I start training on that gem next month. Now that we will have to do the Captains preflight, the 30 min plane changes in the middle of a 5 leg day will extra suck. The only way to stay sane is walk to get a bite to eat, walk to the plane and take your time. Let that be a scheduling delay...

The Captain may have been the man at Delta a long long time ago in a galaxy far far away...... but those days are gone. Great companies empower their employees, DAL does not. I sometimes leave with empty seats and non revs (paying passengers also) left at the gate. Some Captains try to get them on, but the Gate agents now refuse - it is sad to see the Gate agents overrule the Captains. Sometimes the Captains will not have the big picture, ie. 20 international passengers who can not be late for a connection, I understand this. But other times, we are the last flight out of a hub to a station with no connections and we strand paying passengers and non-revs. All in the name of the almighty D-0 push time. Who gives a crap about push time? The FAA does not track push times but some genius in management decided this would solve all our troubles - what a joke. I'm afraid some of you DAL North guys are going to have a hard time dealing with this the first time you are stranding a fellow pilot at the gate with empty seats.

Scoop

This is not strictly a DAL-S issue; it's been going on up north for years.

FWIW, there is a strong statistical correlation between on time departures and on time arrivals, which the FAA does track. That is the reason for management's emphasis on block out times. Besides, when the door is closed and the jetway pulled back, the decision has kind of been made for you.

Wow, I don't recognize any of this guys. For the DAL-N guys, don't be concerned, there is definitely order and discipline to the way it works. It seems to me, at first blush, that the DAL-S FO's seem to be more engaged than the DAL-N FOs, but that's a good thing in my opinion. Its a two seat cockpit for a reason. DAL's philosophy is exactly that. I've been on both sides of the argument and it works very well in my opinion.

Secondly, I have never seen a DAL CA without the authority to do whatever it takes...and I've never left a gate without all of the non-revs, paying pax and jumpseaters accommodated (seats available, that is).

Maybe its the 73, maybe its LA, but I don't recognize any of this.

And on an additional note, the beacon on the 73 is part of the FO's flow. If the CA wants it on earlier or later, he asks for it. Its not a big deal and nobody really cares. There's not a dividing line down the middle of the cockpit that I've ever been made aware of. We share responsibility for a safe flight. Period. The CA signs for the jet. I do the best to keep him happy.

Thanks Buzz. Just trying to figure out if they are going to change it on us again.

Some guys seem to get "wrapped around the axle" about the beacon.

Philosophically, I'm opposed to the idea that you get the checklists done, you call for pushback, and then wait several minutes before clearance to push is received. In theory that's when the beacon is supposed to be turned on.

"Personal technique" is to turn the beacon on when we call for pushback.

A major "pet peeve" of mine is leaving paying pax or non-revs at the gate when we have open seats. Won't do it (within reason; for example we're already waaay late) and am more than glad to take any "heat" for the delay.

When you're The Captain, "it's your show", so to speak.

I know we talked about this early in this thread (500 pages ago or so).

On the Add/Update Displacement Preferences:
What does Low Nbr and Low % mean.

Nbr/ % from the bottom or top?

Thanks

Speaking of good things coming... starting Saturday it looks like Delta-N will start seeing Coke products onboard.

Hey Johnso, we DAL-S guys know full well that you guys are bearing the largest brunt of the changes. We feel for you. Some of the changes that we see coming on seem weird to us, so I know how you must feel. But, in the end, we're all a part of a great team and this marriage will benefit us all in the end. Changes are hard, especially in this biz. But, trust me, almost all of the guys I fly with are very considerate and understanding of the culture changes you guys are going through.

Trust me, we're not a bunch of cowboys down south (that would be SWA (jk)). We fly safe jets just as you guys do. There is a culture that is being transformed. Again, that will be merged quickly, IMHO. We have our pre-conceived notions as I'm sure you guys do. In the end. we're all professionals at the world's largest airline. I don't really care who gets the beacon. Just buy me a beer and share a lie or two.

Excellent post.