Originally Posted by
Section Eight
Jim,
They say jump, you say how high, no questions, period. No scheduling rules to follow in a CBA, and a loose interpretation of the FARs at best. Try working all day in the sim "checking" to be told to DH 6 hours after you finish for an 8 hour flight only to operate a 10 hour flight once you land. Obviously you would get some rest in a hotel somewhere in there right? Wrong. Sleep on the plane.
No more A fund, B fund, etc. (our mgmt has varying degrees of retirement, based on when you were hired). Hired as a manager in 88? Good deal (maybe), hired as a manager in '14??? Not so much.
The real rub is that these guys fly during furloughs, fly far limits, act like they know it all, and some have little or No experience, yet the are ALL check airmen. Case in point, our newest soon to be master check airmen on the 744. No intl experience, no 744 time (none) but did time at a legacy and was a ground instructor for us, so that makes it all ok, even by our bought and paid for govt agency.
Hopefully you get my point. As to the scab moniker? Some were, ALL would be if we ever went down that road again (97), or they get terminated, that simple. Want the job? Not me.
Most people have done enough research to know not to take that job, yet they fill it, either with IPA pilots (all FO's, to my knowledge not one IPA CPT has left the union to mgmt) looking to cash in, or people you really don't want to go straight to the left seat of anything, unless it's a British auto, yet we let it go on and on.......,,
It's a cancer, and it needs chemo.
Carry on........
Thank you for the detailed breakdown. From the outside looking in it seems as though the union needs to put on their big boy pants and fix this. In my experience the training departments for the most part are closely aligned with management or the line pilots. Yours seem to be on their own.
I could be mistaken but your example of checking in the sim all day, DH to an assigned flight, and then flying revenue could be a direct violation of the FARs. You may not have duty limits under flag/supplemental but the company is required to have a fatigue risk management plan. Somehow, I think the pilot in question would be fatigued under this scenario.
Management pilots flying during furloughs, while far from desirable, is not that uncommon in this industry. Management pilots flying struck work is something completely different. In my distant past, when we were released to strike, we agreed to allow management pilots to reposition aircraft to bring them home. No revenue was to be carried. Management agreed to this and it was clearly explained to the pilot group.
Just my opinion, but if you want the management pilots to support the line pilots then welcome them into the fold. Right now they seem homeless as neither senior management or the union will claim them. Again, just an impression from the outside looking in.
Jim