I really do not like Airtrans LGA gates. It is nice to get new slots in LGA but we are going to need better gates and more of them. I can't tell you how much time I have in the penalty box because we have a plane on the gate with no free gates to go into.

Back to the original topic of this thread. Why is there always "That Guy" who figures he has some master plan to bring the Airline to the table by "taxiing slowlly", delaying at the gate to get one bug off his windscreen, ETC. It just reflects poorly on us. Angering ATC just make it more difficult for all AT guys, and brings down stricter scrutiny. It is far more effective to make the public at large aware of our issues rather than ATC.

Pilots are a tough crowd. I think we could make $200/hr and we would still gripe. Besides the love of flying and travel, many people came into this industry expecting some great quality of life and lifestyle. To the public imagination we are still the "Catch Me if you can" over paid, over sexd, Captains of the Air. Recent events like the crash into the Hudson and the commuter crash earlier this year have brought the difficulty of our jobs into the public awareness.

We need to play on this and fight for the basic standards, safety, pay, quality of life. The reality is we are highly trained, underpaid professionals, trying to make good.

Blah Blah Blah... IF anyone has a plan let me know,

Boogie