Originally Posted by
SMACFUM
Yup, agreed. I've been here just over a year (roughly 60% on the FO side in domicile) and I have never had a Cn or Pn pairing (maybe once for my very first composite line). Every month my award just keeps getting better and better. This latest bid it finished on layer 2, and I got the entire week over New Years off (my #1 goal).
I guess PBS finishing my award on layer 2 is a sign I need to get more picky with my bid
You have to know three things to be successful w/ PBS
1) Know the logic behind how the PBS software works; it's primary goals (award all the flying) and how the software accomplishes it.
2) You have to be realistic with your goals and expectations. This is primarily dependent on the quality of pairings in a given domicile and your relative seniority.
3)Maximize your available pairing pool
Not to play devils advocate or recommend foil hats, but I had a much better schedule when I was more junior. Once I got closer to 50% I saw my bid award erode... There is a "globalization" aspect to our PBS that no one fully understands, including the PBS helpline. (If they do they don't lead onto it.) It kinda works like Robin Hood though... Steals from the rich (senior) to give to the poor (junior) to bring up their line credit. Getting CNed didn't start for me till I got to 55%. No I don't bid more restrictive now. Regularly have 60% of the pairings in my pool and my bid would have finished in the first layer if not for the CN.