Originally Posted by
effsharp
Shimmydamp... they can live where they want. Just don't use it as an excuse for fatigue... that's all. I mean you can live an hour away from the New York area in BFE West Virginia. Certainly it must be cheaper to live there than in Seattle. You want to tell me a pilot based out of EWR must live on the other side of the country for economical reasons? Do you realize how absurd this is??
And TYPICAL41, yes... this accident was absolutely pilot error.
I do not believe a pilot must live on the other side of the country for economical reasons, but I don't believe it is feasible on regional FO pay to live anywhere close to EWR, LGA, JFK, (or IAD or DCA for that matter).
Either way the burden has been put on the pilot to find an affordable living situation somewhere. The low pay creates the need to commute to work whether that be to West Virginia or Washington. So yes, I think that when low pay forces you to commute, you can use it as an underlying factor as to why you are fatigued.
As another poster noted we will find out more about fatigue and its role in the accident later on in the hearing.