Originally Posted by
Klondike Bear
It's been awhile but I will give my impressions of the 88 in ATL and NYC.
I commuted to NYC for a year in a half most of that time I was reserve. Had to cover all three bases was terrible. Most of the trips were not commutable, but they were good once you were on them. Usually one or two legs and lots of TPA, FLL and MCO. The Captains were really good guys and made it a point to buy dinner and beer.
Finally I got 88s in ATL I was so happy I could drive to work. I hated it! The trips were usually at least three legs. I did a lot of five legs. Learned to love Flint MI. But It was the Captains who made it miserable. I would say at least 15-25% of them were people I wouldn't want my worst enemy to have to work with. I finally had enough and bailed to the ER and its so much better.
I will piggyback on this. I have been ATL88 for a few years now. The plane is a piece of crap and a poor design. anyone who tells you different is lying. However, just like anything, once you figure it out it isn't that bad. Lots of 3-5 leg days. For those coming out of the mil, I find the days far more fatiguing. Not nearly as hard as mil flying, but I want to pour myself into bed at the end of the day. As Klondike said, there are some awful guys to fly with on this thing. I thought it was system wide as a new hire and was a little let down. After talking to many people on different fleets I have come to realize the majority of Deltas "do not fly list" reside on the ATL 88! A lot of guys I fly with have been "stuck" on the dog for over a decade.... and it shows. To be fair, there are also some great guys that make the job very enjoyable. But the bad ones really stick out.
So why would anyone in the world stay on the maddog? SENIORITY. For the mil types seniority is life at the airlines. You won't be able to advance your relative seniority as fast on the other airframes. If getting weekends, holidays, the days off you want is your thing..... come to the dog!
*disclaimer-the 88 is all I have flown.