AFW_MD11, "Caveat - if the STV were to Darfur or Bagdad, etc. (as has been hypothesized on this site) THEN it might be a HUGE cost for the pilots - but it's not - it's HKG and/or CDG."
Spoken like a man with no kids in school or a wife who doesn't work. For the 75% of us with either of those, getting forced to spend 3 months away from the family is a "HUGE" cost. If I didn't mind being forced to be away from my family, I'd probably still be in the military. I'm not- I'm a civilian airline pilot. And I'm not in favor of allowing Fedex to become the ONLY airline in the U.S. who has the option of forcing crew members to leave their homes for extended periods of time (30 days is too long) against their will. To top it off, we would be stuck for up to 15 days a month away from home for only per diem! YGTBSM!