Do us a favor, stop doing the jobs of others. You are seriously making yourself the ramp supervisor by going down to remind them to do their job and hook up air and power? I guess this is why I don't get it, I dont do their job, only mine.

APU is on at the gate, once I see the ground power go green, thats step 1. Once I look out my window and see the air being hooked, thats step two. I turn the bleed off and once I feel cool air coming from the ground unit, then and only then do I turn the APU off. If all of this cant be accomplished in the 10 minutes it takes to shut down the engines, checklists, and pack bag, the APU with bleed stays on when I leave the plane for pax comfort as well as the FAs.

We are over a year into this new APU savings program and the weather is getting hotter. If they (the company) still cant get rampers to get air and power hooked up as soon as the plane comes in, there is no hope for it getting any better, anytime soon

Exactly. I'll play nice and shutdown the APU but only after cool air is coming in. I won't ask the FA's to do their job in 80+F or leave the same for the next crew.

APU on as I pull into the gate. A life may depend on it.

APU off once power and air get hooked up. Our profit sharing depends on it.

(Half of that I believe is great advice)

Don’t forget that 25% of the executive bonus payout is based on fuel savings.

So Bendo, Teddy, Tom, Laurie, and gang, are counting you!

If you are not part of the solution.....

I don't leave the plane before power and air are hooked up. I go down and ask for the ramp supervisor, I explain that we are supposed to keep the APU off till 10 min prior, if after the second time I go down telling them not to disconnect, and still they disconnect the air (25 minutes prior) I send an email with gate number and time to fuelburn@spirit (and here is the reply I got within the hour:

Thu 5/9/2019 7:55 PM
Hello ,###
Thanks for your message – I have shared this with my station leadership at PIT for corrective action,


I also send that email every single time the air can't keep up with the OAT. I make $210/flight hour, so about $150/hr in uniform, they make $12/hr. Our job is seniority based, they can go flip burgers at the King tomorrow for the same pay/benefits. Who should be more invested to keep this company profitable?


If you really think you are affecting their bonus think again, they will just outsource something else for short term profit gain, and blame the economy once that affects our performance.

And while I am ranting:
I can remember most here complaining about our operational performance, "but if they would just pay us what we deserve" everything would get better. The contract passed, most (by far) voted in favor, so get your ass in gear and do your job and every one else's to prove we deserve what we make. /Rant over


So why are we still industry leading in fume events?

“I also send that email every single time the air can't keep up with the OAT. I make $210/flight hour, so about $150/hr in uniform, they make $12/hr. Our job is seniority based, they can go flip burgers at the King tomorrow for the same pay/benefits. Who should be more invested to keep this company profitable?”

Agree, I like clean pca air vs fume ridden apu air. It’s nice to sit in a 72 degree cockpit without the apu running. Am I alone?

Also for noise during preflight...

Completely agree.

Sounds like a Sisyphean exercise to me. One can only push a boulder up a hill for so long.

If I had a dollar for every email I have sent to fuel burn and still see no action on those same air carts, ramp performance, etc...I wouldn’t need profit sharing, I would be rich.

Industry leading in fume events? Based on what data is this derived from?

“Get your ass in gear and do your job”. Well that’s exactly my point. You’re the one running down to the ramp to do the rampers job to have them hook air and power up.

I’m glad you’re a go getter but I can tell you this, until true change is wanted from the top, it won’t change. Spirit could have a ramp supervisor walk up and down the line to ensure ground air is up and power is avail on every arrival, they don’t. Instead to tell the pilots to email them with issues and count on guys to run down to tell a supervisor when we are supposed to turn the APU on. Do you think it’s even a little concerning that a supervisor doesn’t even know that we don’t turn the APU on until 10 prior. If the company wanted to truly effect change, guys on the ground would know that information, they would be trained.

You are labor. The company doesn’t view you as a partner in this airline. This was made plain and clear in contract negotiations when profit sharing was shot down early. You are labor. I’m fine with that, I’ll preform as labor and not as a partner. And while you’re running down to ask for air, the company is creating another false dispute against trip rigs that we have to fight to keep in front of an arbitrator.