Originally Posted by
DAL 88 Driver
I think that idea has a lot of merit. But I think it would be more than a 15-20% partial pay restoration. What do you think the average duty day is system wide? I don't know... I'm guessing maybe 8 hours? So a 4 day trip would pay 32 hours. Currently, the average 4 day trip pays, what, maybe 22? With those assumptions, that would be a 45% increase.
Of course, we wouldn't want to have that backfire on us and then Delta sits us in hotels for long layovers not getting paid. We'd have to have some work rules to prevent that sort of thing.
I like the duty day based pay. For one, who cares about the beacon anymore?!?! Problem fixed. If you waste my time then you're wasting your money, seems fair. I mean it's a bit silly the only time you get paid is when the beacon is on and the airplane is moving, I'm sure the FAA would not be pleased if we only waltzed in from the crew room into our seats as the beacon started- no preflight, no flight attendant briefs, no departure briefs, no paperwork, no customer interactions, no nothing.
Now this is how I think it could work. I'll go grab the total duty hours for the next 2 4-days in Open Time on the 88, 320, 73N and then two 777 trips in ATL and table them...
I think you can see the domestic aircraft would have the largest advantage and I think the 320 is a mess right now being a new category. I bet after a while it'll be the same as the 73N with 1.5 hours of block per flight hour. The 777 comes in at 1.1, makes sense, 14 to 16 hour flight and add 2 hours of brief and debrief.
IMO, the way to combat the block to duty date inequities for the international is a healthy international pay override or wild and crazy per diem when flying international.
As to 32 hour layovers in DAY, combat that with min duty hours per day. Looks like 8 hours would suffice?
But basically on the domestic side if you went to duty hour then you could have a 0 raise and the pilot flying 75 hours a month on average would go from being paid 900 hours to being paid 1,350 hours or 112 hours a month. For a 6 year MD88 B, the average for that airplane, you'd take pay for that guy from $89,000 a year to $133,000 a year. Someone flying 80 hours a month on average would be at $142K. Right close to the coveted SWA rates and that's with a 0% raise.
Not to mention you could cap flying at 80 block hours a month. No more need to have trip parkers flying 120 hours. Instead you fly 80, you get paid like you flew 120 and that means the extra 40 hours of flying you're not doing will go to another pilot and we can finally start having movement upwards instead of MD's out of 777s and so on.