Originally Posted by
Milton Waddams
Has anyone ever actually seen this mythical "weight/speed/seat" formula? Please point me to where it is as inquiring minds want to know. There is no formula these days. Each airline has historically gone for the highest rates they could get in the good times and then the least paycuts in the bad times. But believe me, I highly doubt that our JNC (and your NC in the past, even for your 2000 CBA) ever used a formula such as the you speak of above.
It is also unfortunate that widebodies seem to be the holy grail in these arbitrations. I still haven't figured out why.
I'll throw another one out there. Why would we pay something based on weight? Shouldn't we pay something based on profit potential? For example, the 787 is not going to weight nearly as much as a similarly sized airplane due to the materials and engineering behind the airplane. Should it then be paid less because it has a lighter ZFW? Seems to me that the 787 should be paid more than equivalent size airplane due to its lower cost structure yet equal revenue potential, which of course, equals a higher profit per trip.
MW
Yes, I have seen the formula and I'm sure your reps could share it with you. If they don't have it handy, they can contact the Economic and Financial Analysis Department. Also, Yes to the productivity formula being applied in C2000. I'll have to look back through some old contracts, but I remember seeing it, in a side letter perhaps, in contract '92.
I won't attempt to repeat the formula from memory, but the basis is that pilot pay is linked to the productivity/revenue generation ability of the airframe. The more payload the aircraft can lift, and the faster it can get it to destination, the more productive the manpower is operating the jet.
Finally, the basis of weight in the formula is max payload, which is certainly a huge contributor to profit potential. A whale can carry 120,000lbs of cargo along with 397 passengers up top and get them there at mach .88 or better. The 787 may be greener, but it won't have near the lift or speed of the -400.