Originally Posted by
Hueypilot
I've met several guys that commute from S. Florida to CLT. Not sure if they all fly out of MIA though.
Again, as pointed out above, having the reservation system makes it straightforward. Your first choice booked? Look at alternatives. All the J/S on our iron booked? Start looking at OA flights...and so on. If you get the J/S booked on one of the options, you rest easy and show up at a reasonable time to depart on that flight.
The AA jump seat system is a complete abomination. I've been left behind twice in the last three months as I watched an Eagle pilot get the jumpseat ahead of me in one instance and another the jumpseat just wasn't filled. Agent said "I'm too busy to process this, I've gotta close the door." Being from US Airways, I can see how the agents can make that kind of mistake of putting an Eagly guy ahead of me, but that's just it- you turn everything over to the agent to decide when to issue the jumpseat under the AA protocol of doing things. In the US system, you walk up to the counter, fill out the jumpseat request and walk away with a bording pass. No questions asked. Now, we have to wait in line to see if we will get a seat in the back, then at the busiest time for the agents prior to departure get a jumpseat issued for the flight deck. Most of the AA agents are great to work with and really know their jobs, but some aren't. The current AA system is a lot more risk to the commuter.