That doesn't make sense. You can only fly 100hrs a month. If your pairings are efficient, Lets say 21hr 3 days to keep it easy, then that means if you worked 4 of them you'd be at 83hrs with 18-19 days off. Now lets say they are inefficient and are now worth only 15hr 3days. Now you have to work more days to hit min target.

There is a set amount of hours PBS targets. If you get the good pairings worth more then the second it hits the mind, 82hrs in my case, it stops. It's all about the efficiency of the pairings. Higher time=more days off. Lower time=less days off. It needs more trips to hit the 82hr min.

Hard lines are a mix. Why would you want that? As a junior guy in base I was still always able to get commutable trips. I'm currently around the top 1/3rd and I'll never have to get a crashpad or hotel room again if I bid it that way. The only time I stay in a hotel/pad if is I bid for something else first like a week off here or there. I compare my schedules against those at other regionals who sit roughly the same spot in their bases and mine are almost always better.

The problems associated with PBS are pilot error. We have a scheduling committee that looks through the results to make sure everything was correct. People can go on our forum and post issues with their schedules. I can't think of any time it wasn't the bidders fault. I've been using it for two years and I'm still learning how to do new things with it but that's my problem not the programs. If you know what you're doing there's nothing better.

Sure if your seniority can hold it. I know several in base that only work 10 a month.