Originally Posted by
Les Habitants
The things you guys are saying about jumpseating is blowing my mind.
Here in Canada we consider the ability to "jumpseat" a complete privilege. There is no such thing as walking up to the gate and asking to "use the jumpseat." You call ahead of time, pay the applicable taxes (yes, our jumpseats aren't free here), and IF there is a seat available on the plane in the back-you cannot sit in the jumpseat-you may sit there. If for ANY reason the gate agent cannot or even does not want to put you on the plane they have every right to refuse it and you are not allowed to complain or say anything.
It seems like the culture down south is very different. If anyone ever said a word about being bumped, no matter how unfair it is, you can be sure his bosses would hear about it.
Well I'm certainly a tool then. A tool that has been forged in the company oven where employees are pitted against each other like fighting cocks. As a mainline guy that commutes all too often on RJ jump seats in my airline's livery, I can get bumped at the last second by an RJ pilot. Fair enough.
I've had this happen once or twice, but far worse the airline also issues vacation passes (higher boarding priority passes). The deal is that non revs can't change their status once they've checked in. More than once I have checked in for a flight that has several seats only to be sniped by a lurking, far more jr. non-rev, that lists with vacation passes for multiple seats (family or friends ride at employee's boarding priority) at the last minute, once they know I've checked in.
Agents have a great habit of removing or canceling a listing if you ask for the JS, which if you now get bumped from, you can't recreate in time to reclaim your spot on the non-rev list.
So now? I just list for a seat in the back and if people start playing the vacation pass trump card, I cancel and re-list and use one of the 120 or so vacation passes that I have rat holed and still use my seniority to bump them AND I"M NOT RIDING THE JS TO GET someone that bartered for or purchased a buddy pass on.
The U.S. airline's business models have created all of the commuters, therefore the system relies on JS access.
I just thank God I'm not Canadian.