Originally Posted by flydiamond

P3 usually starts at 1900 or 1915 not 1700 and runs til midnight. If you're not given an assignment for the last day before end of the second to last day, you're automatically released. This makes it the best reserve shift for commuters... you will never need to spend more than 14 nights away from home no matter how challenging your commute is (two leg, crossing time zones etc). P2 reserve is also a really good option for commuters with the low utilization of 900 fo reserves. You'll almost always get released at 4 pm on the last day if you call and ask. Otherwise, automatically at 7. If you're used on the last day though, they can use you as late as midnight (or even 2 am I believe before it's a junior man) and you might have to spend an extra night in base before commuting home. P1 auto releases at 2 pm on the last day... sooner (like 11) if you call and ask on a good coverage day.

also another thing to keep in mind...you can use the first two and a half hours (or less in other bases) of your reserve availability to commute in to base. So you don't have to be in NY by 10am for day one of P2 but rather 12:30. Of course you need two options that arrive by 12:30 but that's very doable from most of the Midwest and east coast.