Commuting
 

How's eveyrones commuting experiences do you think with the new work rules it'll be a non event (sort of) also anyone have an idea on base rumors? Current new hire just started living in new Mexico. I do know new Mexico isn't ever going to be a base but what about PHX, AZ? Or something along the lines in Dallas? Any insight grateful. Excited to be here may just move as well for ease of life

"New Mexico" covers quite a bit of ground. If you are in an Albuquerque suburb the commute to LAS would be a relatively short one although the frequency isn't great. If you are living in Clovis or Carrizoza it'd be fairly ugly. But if you are near an airport with reasonable service (and ABQ and El Paso Tx are the only ones that come to mind) that would at least be possible.

My 2¢, a big part of the remote base thing was an attempt to entice upgrades who weren’t otherwise wiling to commute. Since the new contract allows for forced upgrades I think the company is more likely to focus on beefing back up the coastal hubs that way rather than adding a bunch of inefficient satellites. We do have the Vegas option, though; not sure how convenient that is from NM.

I see so no rumors of new bases. I'm in ABQ so it's not terrible I suppose I'm also on the Airbus so Vegas isn't an option. That's why I'm praying for Phoenix or Dallas those are literally any the same time to commute to. Just trying to gauge the way the company is going since they opened Orlando and I believe Tampa?

we just opened new bases last year (MCO/TPA, and LAS). Phoenix was a base that was evaluated, but I’ve heard we just don’t have the gate space. DFW is American, and too close to Houston, so I don’t see that happening (hey, I could be wrong)

leadership has said no new bases until at least 2025, but maybe not even then.

if you’re desperate for Phoenix or Dallas, look into applying to AA.

Doesn’t matter who you work for commuting is a drain on your time and a stressor. If you can move, I’d move. Living in base you sort of get a seniority bump over people commuting who can’t do certain trips because of it. Your income could be higher too picking stuff up. I commuted for years in my 20s because of cost of living, when I stopped temporarily at first it blew my mind, I picked up a few hours to cover the difference.

This^^^

There is just no incentive for the company to open up more bases now. I'd say PHX and DFW are about as likely as Calgary and Edmonton.
If you think those two are your only options: Good News AA is hiring, and the fact you are already on property at a legacy should make application and interview a Slam Dunk

Don't commute. It sucks ass, and it's probably the worst at United with the seniority-based way we do it.

At AA and DAL you can reserve a jumpseat a week or two ahead of time, which locks in your ability to go to work if a seat is available. At UAL, you can get bumped up to an hour prior to the flight by someone senior. So you could be like me, thinking you're getting on a flight that you're listed on for a week, then senior dude shows up at the last minute, bumps you, and now you're screwed.

Obviously this gets better with seniority but it's not something I recommend signing yourself up for without understanding. Either live in base, or if you don't want to move, go work for AA.

Or you can buy a seat and live stress free with the new commuter policy instead of whining about being junior.

Oh yeah, just buy a ticket for every pairing the next 20-35 years of your life. What a great solution 🙄.

You're not very smart, are you? What I said was 100% factual. It's why I live in base and still work for UAL. Commuting on UAL didn't work for me.

The reality is you're not willing to move, this airline is worse. It has a worse commuter policy. If commuting doesn't bother you, it won't matter either way. If it does bother you, and you want predictability in JS availability, DAL and AA are better due to above stated reasons.

Buying a ticket may work well for some people. Living in a low COL city may save you many times over even if you do buy tickets, and have a much less stressful commute.

Still an awful idea if you live in NM and don't want to move. AA is better (1x nonrev or JS attempt, no $ ticket required), it's also driveable to Phoenix.

I get that paid tickets work for some people in some locations. That still doesn't take away from the main suck of commuting, which is the uncertainty and time sink of it. What if your paid ticket gets delayed and now you miss your trip? Sure, you don't get a missed trip on your record, but you still lose the pay AND you paid for a ticket. How about if you get delayed on the way back and miss your return trip? Now you still have to book a hotel and waste another day finding your way back home.

In the OP's case, working for AA makes more sense in every way. That's what I'm responding to, not the dumb replies from guys who didn't bother to even read the OP.

Unless we get positive space travel, commuting will NEVER be a nonevent. Fly for the home team. In ABQ that's AA and SWA, but even then you're still commuting. If you insist on commuting, there's not much else you can do besides aim for the most junior BES to get a line ASAP and write off thousands of dollars in expenses and far more in opportunity cost. But if you insist on living in breaking bad country that's just the cost of doing business. I've heard folks advocate for buying a refundable ticket on one airline and listing for a jumpseat on the other to hedge your bets. If the loads look great, roll your ticket back to the next trip. DEN and LAS are drivable (not to say you want to drive 8 hours routinely) but that's good to know in a pinch.

Keep in mind although the contract has commuter policy protections, when you're on probation you don't have the full protection of the contract. So if you miss a lot of trips the company can say you're not a good fit and give you the boot with zero recourse. What that number is? Who knows. I've been told by the CPO it's as short as 3 strikes of missed trips/unable to contact/noncurrent for CBT's or passports or medical expiring. Maybe they'll give you a few mulligans, maybe not. Bottom line is give your self plenty of time, know what the weather is like at the various hubs and know what is going on eith major events that make loads fill up to see trouble coming, and when in doubt go early. If/when you get sick of it, move to base and be much happier.

I know a dude at United who spends $1000-1500 a month buying tickets plus hotel costs because his 25 year seniority isn't enough to ensure a jumpseat on one of the two United flights UAL/UAX flights a day from his podunk town to base... it's okay, he'll be senior too one day.

