Originally Posted by
kfahmi
2.) If you are within your RAP...aren't you pretty much obligated to accept anything they give you, as long as it won't violate 117? What's the advantage of not answering the phone and calling back within 10 minutes?
You're required to accept a trip that doesn't violate our policy manual. Our policy manual is more strict than FAR 117. For instance FAR 117 would allow you to be released into rest at 4am to report for a 2pm show time for a 14 hour duty day that flies until 2am. Our policy manual allows you to refuse that assignment.
If CS gets you to agree to a trip they can waive the policy manual as long as the trip is legal per FARs. They cannot just assign it to you though. They have to ask you before they do something like that. If you pick up the phone they'll trick you into accepting by saying something like "we have a trip for you today with a 2pm show time. See you then!" They conveniently fail to mention you're being released into rest, and that you'll be flying all night.
As soon as you say "OK" without knowing the details you've now agreed to it and it is now legal. That's why you should never pick up your phone and let them talk. Look on sked+ at what they're trying to do to you so you have the upper hand when you call them to argue about it.
Originally Posted by
kfahmi
3) If you are on a trip, again, same question applies. You're on duty, so...don't you have to accept whatever they give you, as long as it's legal?
If they're trying to reflow you and it's legal you're probably screwed. If they're trying to reflow you and it's legal per 117 but not legal per our policy manual than what I said above applies. They'll try to get you to agree to it without giving you all the facts. Make sure you have all of the facts before you talk to them. Don't pick up your phone.
I recently was with a captain who got an illegal reflow that would have put him over the max FDP for the week. The response from CS was "just fly it now and we'll fix it later." Nope the reg is worded that you can't be
scheduled over the max FDP. They can't fix it later. They love to interpret 117 in their own ways which is why you should look at what they're doing before you talk to them.
Originally Posted by
kfahmi
4) If you answer the phone, and you're within your RAP or on a trip, and the assignment is legal...you have no basis for refusing the assignment. Right?
You can refuse it if it violates the policy manual. They will never admit that it violates the policy manual if you pick up your phone though. All they want is for you to say "OK" and agree to their violation.
Originally Posted by
kfahmi
I get that you have to protect yourself against a request that would cause you to bust 117. I also get that you should never say 'Yeah, I can be there in less than 2 hours' while on short-call reserve. But I guess I don't understand the advantage of ignoring the phone call from CS while you're either inside your RAP or on a trip...?
If you pick up your phone they have the advantage because they have all the facts and can present those facts in ways that will confuse or trick you into agreeing. If you don't pick up your phone you can look at your schedule, get all of the facts and decide for yourself if it's a trip you have to accept or not. Those two sentences are the
TL;DR of this entire post.