Originally Posted by
Splash
That appears to be in conflict with the requirements under Section 23.S.1 -
[A Reserve pilot will - ]
be required to check his schedule via DBMS or VRU:
1) after block-in of the last flight segment of his rotation prior to his release (see Section 12 G. 13. – 14.), and
2) no later than 0200 base time on his first on-call day following a non-fly day, so as to be able to acknowledge:
a) any assignment no later than three hours before a scheduled report of the rotation or start of a short call period, or
b) the start of a rest period.
Exception one: If such last non-fly day ends at a time other than 2400, the pilot will check his schedule no later than two hours after the end of such non-fly day. Exception two: For purposes of Section 23 S 1. d. 2), a non-fly day will not include a day on which the pilot is on vacation.
The problem is, which is more restrictive? If you follow 23.S.5 (able to report) then you will, by default, meet the less restrictive acknowledgement requirements. If you follow JUST the acknowledgement requirements you could possible be in violation of the "able to report" requirement.
This contractual disconnect could be a MAJOR problem going forward with a bunch of pilots possibly being caught in the crossfire. SD's letter is not mandatory reading. I'm sure there are tons of guys out there who have been on reserve for years and who feel that they completely understand the nuances of their contractual requirements. If they didn't get/read/understand SD's email they could get burned.