I wanted to let my fellow pilots know what happened to me this evening so you can be proactive if it happens to you. I am a CAL guy. I worked a flight to Denver today and I was supposed to sit for 2 hours and then deadhead home. I showed up for my deadhead flight and it turns out it was on Legacy UAL which seemed a tad strange but I didn't think much of it since we're merging. The agent informed me that she didn't have a listing for me so I called scheduling to have them create a listing for me. The scheduler passed me off to crew coordination where they informed me that they couldn't create a listing for me because it was a United operated flight. I had to ask him to repeat himself because of the absurdity of having a deadhead assigned to you on your pairing that you can't be positive spaced on. I got the UDO involved and he was able to get the Chief pilot to create positive space listing for me as I was in the jetway boarding as a jump seater.

I felt like I was getting punked or something. Can you imagine how ridiculous to fly to an outstation for your company and then be told that the only way you're getting home at the assigned time is for you to jumpseat?

 

Let me guess, it was on the last leg of your trip. They figured they'd test you to see how bad you wanted to make it home? Typical. I'm glad you made them fix it.

 

Sooooo.... Did you actually sit in the jumpseat as the title of your thread indicates? If you did, why? I believe a grievance is in order either way... Otherwise this will continue to happen and exponentially get worse.

 

He said he got it worked out...so did you read the whole thing or do you just pick and choose what you read, then throw grenades?

 

I don't post much and I assume this is a rare event in the majors; however, I am currently an rj driver and this is SOP for us. I can't count how many times I have been scheduled to dhd and get to the gate and no listing. Alot of the time its bc our company is incompetent. Most of the time our scheduling dept. says sorry but its too late to create a listing so you will have to jumpseat. As I reply that the js is strictly for commuters and I am on company business. Usually I get silence, and alot of our flight cancel bc of crew being out of position. I NEVER tell them I am dhd home bc the gate agents usually are reluctant to allow you on bc they know you are not operating a flight once you arrive. This is just the tip of the iceberg of being forced to layover and work into a day off (no jmanning in our cba). I have also showed up with a plane to operate a flight that never exsisted on numerous conditions, being cancelled and losing tons of $. The moral I guess is be thankful the DO took care of it and got you home.

 

No grenade throwing here... Simple question... title contradicts what was stated in the thread...either way deserves a grievance so it does not continue to happen.

 

I was trying to be sarcastic...not a big fan of those gay smiley faces at the end of a post.

 

Actually it did get worked out but he did say he was on the jetway and going to ride the jumpseat when it got worked out. Why even head down to the jumpseat?

 

Point taken...maybe he is on probation and the schedulers were trying to intimidate a new guy to do something prohibited by the contract? Maybe he has a family at home who was expecting him to be home to watch the kids and he couldn't afford to miss this flight home? Maybe he was told to do it and then file a grievance later? Maybe he was one of those guys that would do anything to save the company...like a Captain picking up right seat open time or a line holder double dipping when his trip gets bought back from him?

I'm just glad he got it worked out, thats all.

 

A slight tangent to the thread to hilite captains authority and the fact that the captain owns the jumpseat, not crew scheduling. If pilots allow scheduling to usurp that authority, they will in a heartbeat.

Why a captain (little c) would allow a deadheading pilot in the cockpit jumpseat is beyond me, when a simple "I'm sorry, the jumpseat is not available" will do.

Of course a pilot should never let it get go as far as resolving it on the jetway. My question to scheduling would be "were are you going to lay me over and what's my reservation number for the next company flight back to base?".

We truly are our own worst enemy.