90 hr lines
 

So I’m 50% seniority on the 737, and because of covid relatively new and unfamiliar with normal ops. Are 90 hr lines the norm? I’m a permanent commuter with a young family at home and I just want as many days off as possible. Currently averaging about 10 days at home per month. Is there light at the end of the tunnel or is this the way that it’s going to be? I’m burnt out and can’t keep this up for all the money in the world. And I don’t say that flippantly. I worked hard to get here, not to mention I have no back up plan and my only skill is flying airplanes, but if my kids are grown up and gone by the time I can hold a decent schedule then I’m not sure I can accept that. Just looking for a little encouragement. I know there are 1000 guys ready and willing to take my spot.

With the regionals shrinking it will get worse not better. I was told we shifted more flying into DEN to replace the staffing shortages with SkyWest and CommutAir. It’s not a 1 for 1 replacement but line averages increased.

I’m younger so I’m all for these new SWA like schedules on the 73, but I’m also use to it. What I’ve learned from my time instructing 141 students, and flying the line at SkyWest, as the shortage has gotten worse, so does your QOL. I saw it as an instructor, a regional pilot, and now it’s hitting the majors. It feels like it’s been following me up the ladder like a plague.

I’m not sure what you mean by decent schedule, but you can see the bid awards of those above you. The credit ranges are higher right now, certainly higher for this time of year, but there’s always going to be a schedule to fly that you likely won’t be able to get rid of. So while the credit range may go down, I don’t see it dropping to the point where you’re getting a ton more time off.

That being said, you may want to talk to someone about bidding in PBS. If you’re only getting 10 days off, it sounds as if you’re missing out on strategies to maximize your time off.

I have looked at other’s bid awards and it looks like everyone is in the same boat which is a little discouraging. It would be nice if say the guys at 40% we’re getting sweet schedules so that I would have something to look forward to. I was just wondering if there’s any hope that I’ll be awarded 75 hrs of credit at some point instead of 90. You may also be right about the bidding. This is only my 2nd month with a line so I’ll have to wait and see the reward report because it doesn’t look like I got much of what I asked for. At 50% I would think that I would at least get a couple things. I must confess that I’m a little spoiled having never done reserve at the regionals and having lines then with 18 days off. And I’m not in any way suggesting life was better at the regionals. But there’s a lot of difference between three 4 day trips a month and four 4 days. The 10 days at home is factoring in commuting which unfortunately is my only option. I know how much better it would be to live in base.

As far as SWA type flying, I don’t mind that either. But from what I understand their min daily credit is higher so they’re able to credit 90 hrs while still getting 18 days off a month.

AWARD WORK (L—)

Your problem is bidding right now. 3x4-day trips plus a 2-day should be doable at this point, but I’m guessing your bid groups are pushing you closer to the LPC than the LPF. If you don’t know what these are, watch the PBS videos. Two months is not forever, it will get better.

Invest $50 a month and use BidNav…..until you don’t need it anymore. Use it as a learning tool to interpret the horribly bad PBS bidding system we use. Then ditch it once you understand. Also……not to be a jerk……but commuting is a choice. I have little kids, too…..I get it. But the only one forcing your situation is you, at the end of the day. I assume you are on first year pay based off of what you posted. When you get your second year pay bump, the 90 hours will be a bit more palatable.

Drop a 3 or 4 day trip when trades open up on the 24th… that will keep you above the 70 hour guarantee and get you more days off which are a priority for you.

Like someone else said—give bidnav a try. Other options are using SET commands to limit your commute (min time between work locks, max number of work blocks, credit range, etc.). At the very least, using Bidnav for a few months will help you to get the syntax down and in the big scheme of things, it’s pretty small $$.

I have put in a drop request for every trip over the last 2 months. Not a single one has gone through. I have been able to make a few trades to improve my schedule a bit, but that does not give extra days at home. It takes going up the list 20 people before I find someone not forced into a 90hr line.