I agree with most of what you said, but this still worries me. I thought the new rules were supposed to have some kind of 36ish hour magical domicile reset time, which is total Bravo Sierra by any scientific measure. You can't just flip your world to full reverse functionality in a day and a half. That is NOT grounded in science unless you are a REM machine, ambien popping, functioning narcoleptic that can pass out on demand.

As for our contract, sure it protects the status quo. But the instant the rules change, it will be "OK, what are you willing to give up to pay to keep those rules". It won't be "free" just because we have it now. Even if C2012 is a home run contract, something will end up being less than it would have been because of this in order to keep what we have.

Even if the company can only do 2 man 9-10 hour crews on a few routes, like less than daily thin Europe (where the domicile reset fantasy will be possible on paper) they will want that. If we keep current manning, we will have to "pay for it".

Trans con turns are one thing and are bad enough, but 2 man 10 hour flights 3 hours from land with no legal way to rest with the increased chance of pilot incapacitation (made even more likely by age 65) is a serious additional burden on safety.

And I'm sure you realize that the 8/9/10/11 block hour debate and compromise was just that...a compromise. And that compromise was based on costs, and the increase above 8 was a bone thrown to the ATA to help offset costs associated with fixing bad and borderline dangerous current FTDT rules in other areas.

And Bar is right...if an airline had 72 block hour 3 day trips with 2 pilots guys would bid it and it would go extremely senior. But that doesn't make it right.