subicpilot

The following is the first paragraph under Training, Flex Instructors/PCA's in the CBA.

"A flex instructor/PCA who checks and instructs Captains and/or First Officers shall be currently qualified as a Captain in the aircraft on which he checks and instructs.
A flex instructor/PCA shall have a minimum of 300 hours in the aircraft in which he performs his flex/PCA duties."

All the F/O flexes are checked out as Captains as part of their PCA checkout. This satisfies the contract language. The CBA doesn't say anything about needing to already be a Captain in order to be a PCA. There have been F/O flexes on the property for as long as I can remember.

HerkyBird

He's right. I've always said that too many people seem to forget that this Union is a crazy-quilt pieced out of many minority interests. Senior guys facing retirement; new-hires on probation; people in between; people with kids at home; people with grown kids; people with no kids; singles; marrieds; foreign-based; domestic-based; MEM; non-MEM; commuters; domicile live-ins; LCAs; line dogs; etc. Not one of those single-demographic groups is in the majority, and if we consistently disregard the interests of any group just because they're "only" a minority, then before too long, enough people will be disaffected and alienated from the Union that they DO constitute a majority. How effective do you think our union will be then? Not very. The perception (reality?) is already there that the only people this Union thinks about are the senior guys, based in MEM, who don't commute.

How many times have the Subic folks been told "There are only 75 of you out there, and we can't expend Union resources on issues that only pertain to you"? Plenty -- on three occasions that I can think of. There was a married childless pilot out here some years ago who was actually glad the company didn't pay the cost of Subic schooling for pilots' kids because he "didn't want it to affect [his] profit-sharing" (I kid you not, I had this conversation with him myself). We have to put ourselves in the other guys' shoes, and not just think of ourselves on things like an LOA vote. We also have to take care of the folks who are only on their way to being senior. Don't have kids, so you don't care if schooling is paid for? You should still vote NO for the young family who DOES have kids, even though it doesn't affect you (except for the 47-cent hit your profit-sharing would take, of course). You pay full taxes in the U.S. and aren't willing to live overseas because of the inconvenience, distance from family, medical-care issues, housing issues, schooling issues, disease, corruption, pollution, etc.? You should still vote NO on any LOA that forces crewmembers to give their granted-by-Uncle Sam tax savings back to FedEx, because those folks ARE struggling with those issues, and Uncle Sam's tax code says they get that tax benefit for doing exactly that in furtherance of the business interests of a U.S. company.

I'm perfectly willing to sacrifice which is nearly a non-quantifiable amount in my profit sharing so that overseas pilots get their kids' schooling covered in the city with the highest rents on Earth. I'm willing to wait on a mega-bid/upgrade to make sure first that people going to a place I'm not willing to go to will be treated fairly when they get there. I'm willing to delay some of my issues to promptly address some pressing health-care items for retirees. We HAVE to look out for each other. Who was it who said "We must hang together, for if we do not, we shall surely hang separately"? The same holds true here.

RAC396

Just another case of the union turning away and letting the company intrepret the contract any way they want. Is checked out as a capt the same as holding capt and bidding a capt line? Fo's as flexes has come and gone as the company see's fit.

RedeyeAV8r

First off we don't get profit sharing anymore, it was supsended several years ago.

Secondly I am confused, Do You mean hang together by calling anyone who bids an FDA a SCAB?
If that wasn't you, please accept my apology.

I agree, we need to stay united or we will fail.

iarapilot

Section 2, definitions..

14. CAPTAIN

A pilot, designated by the Company, to command an aircraft, and who has authority over all crew members and passengers for the purpose of operating that aircraft.


I read this to mean that just because you are checked out and typed in the A/C, you are not a Captain, by definition.

JetJocF14

You not a Captain untill you pass IOE. Then the company will give you the keys to the car..............

MX727

No. If they can't hold captain, they can only fly in the left seat when they are flying with another Flex/LCA.

Lately, they haven't been checking them out as captains in the sim until they can hold it on the line. They are limited on what events they can conduct. Essentially they can't do anything more than the professionals.

subicpilot

1. Not all F/O flexes are PCA's. Every flex is checked out in stages and not everyone is fully qualified to teach all events. This has very little to do with seniority. It is more a function of manning and tasking levels.

2. Any F/O flex who is PCA qualified is a fully type rated Captain on the aircraft in which they instruct. Even though they only fly the left seat with another flex/LCA in the right seat, the F/O flex in the left seat is the PIC of record on the FPR. Being PIC on a FedEx aircraft is, by definition, Captain. The only thing lacking is the seniority required to bid and hold it on the line. As we all know, seniority has nothing to do with skill, qualification, experience, proficiency, etc. We have some ultra senior captains bidding reserve, who fly very little, with massive amounts of flight time and experience who are borderline unsafe in the aircraft. In fact, flexes who spend most of their time in the schoolhouse teaching, rapidly fall behind their contemporaries in terms of flight time and experience on the line, and can also be scary to fly with for the first couple legs...so seniority doesn't mean squat when it comes to determining someone's qualifications. Seniority just means some dude got his foot in the door before you did.

RAC396

subicpilot;
Ypu are intirely correct seniority doesn't mean squat whem it comes to being qualified as an instructor,but when it is writen into the CBA it means everything.
The prievous MD of training was very proud of the fact that he "dictated section 11 to the NC". Now the company is having dificulty filling all the instructor slots under the CBA. They have tried several end runs, side agrements with the 75 guys, fo flexes, 727 SOs as MD flexes, to name a few.
My point is if the company is having trouble living with the current sect 11 then its time they went back to the table for a LOA, This time the union does have some nog. strength we don't have to make any changes.

Albief15

RAC,

Pirep I got last night from a LCA on the 727 was that 757 guys were NOT going to get passover pay. Again--0300 cockpit talk--consider the source--but the pirep also said several guys were "walking" out to go to training, including JF, an experienced 727 captain that has been on the 757 program a while now. Any truth to any of this?

I used to think getting POP was great deal for 727 captains. Then I had to watch those poor brave souls give me the jet on my IOE, and I realized they earn every penny every time they let a student land. The unfortunately hard/sideload landing in the MD-10 is a good example of the risks. There is NO WAY I would put my ticket on the line in a widebody for a $1600 override....I'd pick up extra flying instead if I wanted the extra money.

We want good guys as LCAs. I'm not sure we'll get the best if we don't pay them for the risk.