Curious what’s the wait these days for OE on the NB fleets, particularly 320? I have a buddy coming back soon from medical and he was asking me what to expect.

 

My God what has happened.....

 

Looks like I'm going back to the ER post mil leave. Enough new hires below me to get the real crap. The question is bid for line, attempt to roll thunder, or just be king of the reserve goons.

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I understand that 320 OE is largely caught up. Requal students are seeing it within the week after 44X by my unscientific sampling.


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Roll thunder whenever you can. Even if it’s just once or twice a month…

 

With a new AE coming, I’m sure the ER will get balanced.

 

Awesome, thanks for the info, I’ll pass that along!

 

It’s a toss up whether the 757 or 737 is the new mad dog. The 717 and 220 are too plush to take on the role. They are at least making 737’s still and they have speed tape.
The 757 category is the only plane where you set your own bugs…like a lowly mad dog pilot. I realize it was built by Boeing and designed by God, but it was built by Boeing a few decades ago. It’s a Frankenstein fleet where some were bought by Delta and some came from NW, TWA, and maybe the Venezuelan Air Force or something. I don’t think two planes have the same radar, seats, printer, and headset location.
I know lots of older guys are obsessed with the plane. It’s kind of like the hot car when you were in high school, it always has a soft spot in your heart even though it doesn’t perform as well as newer ones.
It’s an incredible plane, but it’s not as nice as everything else on property. People have caught on.
My son thinks Trans Ams are bulky and slow. He’s probably right, but I still remember 16 year old me reading Car and Driver and dreaming of one day laying rubber 50’ long in that asphalt devouring t-topped sex machine.

 

717 is too plush lol.

5 legs/day, Douglas engineering and common type: Yep, it's the new Mad Dog.

I'd take the 737 any day and twice on Sunday.

 

The new maddog might be a little extreme. I would guess these three factors (among others) played a large role in all the turnover.

1. The April AE contained a ton of A positions that lured quite a few FOs off the airplane. There was even quite a bit of 7ERB>7ERA movement.

2. There was a lot of doubt concerning how much international flying the fleet would be doing in the future, particularly at the time of the AE. TATL now looks more promising for the summer of 2022, but it remains to be seen what role the 7ER will play in that. Many senior FOs bid off into the true widebody categories to preserve that lifestyle. (Or to an A position, see point #1)

3. With the closure of the MSP, DTW, and SLC bases, that essentially locked out a not insignificant portion of the pilot group from bidding the plane. As a 320 or 73N FO, it doesn't make much sense to bid into an airplane that pays marginally more without being able to tell how much opportunity there would be for international flying. I certainly wouldn't eat a commute out of another base in that scenario for the 2 year seat lock.