01110011

Anyone else notice the wording for scope?

• Scope: Protect United Pilot jobs and flying opportunities

Already seems like they’re still toying with bending on scope. I don’t just want my job protected, I want the genie shoved back into the bottle kicking and screaming. I want that flying in house. At bare minimum I don’t want a single pound of viability handed over.

TwoDaysBehind

If UA is allowed to reclassify 50-seater weight from 65,000 to 69,000 or 71,000, and have them in unlimited numbers, UA Express / CRJ-550 / Gojet will be grown to take a much larger share of domestic departures of mainline UA (I'm taking bets). Every parked -700 and -900 converted to -550, fleet of hundreds, and repowered with unducted fan/turbofan engines.

Given this "minor weight increase", it'll be the perfect airplane: 10 first class seats, 2.5 hours with alternate fuel. As is, it can't go more than 1.3 hours with an alternate, and can't carry a full load on short flights with alternate fuel due to landing weight restriction.

With recent FAA passenger weight increases, the CRJ-550 is barely usable. Gojet is frequently bumping 5-7 passengers, frequently flying with "totally safe" fuel reserves.

With a "minor" giveaway in the UA scope language, CRJ-550 got a bright future that will take mainline flying away for the next decade.

UA have experimented with hourly or semi-hourly departures all day between some higher end markets, EWR-DCA, EWR-ACK etc, and would love to offer it everywhere.

If ALPA gives away scope on the CRJ-550, I'll lose all hope for restoring wages at mainline. The future will belong to Gojet.

The FAA increased the passenger weight about 10-20 lbs per passenger. That's 500-1000 lbs across 50 passengers. United is asking 4,000 lbs increase in scope language, and ALPA isn't even concerned?!? The extra 3000 lbs is another hour of range for the CRJ-550, and makes a huge difference in the usability of the regional aircraft. It's not about getting a non-rev jump seater onboard, it's about covering DEN-YUL, IAD-DEN, JAX-EWR and similar longer distances with a superior express product ten times a day.

Should at most counter-offer to only increase the scope as much as the FAA increased the passenger weight limits. Can't fault UA/Gojet for people being heavier when weighed. But increasing the scope any more than the passenger weight increase is giving away the future of mainline domestic flying. The extra 3000 (1 hour fuel burn) have HUGE implications for the viability of the regional product.

TwoDaysBehind

Right now SK is signaling that the regional flying will be drawn down and mainline will recapture the domestic flying. But nothing stops the reversal of this plan if they get the scope relief they need to make the CRJ-550 a 2.5 hour + alternate airplane. It'll be the ultimate money machine, and there's enough hulls being retired to create hundreds of them. It's already a scope busting airplane. After the last 20 years of career stagnation due to scope relief (and the outsourcing of 50% of mainline flying that put us all at regionals for years before mainline would touch us), it will be a repeat of history. If UA pilots vote yes on scope relief a 2nd time, it's like all the lessons of the past two decades weren't learned.

What better strategy than to make pilots think the regional model is dying so they'll give up scope when nobody cares about the tiny express carriers; "minor" scope relief creates a massively capable dual class Express product, and snubbing UA mainline pilots of career progression for the next decade while milking the C scale model for yet another economic cycle.

Barley

Not to mention the CRJ-550 is a terrible product. I had heard it was much better than a -200 and then I had a deadhead on one. Never got much less below 80F in the cabin the entire flight. Just a sweltering stuffy POS. It’s just another painted pig like all CRJs.

threeighteen

That's an operator issue more than an airplane issue. The 550 is totally capable of freezing your snot if you let it. Granted the APU and packs need to be operational and not deferred, which is probably not the case at the only CRJ-550 operator.

literally the only problem with the 550 is weight issue, but that's a good problem for UA pilots as far as scope is concerned.

Barley

Well seeing as how there are no good regional operators…

Wilfortina

no, it’s not. It’s pretty great actually. I ride them all the time

oldmako

You must be of short stature. I think they suck infected and swollen donkey reproductive bits. From their radomes to their static wicks.

TwoDaysBehind

This TA vote determines if UA gets 125-150 CRJ-550 and domestic stagnation for mainline, or if UA finishes their stated plan to dwindle down the Express model.

The guys that just retired and died were screaming "no scope relief" for the last decade, and here we are. Bickering over 15 vs 17 vs 25%.

A "minor" 1-hour adjustment to the viable flight time of the CRJ-550 can be the difference of 1500 new upgrades and First Officer jobs at mainline in this decade.

01110011

Bingo. Thankfully each month hundreds of former RJ pilots become eligible to vote. None that I’ve talked to are willing to give an inch on scope.