Originally Posted by
Cycle Pilot
Ya, the -88 gets hot, too, especially during the Summer time when it's 90 degrees out. The day in MCO when I saw all these APU's running it was about 65 degrees out. I've been in the back of many Airbuses over the years that single engine taxi. The noise is no worse than the hydraulic pumps running on -88. I think it's actually quieter.
It's been hammered into me to save fuel since I was at Skywest. Delta also hammers us on saving fuel. It's almost like a challenge to see if you can have the APU come on line just as the Captain sets the brake at the gate. After working so hard to save gas, it's frustrating seeing DAL-N aircraft not doing the same thing. I don't understand the operational reasons why you wouldn't shut an APU down when you have good air and power hooked up on a mild temp day. Or why you wouldn't taxi single engine when you have a 20 minute long taxi in LGA or MSP. My only conclusion is that there's just a different mindset and the DAL-N crews weren't hammered on saving gas. That's why I'm bringing this up. Maybe things will change as the crews integrate more and we become "mixed nuts." It's hard to change after you've been doing something the same way for a long time.
Cycle,
I guess what I was getting at in a round about way was that when you speak of this different mindset, or common sense that needs to be exercised, it is similar to North guys saying that the South ways are old technology or backwards. I think we are all on the same page as far as fuel savings goes, but just wanted to point out situations on the DC-9 where fuel savings takes a backseat to comfort.
I'm sure there will be a better understanding when we do mix things and crews up more. But, that does not mean that there will necessarily be change either way. We might wind up somewhere in the middle. Or, we might already agree. We just don't know yet. It will all work itself out, I'm sure.