This FAR 117 thing is going to be a defining moment for DALPA.

 

They have to go by the trip coverage ladder. Beyond 12 hours, the trip goes to the long call pilot.

 

That part may be a bit of improvement, but to me, it is not worth the concession of having to be no more than 2 hours from acknowledgement of an assignment while on long call. And that first-day benefit only benefits you on day one. The within-two-hour-acknowledgement lasts the whole stretch of reserve days. It's the gift that keeps on giving.

As was phrased earlier by Ron, it is like you are on short call while on long call.... always have to be able to acknowledge a trip within two hours of being contacted while on long call. As I said before, you may not even be able to get through a movie and meet that requirement. Forgot your phone while out on the town for dinner while on long call? Well, carpet dance for you. Want to sleep for 8 hours straight with no interruption, oh well. Or [insert any other number of examples here]. That, imho, is a huge reserve concession (as if 30 day summer months, alv+15, 7 short calls weren't bad enough). Not having to respond to or worry about an attempted contact while on long call until 3 hours prior to show is one of the large benefits of being on long call. Now they want to make it 10 hours prior.

The letter states that greater than 12 hours gives you more time to acknowledge, but how do you know how far out it is without having to always be contactable so that you can check and see how far out it is, to know how much time you have to acknowledge... lol?

From Purple:
Seems like it to me.

 

I disagree. Absent a strongly worded missive from ALPA clarifying exactly what our contractual long call obligations are, we will (as a group) grudgingly acquiesce to this. Call or email your Reps. Without a significant groundswell, I fear we will see yet another QOL item negotiated away by LOA.

 

Yep. 90% of the pilot group doesn't and won't grasp the significance and consequences of heeding the memo.

Skeds will leave a strongly-worded message demanding the pilot acknowledge IMMEDIATELY (the script is probably already written) and guys will rush to make it happen.

I flew with a guy last week who thought we got paid until a half-hour after block in, and that's why we should say goodbye to every single pax. I laughed and told him that half-hour is for duty calculations. We don't get paid crap after the beacon's off. He has worked here 20 years.

Do you think he will pay a damn bit of attention to what the contract says? Nope. He's leaning so far forward he's bent over. And he's not alone.

 

Here is your long call obligation. Section 23.S.6

6. A long call pilot who is assigned a rotation or converted to short call:

a. prior to release from a rotation, must acknowledge such assignment or conversion

prior to release.

b. via telephone contact or electronic placement on his schedule on his last non-fly day

(other than a vacation day) before an on-call day, must acknowledge such assignment

or conversion no later than:

1) three hours before the scheduled report of the rotation, or

2) one hour before the scheduled start of the short call period.

 

I think that part is an improvement, too. But, it took me reading that one paragraph three times to figure it out. I skimmed over the rest, figured with two good football games going on, it was too complicated for now, and decided to save it for later.

 

I see the company calling multiple times prior to the 10hr cutoff to try and get people to acknowledge.
As to 12 noon being the earliest on call I don't think the company can ignore that provision, that is a FAR and restrictive compared to the contract so no matter what we get that.

 

So far, since the merger, they way things normally go for me is I read something and am 100% sure of its meaning, then get told later on that I was totally wrong.

 

Ha. That's exactly how I feel.