I'm afraid I don't understand how segment length affects staffing ratios. It may be true that L-UAL flies fewer blockhours per plane, but that would not directly correlate with segment length. I can do a 3 day domestic trip worth 24 hours or I can do a 3 day Istanbul worth 20 hours not to mention I think your basic assumption that L-CAL does longer flights on the 777 is incorrect, but you'd have to pull the schedules and have a look to be certain. I know in IAD the 777 does nothing but extreme long haul like China, Kuwait, Dubai, and Japan with LHR being the only "short hop".