Originally Posted by
khergan
UA is weird about this. In the FOM they suggest you change into civilian clothes so you don't **** off customers in 1st class, but won't let you board early as a DH unless you're in uniform.
There is definitely some customer salt sometimes when they see 2-3 or more pilots sitting in first class that they deem to have been "their" seat on the upgrade list. Oh well.
It would work better overall if they changed the boarding thing and let DH crew come on first in civilian clothes and they'd avoid the whole mess. Oftentimes there isn't enough time to board and change before the other 1st class or preboarders come in behind you.
That "suggestion" is the most ridiculous part of our FOM. If I'm on a DH to go operate a flight, I'm not stuffing my uniform into my rollaboard to change into civvies, only to unwrap my now -wrinkled uniform at the end of the DH and show up to the operating leg looking like I slept in the terminal.