I tried to answer this using the contract but since I'm still working on my law degree part time, I wasn't able to decipher it.

Paris trip: MEM-CDG-MEM
Hard time trip scheduled for 8:30 block over and 10:00 back for 18:30 total pay. Winds aloft make the actual 8:00 going over and 10:30 coming back for 18:30 actual.

The contract seems to discuss "overage" as a per duty period thing, so I though this trip would be figured on a "per duty period" instead of looking at the whole trip. So, is this a wash or do we get paid for the extra time coming back?

While we're at it, can anyone provide an easy explaination of the over 8 hour pay "capture" thing and how that might (if at all) figure into this scenario?

Thanks,
AD

A hard time trip is a hard time trip. You are pay guarateed scheduled block for pay purposes. It doesn't matter if you block in early (but bad planning if you do.

If you go over schedule coming back on a hard time trip (i.e. Scheduled for 9:55 but block 10;05)you will get the higher of schedule of actual block, in the above case you just made 10 more minutes of pay. Don't disarm the door until the stairs are up against the airplane.

Block over 8 is a little more complex but it is factored into trips that PAY under TAFB or Trip Rig trips.

If you have a 6 day trip that pays on TRIP RIG (TAFB divided by 1.375) You are guaranteed the Trip pay. If there is/are legs that are scheduled greater than 8 block hour but less than 10 block any excess will be paid in addition to trip gaurantee.

In other words of the above trip was scheduled to be gone 141 hours from base, the TAFB trip pay gaurantee would be 38:06. (141 hours divided by 3.75) If there is one leg that is scheduled to Block 9:00 than you will receive 1 bonus hour of pay (Block over 8) if and only if you fly this leg as scheduled. If you fly it in 9:30 than you would get a 1:30 bonus. The Faus Pax of the contract is if you fly under the scheduled 9:00 block ,( 8:30 for example). You will only get a :30 min bonus instead of the scheduled 1 hour.

Confused?
Lesson here is Fly the Flight plan when you are scheduled on Block over 8 Legs. Remember safety first about disarming the doors before the stairs are securely at the plane.

I have a law degree, but I don't get it. And what's a hard time trip? Sounds terrible, like an incurable tropical disease.

[Sorry for the unusually vacuous comment. I've had a long and tragic day]

Sorry about your day I hope today is better.

A hard time trip is when you are paid for the time you actually "block". Other than hard time trips are when you are paid for the guarantee. For example many of our trips pay three hours out and three hours back but only block 2.5 hours out and 1.5 hours back. Most long flights will pay hard time.

Vagabond,

Guess that law degree doesn't help in all things. Only kidding, my son is a lawyer and I'm glad he's earning a living AND not living in my house.

As for what constitutes a "hard time trip", well, that's easy. Any trip that one has to fly with a guy like MM is always considered a hard time trip.

Ahhh Vags, that would be a hard drip.