O.K. I want to state that I was paroled from 9E in early '08, but in my almost 8 years there it was a constant battle. Many factors contribute, but here are the biggies as I remember them.
1) NWA bean counters figured that the W/B issues would not justify having the weight installed in the tail cone and carrying an extra 50lbs for the life of the aircraft thus PCL RJ's have always had W/B issues. When pax weights were raised it really added to the problem.
2) Dispatchers are completely overworked and reluctant to spend any extra time on a flight no matter what the problem is.
3) Lots of short flights to business type destinations where most of the A/C pax are going out in the morning and returning in the evening and checking no bags. No bags in back make an almost impossible balance problem on short flights. MSP-STL used to be the worst for me and trying to get STL NWA employees find ballast for a PCL jumpseater was an exercise in futility.
4) PCL does very little of there of there own servicing at the gate or on the ramp. I am not sure if this is still the case, but getting people to just do their job was a constant battle, much less going above and beyond to help a jumpseater. You state the problem was in MEM which used to be better than the rest of the system, but that must no longer be the case.
5) I fought this battle daily for many years and did everything I could to get EVERY jumpseater a ride, and was usually sucessful, but on some days you simply cannot make it happen. I was also called in to the base mgrs office to be threatened about delaying flights for non-revs. I kept doing it anyway, but it still was unpleasant. When I was there MOST CA's would bend over backwards to accomadate a jumpseater, sticking their neck out in the process, but the deck was always stacked against them. Just remember MOST pilots are trying to help and not just ignoring you.

 

Pinnacle..... typed in 1.5 seconds.

Search 9E.... still searching........ nope sorry. Quicker to type the airline name.

This is well worth complaining!

 

Actually when I open my browser to yahoo, type 9e nothing else... the first result is wiki Pinnacle Airlines... I'm still trying to figure out why you bother to hijack a thread to complain about something that probably doesn't affect you... seriously give me an airline code and less than 30 seconds later I'll tell you what it is and know in the future...

 

If I'm not mistaken, 9E has been the code since the airline was originally Express I Airlines.

 

all i can say is please don't take your frustrations out on Pinnacle pilots when they are trying to J/S on your airline. The pilots have no control over this, and I know almost every Captain I fly with will do almost anything to get the J/S on. I hope it is addressed by management soon, but please understand its nothing personal on the pilots end.

 

...still quicker just to type the actual airline name, just a courtesy for those of us who don't know.

 

I figured I'd get a couple of good replies out of y'all. Didn't want to leave the other anon out in the dark.

And don't worry, it's hard enough getting elected when the participating in base is 45/220....

PS - who reads, and takes APC seriously, anyways?

 

Here's what happened to me yesterday. 9E flight from MEM to BNA..200 miles. Introduced myself to Capt when he came up to counter. Weather was clear everywhere. Five minutes prior to boarding gate agent announces flight is weight restricted. Flight left with two empty seats, me and a paying passenger. Later flight was going to be the same, so I ended up renting a car and driving. Didn't see the Captain again, but he could have told me the flight was weight restricted at the counter. Yes you 9E guys are still welcome on my airplane, and I've had quite a few lately. But the first one is going to get an earfull.

 

Nice bashing of a pilot group over your free ride. Has even one instance been the result of the Captain declaring "Sorry...no jumpseaters today!" What are we really talking about here? The system or the pilots fault?

Most jumpseaters can't get past the gate agent, yet it the pilot's fault (let not start up on this subject again). If you think the Captain is legitimately conspiring against you, contact your jumpseat chairman. I believe its the SYSTEM: Agents, Load Planning, and Ramp combining as a superpower to overwhelm the process, making it a PAIN IN THE ARSE to get anything done. This is a common problem everywhere.

What CRJ2 operator hasn't had balance issues or weight restrictions? Please. Why Pinnacle do we bash? Pinnacle's pilots have been overly generous with their seats.

Oh, and I've carried more FedEx pilots than my own guys or even taken rides myself on FedEx. And, the last time I tried J/S on Fred's 727, the slide broke so "oooops sorry fella can't take ya" was what I heard. Either way I was walking. Besides, when did we come to EXPECT anything anyway?

 

Whose bashing? Maybe you. I'm just saying it's bull that on a severe clear day a 200 mile trip is going to tanker so much gas as to leave a paying customer (and a jumpseater) over what amounts to 500 lbs of gas. Also, if it had been me and I had just looked at the paperwork, as this guy had, I would have mentioned that the flight is close to full and because of tankering fuel it might not be possible to carry a jumpseater. As for me, I've kept jumpseaters on my plane by working with our operation folks to adjusting fuel burn and taxi out fuel and cruise altitude. I jumpseat offline about twice a year and I've carried way more Pinnacle guys than all the jumpseats I will ever take and I'm happy to take them. Except for the one guy I didn't like, so I broke the slide. So Skippy, have a beer, relax and don't get so upset. No one is bashing you . Like you, I'm bashing your system.