You don’t dh offline. You have a ton of frequency everywhere but it’s a bit hard to believe you don’t have the ability to dh on another carrier. What happens if you divert a broken airplane into a city you don’t serve? Or you were reassigned and contractually want to get back to domicile asap and only other carriers have service left that day?

Most contracts just have the dh middle seat language and it applies on and offline. Maybe start with that for other future unforeseeable scenarios (giving yourself the ability to go offline) and have additional carveout language for swa specific flights due to your boarding.

It's not that we don't have the ability -- there is indeed a CBA paragraph specifically allowing it. It's that it just doesn't normally happen, aside from exceptionally rare situations like the offline divert you mention. Unfortunately all it says is that segments over 5 hours will be booked in first class, but only if they'll be followed by a flying segment that day. That's it.

Ok. So you can go offline. So any middle dh language you get will apply to both. Just come up with a swa specific carveout.
Here’s some fairly standard middle seat dh language.
When a pilot, through no fault of their own, is required to dh in a middle seat the pilot shall be compensated at 150% of the credit value of the leg(s) in which the middle seat was occupied.
This payment shall be in addition to the value of the sequence and above the pilot’s monthly pay guarantee.

The fact that you can go offline will give you the ability to tighten up reassignment language a bit and why I also mentioned that as well. I want to go offline and get back asap. You have to buy an offline ticket if there’s a flight available (you could make this voluntary) and get me back.

Easiest way to fix the middle seat issue, is DH legs pay 6.5 tfp or 300% if not allowed opportunity to pre board.

I know, I know. Squozenized Ballons and things.

Pre board solves the problem 95% of the time… until they decide some random Thursday that we’re going to assigned seating. Then all of the sudden we have to negotiate for no middle seats and they ask, “what are you willing to give up for it?”

It needs to go into the CBA now while it’s still a no cost item. Right along with “all SWA flights will be flown with a minimum of TWO flight deck crew members who have at least an airline transport pilot certificate and are type rated in the aircraft”

Good point on future assigned seating.

Let's do both Zap.

Pay+++ for no preboard opportunity.

AND

Future assigned seat provisions for DHs.

Exactly right. I should mention that pay override for a middle is a protection. The language is window or aisle only.

When it looked like we were merging with nk. They have the window or aisle only provision but no middle seat protection language. We asked them. What’s your standing remedy when a pilot ends up in a middle? Better to just avoid that issue and get the protection.

Good concept. Since we don’t assign seats someone could always say you they to sit in a middle seat. How about if there is less than one hour scheduled or actual prior to a deadhead, that leg pays premium.

Make it a multiplier %. If you’re on a premium trip then there’s no penalty if they force you in the middle seat. Automatic 50% override on any leg where you are not afforded the chance to pre-board…either due to ops agent being petty or scheduling dishing out a reroute where you’ve less than 1 hr ground time.

Would apply to straight, premium, JA, etc.

The example language I showed covers all those scenarios plus protects res with the over guarantee. And it’s fairly standard alpa so arbitrators are familiar with intent making it unlikely management would try to test it.