Base Trade (Nov 19)

2500ish seniority numbers between the plug and the next guy.

Great for him. He got in out of seniority ahead of a bunch of people who want it and have been waiting for it.

Base trades are like vacation passes, but for bidding.

I mean, no, not really. Or at all.

That’s the problem using the JR Man table to gauge your position. It’s not accurate because of base trades, in many categories. The truth lives in CSS/Staffing. That shows if a person there as a result of a trade.

Don’t be a hater!

You have access to the same system he/she did. Maybe set an alarm/reminder on your phone every month to check the base trades.

It violates seniority. A pilot should not have to commute out of base on the hopes they might get a base trade back in. The current system should only allow a base trade if both pilots have the seniority to hold the base.

An exacerbated example is ORD 320 CAP where a guy gets in well out of seniority on a base trade, and then there is a 777 FO displacement and a bunch of guys pile in on top of him, overfilling the category, and making it so existing pilots who have seniority can't get into that category for (probably) at least a year more.

Its not about hating the people that are there, its about those pilots that have seniority and can't get what their seniority should allow them.

What about the seniority of the guy who got into the position he wanted via base trade instead of looking at the junior guy? Maybe he/she got into a base he’s more than senior enough to hold but he couldn’t get there because there hasn’t been a vacancy? Should he/she not be able to use his/her seniority? There’s 2 sides to a base trade. I feel your pain about vacancies but it’s not one sided and anyone can roll the dice and get in the seat they want and hope for a base trade.

I do find it ironic that a select few people are talking about a “windfall” for people who are being displaced out of a seat they were awarded through a seniority vacancy bid. We should kick them while they’re down and being bumped so you can benefit??

A base trade gives flexibility but does not always honor seniority. Vacancy bids are the primary way to move seats/bases and ensure seniority is honored (although not perfect). I feel you with the ORD 777 displacement but....would you feel different if you were a 18 year 320 FO waiting for your chance to bid Captain in base? Those guys got hosed. Movement in ORD is slow enough without people who can’t legitimately hold the seat getting in before you. The seniority system sometimes sucks but it needs to be honored.

If you had the seniority to bid ORD 320 then you should have bid it.....**** poor planning does not mean you get to ***** that it’s not fair.

I guess you probably shouldn’t be able to trade into a really nice cherry trip that you couldn’t be awarded during the PBS run. That’d also be an abrogation of seniority.