Originally Posted by
Cessnadriver
For those guys on the 717 in NYC, what's the best way to handle the huge number of EWR pairings next month with super early shows? On reserve so dropping and trading won't be an option.
Got a crash pad in Kew gardens so well positioned for JFK and LGA, but Not sure how I'm going to handle all the EWR next month. Originally I planned to get the occasional hotel near EWR as needed but looking at the bid packet, debating a second crash pad or just moving to a EWR pad temporarily.
A new item in the contract is 5.D.3 which reimburses a Short call pilot up to $100 for actual transportation costs if assigned an EWR rotation.
Just hang in your crashpad in Kew. You're only required to be readily available to one of the co-terminal airports on short call. Hanging in Kew definitely qualifies for that. If they hit you with a short call to EWR, take a cab or uber and submit the receipt. Don't sweat it, if it takes 4 hours to cross town at rush hour. You were in position and they know how NYC is.
If you get a long call trip for the following day, I would head down on the train (cheapest way) and then use Priceline to get a hotel. The good news is EWR hotels are traditionally the cheapest of the 3 airports in NYC. You can typically be out the door (Priceline) for a nice hotel for $100-120. If you want to slum it a bit, you can probably save a bit on that. Also, I've occasionally had luck calling the airport Hilton at EWR and asking for the delta rate. It's less than 50-50, but sometimes you can score it for $99 if I remember correctly.
Another option that I've used is going halfway and getting a hotel in Manhattan, near either Grand Central (to grab the airporter bus) or Penn (for the train). Priceline Express Deals in Manhattan are surprisingly cheaper than near any of the airports. Just don't forget to figure in the tax - brutal in Manhattan. If you stay near Penn you can be on the train and down to EWR pretty quickly.
Hopefully sanity will prevail in future months. This is the worst I've seen the bid pack for NYC717, so I would wait a month or two before you go making any big changes in your pad situation. The flying fluctuates widely and you may find yourself reversing your plan in May or June.