 767 from the last bid, but have not received passover pay so they are bidding off to the other wide bodies. They think this may get them to passover pay faster.

Remember, to get passover pay, someone junior to you must bid the same airplane ON THE SAME BID and then they must be activated in that airplane before you.

Just because someone is junior to on the list does not trigger passover pay.

IslanderDriver

Bingo. Lots of misunderstanding on passover pay.
For example: just because the company put new guys in ANC a few years ago doesn't mean passover pay for guys going to the MD in MEM.