UAL is the least commuter friendly legacy. OP is far better off going to AA. Or moving.

DEN 320

7 flights tomorrow ABQ-DEN

Shhh. Don't get in the way of the UAL bashers. They're just call you stupid lol.

‘yep… bid DEN if you live in ABQ… pretty good amount of commuters who live there but definitely doable.

Basic questions, you looking at 2 years of commuting or 30? That matters.

Do you have ownership in the equivalent of a family 'North Fork' ranch? 10,000 or so Western acres?

What about regular family ties, you and/or spousal unit?

If you live in suburbia, few ties, either side, and looking at 20+ years, I'd move. Since most go to work once or twice a week, no need to live on top the airport. Look at ORD, many are in WI, MI, IN, & a few Iowa & further, driving distance.

Now one may want to wait on the timing, for whatever reason.

I live in base, but I think the company and pilot group could have put this in with no negative impact….allow people to buy a discounted ticket say in economy but if you were going to get on anyway you could get refunded that ticket. I’d make it only between home and base so there’s no taking advantage of it. You’d probably get more upgrades or people into bases you want then to be in.

Sounds like money well spent. Stress free commuting and living exactly where you and your family want to is worth it.

Or just don’t stress. People act like them not making it into work is going to make a nuclear bomb explode somewhere in the rainforest.

That is some amazing gymnastics. Driving from Albuquerque to Denver is 30 minutes more than driving to PHX. And there are 7 direct flights from ABQ to DEN each day. "Makes more sense in every way..." Are you a paid shill for AA recruiting? 🤣

shiiitdawg, commuting to San Fran as a Nevada resident or EWR as a Florida resident will save you $20-30K anyway per year if you sit in da left seat.

Thats basically my philosophy. I have the commuter policy for getting to work but end up buying tickets home from time to time. For my family to be able to live where we want it's definitely worth it.

No, just a guy who thinks working for AA makes more sense for the OP in this particular scenario.

Paid shill, now that's funny. Believe it or not, I can simultaneously work for UA and also not think it's ideal for every person in every scenario. That's probably mind blowing to you, but it is what it is.

What you say is NOT 100% factual at all. You can be bumped up to door closing time by somebody senior off the JS,not 1 hour prior.

So it's worse than what I said. Congrats for making my point for me.

The point was that you can be bumped at the last minute by a guy who's senior, even if you've put in for that JS a week prior to let everyone know your intent. That's a problem that exists only at UAL that you wouldn't have at AA/DAL. It makes commuting more stressful, especially in a city where there's a cadre of senior guys who can and will show up at the last minute to bump you. Thankfully, the majority of senior dudes would list ahead of time when I was still commuting, so I knew what flights I was likely to make and not, but the *******s who pull up to the gate at the last minute and bump you off your commute definitely exist. One of them just did it on my flight I was operating to a junior dude, kicking the kid off right as we were boarding. His words: "sucks to suck".

Again, I'm simply reiterating why another company MIGHT (not necessarily will be) better if you're going to plan on commuting for your 121 career. Having a reserved jumpseat, better call-out times, 1x required flights instead of 2x, those all go a long way in reducing stress and increasing predictability.

I’m not sure I’d have let the “sucks to suck” guy on my jumpseat. Pretty sure I could explain the rationale to the CPO if it came to that. No reason for that comment or attitude.

I will remind you, and all the non-UAL commuters, the jump seat is not yours. It is the Captains. UAL jumpseat is usually governed by senioriety. Everyone knows this. To claim getting bumped off your seat is disingenuous. It is not your seat at any point. You say it is a problem, I say those are the way the rules work at UAL. Plan accordingly.

You want to commute? That's fine, but there can be complications.

We all understand how it works. It’s courteous to list ahead of time. Sometimes you get in early and run to catch an earlier flight and you can’t list in advance. But listing ahead if time is what helps other commuters “plan accordingly.”

^^^this right here^^^

Agree 100%, always "Plan for the worst, hope for the best"

That said, thank you 2217 crew for the ride! Gotta love the 787-9, 8D is better than my apartment! lol

In Unity...

I’m not sure I’d put something quite this identifiable on an anonymous forum…

I don’t think he cares. I think he’s pretty vocal on the HAL subforum

Yes, good point someone could track flight 2217, it only operated +800 times. LOL

Got Time, in Unity...

you wouldn’t have to explain a thing to the Cpo. Garry Kravit and the jumpseat committee have codified the strongest language in the industry wrt the Captain’s autonomy in administering the jumpseat as he sees fit. Yes, there is a jumpseat priority list in the FOM, but a Captain can modify it if he chooses to (must rides such as FAA excepted). Shortly after the merger, CAL scabs ran to CPO’s around the system whining about being denied jumpseats. The outcome? Too bad for the scabs, it’s the Captain’s jumpseat.

Having said that, our seniority based system can be challenging for junior commuters. I suppose there isn’t a perfect system anywhere, but I’m glad our system follows the same philosophy as the rest of the career, which is “seniority is king”

amen and hallelujah

I much prefer our system over having to be the first person to press book/check-in. Plans change all the time—it’s nice to know that the jumpseat is an option if I’m the most senior in line.

Until someone senior walks in right before departure time…
Done both on south Florida to NYC route and the one with check in time definitely helps you a lot - if you not senior enough to book it - use other options or buy ticket, everything is transparent. If we would have at least mandatory listing - that would help junior pilots.

Nothing more disheartening than being the only one in line for the JS on an oversold flight only to get bumped by a senior pilot 5 prior to boarding