Originally Posted by
tallpilot
Welcome to AA. Using up all the reserves is part of the staffing model. Did they cancel a flight for lack of crews? Until that happens management will be happy with minimum staffing levels.
Everything hinges on what happens in the fall. If demand holds up then hiring will resume. If not then shrink to profitability begins.
So cross your fingers that people keep buying airline tickets with money they don't have and credit card companies continue to let them.
This is how fast the music stops. Hiring occurs at such a breakneck pace that movement seems to be permanent then in the space of a month or six weeks all the desirable employers stop hiring and less than a month later so does almost everyone else.
I know for a fact that recent flights have cancelled due to lack of crews. Junior manning has seen an increase (I've seen various pilots with JM coded in their trips.). Pilots on their last day of reserve bidding RAP2/3 thinking they won't get used, but then get called in for airport standby and ultimately a JM overnight. How often has this been going on in the last 30-60 days?............... I get it. It's the typical airline staffing model. Just have enough to get through the summer. Nothing new under the sun. Holiday staffing, like today July 4, is the exception. Funny when you pay crews 1.5x, there is virtually no open time, no sick calls or dropped trips and airplanes aren't breaking. Then there are over 15 CA trips in open time starting tomorrow. *Tongue in cheek!*
It could be worse, much worse. Mesa is furloughing. Piedmont has stopped hiring and is a big question mark. Spirit is on the verge of furloughs. The remaining LCCs are on a hold for various reasons. It's feast or famine. We were force upgrading last year. Now upgrades are going senior-ish again. Just shows how quick things can turn.
When Boeing gets their sh!t in order, hiring is going to be crazy again. We've seen it before. Some of these regionals are going to be caught off guard (again). That's almost guaranteed.