The mainline company basically owns the seats in the back, that's the reason for the discrepancy in boarding priority. Now they do NOT own the jumpseat so the mainline pilots do have a lower priority for occupying it.

As for the issues of commuting I deal with them all the time. The two main airports I commute from are only serviced by DCI. The aircraft has been full many times and the jumpseat taken by a DCI pilot. This is just the way it works and I understand it. I plan accordingly so that I can make my check-in. There have been numerous times my wife has driven several hours to pick me up at a major airport when I couldn't get back home due to full or canceled flights to my normal airport.

Please do not take the above as a dig..... I flew at the regional level for over 10 years and understand what it is like being treated like the "red haired stepchild".

 

Using that logic, while I agree, DL owns the seats in the back for ASA as well; however, DL mainline boards as S3C's on their aircraft. Why the discrepency just for them and not the other?

 

They board using that code because ASA's management negotiated it with DAL. This is an unusual arrangement and and I am not aware of any other regional airline that does this.

 

No digs taken... I just think that by giving DCI pilots and FAs a higher priority might not be such a bad thing for us and you (mainline). Instead of flying S3C, maybe something like S3A... I am also no expert on this either... but even crewmembers aside wouldnt DL mgmnt want to avoid cancld flights across board? By letting DL buddys parents kids on a flight before a commuting pilot or FA just doesnt make sense to their bottom line either. So they have 2 or 3 flights cancel because a DL parent got on a flight to go on vacation, and a DCI crewmember had to call in.
Most DCI have enough resv's to cover this... but my crappy company can barely staff on a normal day.
Of course the DL "employee" should always get on before us... I totally agree with that.

 

It's like that for Skywest and ASA. When the current agreement expires, expect ASA and Skywest to get the same benefits of all other DCI carriers.

 

The way DAL looks at canceled flights is they expect the DCI carrier to have a minimum completion factor. If the DCI carrier doesn't meet their contracts limits they are subject to being terminated by DAL. At DAL there is a limited number of vacation type passes we get annually that are of a higher boarding priority. Using the logic of canceled flights DAL wouldn't allocate these passes if they felt it caused canceled flights. As a DAL crewmember I am expected to get to work regardless of full or canceled flights, that is my responsibility.

 

Yes. As you guys like to brag, you "took the risk by leaving".