Originally Posted by
tennisguru
This is the first AE where there was no risk of converting before 31 JAN which means people are locked into their current categories for vacation bidding. So those senior FO's may have been waiting to get one last year with good vacation weeks before making the jump.
The risk of converting before 31 Jan has long past. The Nov 2023 AE had 31 Jan conversions only for base moves. Anything requiring training on the November AE was projected Feb training and April conversion. Conversion happens well after the award when training is required. If you complete training after the 16th, your conversion date is the beginning of the next bid period. A conversion before 31 Jan would require completion of sim training by Jan 16th. That risk hasn't been present for the last several AEs.
The more likely factor pushing senior FOs upgrading on this AE is that it offers the last opportunity for training before summer. May training and June OE will be in play on the February AE.