Originally Posted by
aa73
Uhh, a dinner at home? Not following ya....many of our 3 day trips are 18, 19, sometimes 20 and change. Seriously, they can be had on the domestic side as well, just gotta look for them on the bid sheet. At least here in DCA.
Lemme put it this way, I'm working the same amount flying DCA 737 domestic and not commuting, then I was flying JFK 767 international with the commute. That's because the JFK-Europe trips weren't really high time, heck some were just barely over 15-16hrs. QOL is much better on the domestic side, at least here.
Completely agree. Most will hopefully check out sequences prior to moving to other bases or equipment, but for those newer to the ranks International from JFK (and probably PHL as well) is fairly similar to domestic days and hours-wise working 3 days for 15-17 hours with the benefit of usually only flying two legs and starting off late on the first day and ending up midday on the third. Southbound are generally 4 day trips starting much later on the first and coming home much earlier on the 4th, but for 19-20 hours normally. You still end up working 15 to 18 days a month, and like the quoted poster said, without the QOL. I do it for the Group IV pay, but I can see a day where I might move to fly domestic trips Group IV for less pay, same days on but better QOL. In any case, since we are one of the most junior bases, it gives guys a lot of options.