Excellent analogy. There’s definitely some unexpected market downturns on reserve, but the long term track record is good.

 

That's worked well for me recently, at 18% atl 320 the last 30 day's, i've worked one single day on reserve, 6 SCC's and all. Summer was a slightly different story but I always expect that.

 

That's an excellent analogy. If a REG pilot picks a month to "try out" RES and gets burned, they're likely not to try it again, just like a short-term investment that went south. It does take a commitment to the unexpected to find the true value.

Then, your biggest problem becomes explaining to your family and friends that you actually DO still have a job, and that the job actually pays you more the less you work. It can be difficult to explain.

 

Can confirm. Don’t want to try it again, exactly as you describe.

 

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
i just dont understand how dudes live in base and still fly lines

 

As other have said, it depends. Being senior enough to get weekday reserves is great, but not if you're the most junior guy there. Being willing and able to drop a day here and there is helpful. You can almost always make it back with SCC and a GS. A little flexibility goes a long way. Just watch some schedules of those around your seniority on reserve. You can go back almost two years looking at their schedule. That will give you a feel for what's possible.

I think those who don't do it, think we just spend a ton of time on it daily, but that's generally not true. It's certainly not any more work than going and flying a full line every month. But giving up after a month or so of being abused is missing the forest for the trees. You don't learn to land on your first try.



I do get why some choose to do it. Fewer days tied to the company, knowing what you'll fly vs flying potentially crappy trips, etc... I bid lines in the summer because I want complete control over my schedule and I want to work less. What I can never wrap my mind around is that many won't bid reserve because their spouse would rather them be gone MORE, just to know when they're gone. If you plan for them being gone, but then they're home, that seems like a massive win to me. Not judging, I just don't understand it. Either way, we can't all be on reserve, so it works out well.

 

Any tips on managing SC periods ... Slip for awards ahead of time? Commutable time preferences if needed? As a commuter that seems to be most painful part of reserve

 

Yea, SC is indeed the worst part of reserve for a commuter and the best part for local. But to answer your question, if you think you're going to get short call (and you probably are until you have 6), put in first in sequence YS for your preferred SC time.

 

Honestly this is another area where seniority matters. Generally scheduling loads up on midday SC periods (starting anywhere from 0800 to 1400), at least in my category. So figuring out where the bulk of those SC are going and then try to place yourself in the middle of all that with lots of junior people sitting SC at around the same time to buffer you.

 

You know, something I've never tried, but MIGHT be good for a commuter, is to YS, say, 1400-2000 SC, then YS 0800-1400 the following day. Then 1400-2000 again the following day. Or some sequence like that, where you can start late, finish early, and maybe even have 24 hours to go home and back if you're not getting used. The YS should waive the 18 hours between SC down to 10.