Common Airline terms
 

Not an airline dude, but I hope to be in the somewhat near future (current military). Been reading a lot on the forums to gather information. Some of the time I can work through the lingo/acronyms and figure out what things mean via context clues, but a lot of the time I cannot.

I have tried to use the search function for some things or a list of terms like this, and I have either failed at searching or it doesn't exist. Maybe this can be a spot for us less educated to ask the "dumb" questions that most people in the business already know.

Here are a couple things to start the thread if it doesn't immediately die.

-What is Scope
-Good explanation of Credit vs Block hrs
-Hub turn-I think I get the gist of this, but a more complete explanation would be
-How long (days in a row and hours/day) do you typically sit long call and/or short call?

Scope in a contractual text defines what the airline is allowed to do as far as flying operated by pilots that are not part of said airline's seniority list.

On the strict end you have southwest where code sharing (selling a few tickets on another airline's flight) is completely off-limits.

Most major airlines have scope that allows a certain amount of code sharing (usually limited to a far minority of a given flight) as well as regional flying where a contract carrier operates a smaller plane than the primary airline operates. Especially in the latter there will be limits on seating capacity as well as number of aircraft. Sometimes this is tied to the size of the mainline fleet.

On the lax end you have Alaska which does not have any scope restrictions, which means that Alaska could send 737s to Horizon if they were so inclined. I believe Midwest did not have restrictions either which resulted in Republic taking 100% of their flying by the end.



Credit is what you're getting paid. Block Hours are what you actually flew (or what was scheduled in the case of "Scheduled Block"). Most airlines have a Leg Value which is a minimum amount you will get paid to operate the flight based on average flight times (real world, not what the flight is scheduled to) to make your pay more predictable. This protects you on the rare days that you are very early due to winds or other circumstances. Some airlines also operate where you don't start getting paid extra from that time until you are x minutes over the leg value.



A Hub Turn just means operating a pair of flights out of and back into a hub. Such as flying CLT-BNA-CLT for a pilot flying for American.



On-call times varies airline by airline.

For short call you'll be FAR limited so it's generally 10-12 hours maximum per day. Many regional airlines only operate short call or Ready Reserve. Ready reserve is an assignment to sit at the airport in case needed on extremely short notice. Not all Mainline carriers even have ready reserve but most regionals do (if not all of them).

For long call you are usually on a 10-12 hour callout, which means the airline puts you into rest upon assignment and you are otherwise on call 24hrs/day except for days off.

Days off also vary by airline. On reserve at a regional you can expect 10-12 days off a month depending on their contract. At a major it might be 14. Days in a row is something you can bid for (bidding is a seniority based scheduling system carried out prior to each month). Days in a row also vary by airline. Some airlines only let you schedule 5-6 days in a row so you have a scheduled day(s) off to meet FAA requirements. Others will allow you to work as many in a row as you want and they will assign a period of time off if needed to meet the requirements.

Here’s a few more:

Slam-clicker: 1. one who stays to himself on overnights. 2. Asian overnights: The one having 2 or more friends staying over at a hard bargained price.

1% = 1. “that guy.” 2. Guy/gal no one likes to work with. 3. The best, smartest pilot in the room.

Kitchen-bitsch = cook, international relief pilot.

Tired vs. Fatigue = legal term allowing you to fly when you are probably otherwise too tired to.

FTFF = F those F’in F’ers. Pilot term of endearment towards management especially in times of contract negotiations or recessionary forces.

FUPM = F U pay me.

Plug = bottom guy on the list.

A fund = defined benefit. Limited to FX UPS.

B-Fund = defined contribution.

Living the dream = YouTube lego spoof. Also see “the honey badger.”

Memory items = popular quotes from movies such as Caddyshack, blazing saddles, Airplane etc. Note: anything from Iron Eagle (1or 2) and most Top Gun quotes will get you funny looks.

Catering / crew meals = the company’s true feelings towards you.

Douche (general): anyone wearing a uniform hat but not required to.

PBS?
 

I still haven't resolved what PBS means...

Just watch a couple episodes of LA to Vegas and you'll be ready for your interview.

Preferential Bidding System. Instead of Scheduling developing a list of lines and crew members bidding for what line they want, PBS has crew members input what they are looking for (4 day trips that start on Tuesday or no overnights for example) and then builds lines that try to meet the crew members preferences.

Generous description....for the PBS we utilize...

Please, please read Flying the Line, vol1 & 2.. I was given that book many years ago and it’s invaluable for new airline pilots. You really need to understand the history of how pilots got here.

GF

“Trolley Dolly” - Should be obvious to the casual observer.;)

Thought it was Aisle Donkey