Disputes: Pairing #21/#26 – QRO. Critical launch followed by a short rest before a difficult international out and back to high altitude airport. This pairing was disputed in November, and will remain disputed. We have consistently pointed out that critical to day transitions are fatiguing. Given the length and destination of the second duty period, with a showtime in the afternoon WOCL, we feel strongly that this pairing design should be changed.

...and

Our BFM-QRO dispute continues this month. Pilot scheduling has the crew launching to BFM in critical, getting a near minimum rest, then launching in the afternoon for a PM out and back BFM-QRO-MEM. Given this is an international, 6200 foot elevation, mountainous airport the PSIT has decided to dispute the pairing construction. After the dispute was initiated last month, the layover in BFM was further shortened by 30 minutes (60 minutes in week #3 of December), making the pairing even more objectionable to the PSIT.


What message are our collective actions sending crew scheduling and the PSIT this holiday season?

Bump.

OT released this week.

Stay Educated ~ Stay Safe!

OT released tonight.

Just say "No".

Looks like the company revised the trip on Dec 6th. Made it an am out and back. There is an X pairing on the 5th that deadheads down to BFM for a layover of 23 hours and then makes the QRO-MEM run from there as a pm out and back. Much more palatable and safe. Wonder if they will revise the rest of the pairings for the month?

The big question now is, are those guys who pick up the revised pairing still picking up a DP?

Discuss

Good question:

Here's what the PSIT said about the trip in the Nov SIG notes when the DP first surfaced:

Disputed Pairing Process: There is one disputed pairing for the Memphis 727. Pairing #4 operates out of the critical duty period to BFM. After an 11:30 layover, the flight shows during the crew afternoon WOCL and as a day duty period flies to Querétaro International Airport (QRO), turning to Memphis and arriving at 2318. With this afternoon show, the duty period allows it to turn to itself. The ALPA SIG believes that this critical to day transition pushes pilot alertness and should be re-designed.

Disputes: Pairing #4 – QRO. Critical launch followed by a short rest before a difficult international out and back to high CFIT airport. The PSIT feels we need to fly this PM out and back portion from MEM just as is done on Monday evenings and not try to piggy back on the BFM jet, or else turn the BFM AM & PM out and backs all to layovers so that the PM launch can fly this the next day after proper preparatory rest.


My initial blush is that the company has done exactly what the PSIT recommended (...in these two specific cases, at least ~ BUT NOTE: the rest of the trips have yet to be changed!).

If they had made these changes during the build process I don't see how/why these trips would have been disputed.

Other inputs....

The revised trip has a 23+ hr layover, and is now a PM two-legger. I don't think that just because it still has the original pairing number it should be considered DP. What matters is the content of the pairing, not the pairing number that was disputed, correct? But, I really don't understand the process after that.

I wouldn't imagine the company can say of the original pairing: it's a safe pairing, look at how many times it was picked up from OT and flown willingly (even though the actual trip picked up was the revised one).

Just my opinion. It would be nice to get some clarity on this issue from the PSIT.

Well both the X pairing on the 5th and the DP #21 (revised to an am out and back) went like hotcakes in the first round of open time roulette. CA and FO anyway.

Maybe the company will see how fast the fixed pairings got picked up and revise the rest of them.

That would be a small victory in the DP kabuki dance. Dare to dream.

W T F...they put in up to 17 airport standbys a day so we can't drop or swap off trips??? How can they do this....*&%#% BS!

Left Coast, look at the bright side, at least the turnaround time on drop requests was less than two minutes . It was great to have such a quick response to requests... even though all of mine happened to be DISAPPROVED.

Mostly Yes. Scheduling treats it like a voluntarily flown DP.

If nothing else they can revise it right back to where it was at the beginning. I wouldn't want to fly that.

If they want us to fly it voluntarily they shouldn't build it poorly the first time.