Not really accurate. In early 1999, when the APA system was implemented, NWA had six bases, DTW, MSP, MEM, HNL, ANC, and SEA. All bases save MEM had SOs, and even tiny HNL had two fleet types. Take that all and multiply it by 2 because block and reserve were separate categories. Fleet types were the DC-9, 727, A320, 757, DC-10, 747-200 and 747-400. That’s a darn complex fleet for a 6,000 pilot airline. There was a ton of upward movements and there was nothing static about it.

Every month the bid would close and like clockwork, there would be at least a page or two of awards, even in slow periods. Somehow “bad old” NWA managed to train all those people and have them in their new categories in 100 days. Month after month, years on end.

That’s right, just 3.5 months after the award, pilots were in their new spots. And that’s on top of managing the TDY awards.

Predictable, transparent, convenient, and easy to remember. Ya, can’t have any of that ‘round here.