[QUOTE=RCD73;995728]It looks like the the reduction in DAL flying is actually 10-12%. From Bloomberg today.


Bigger Cut


Delta CEO Richard Anderson acknowledged on April 26 that there was “significant industry overcapacity” on trans-Atlantic routes, and the Atlanta-based carrier said May 6 it would pare seating in the market by 8 to 10 percent following the Labor Day holiday in September. Delta President Ed Bastia said today at a transportation conference that the figure is now 10-12 percent.

It seems to me DAL wants to continue to show the investors and analysts that they are cutting capacity while making consistent progress in increasing the number of large RJs toward the contractual cap. For overall system capacity to show a decline, it has to come from somewhere. Might as well pare down the Atlantic routes. Scope is not just a junior issue - maybe the next AE will start to show that.

If he wanted to commute to NYC then yes he could but maybe he doesn't want to commute. Your right there is no quarantee that the junior NYC pilot will get anything but the potential is certainly there.

I'm based in SEA. I know a couple of guys that live up here in SEA but cannot hold the category, they commute to either SLC, LAX, or MSP where they can hold a line. They would love to be based here sitting reserve. Now, these are friends of mine but, with an out of base swapboard, these guys could potentially swap all their trips with open time trips out of SEA (we generally have low reserve coverage) and become a shadow SEA line holder screwing a more senior pilot that is on reserve and based here.

Now you say: How can that happen? Doesn't PBS award all the lines possible? Well, yes, PBS does do that with the known trips at the time of award. I underlined that because it's a key point. After the award there are always many more trips that get re-entered in to open time for whatever reason. An out of base swapboard would now allow these guys to swap their SLC, LAX, or MSP trips (or most of them) with trips that leave out of SEA. Trips that would go to reserves out of SEA or are potential greenslips for the SEA base. These trips are now gone out of the SEA base and in another base that, more than likely, has better reserve coverage because, we both know, the company will not agree to something that would give them worse coverage.

That's my take on it.

Denny

Negative, they won't be allowed to swap with open time. ONLY pilot to pilot swap board.

Since Bloomberg couldn't spell Bastians name I thought you might be correct. Unfortunately you're not.

The transatlantic cut by DAL is 10-12%. It's slide 8 and 9 from the SEC filing that shows the presentation.

DELTA AIR LINES INC /DE/ (DAL) Form 8-K (Events or Changes Between Quarterly Reports) Filed 2011-05-19

I see where you are coming from. Two points:

1. Every pilot would have this choice to exercise his seniority how he chooses.
2. Pilots are already doing this with out of base white slips.

I should also add that I think an out of base swapboard where you can list a trip as a pick up only could potentially effect future Adavance Entitlement bids. I see this idea as effectively allowing the company to use any base that has excess reserves to cover the system. When you are going to tile a bathroom floor you have to make sure it's level so you use a slurry and level it out. If the pilot group allows this idea to float, trips will be moved from one base to another and end up at a base that has adequate reserve coverage. This could allow the company to not offer up positions on an AE because, what the heck, the trips will eventually end up in a base that has adequate coverage anyway.

Denny

Oh, then who cares....

1. Every pilot should be able to exercise his seniority how he chooses. By allowing this you are effectively allowing a junior pilot who is not in your category to excercise seniority in your base over you.

2. Only if there is adequate reserve coverage in their base and they can drop a trip or have the time off already. Realize too that out of base white slips are only awarded the day prior to the trip. I'll bet this has a pretty big affect on how many guys do this.

Denny

As I said, I could see this with restrictions.

Denny

Out of base swaps-vacation swaps-pilot to pilot swaps-slot/ swaps my head is spinning.