Idk, I had plenty of good times even pre covid. Most of the time, you're flying broken up trips that are way better than anything published in the bid packet.




Of course more junior pilots will be on reserve, but there are plenty of senior who willingly bid it. Knowing the contract, smart bidding, flexibility and of course, seniority matters. I know of two on the 717 who have blocked less than 60 hours this year. I bid reserve a lot and even as a junior reserve, I have never been used to the point of being full at Delta. It also helps if you're flexible enough to take a strategic GS, eg. taking a Sunday day trip to avoid thay 4 day reserve callout with your name on it. I'll also PD middle reserve days here and there to minimize my exposure, knowing I'll likely make it up with a GS. Many of the senior guys I know just won't bid reserve because they think it's too complicated. Better for the rest of us. Plenty of great reason to not bid reserve, but fear of not knowing how it works, shouldn't be one of them. There are plenty of resources to understand it. Like anything else, the more you do it, the better you'll understand it.