I disagree with the closely matches part of your statement. It did match for the original few BAT bids but now that they are involuntarily displacing 76T to 756 it no longer matches what seniority should be.

I would be willing to bet that if the company put out a vacancy bid for 100 756 EWR they would fill all 100 spots.

Why would they put out a bid if there are enough butts to fill the seats within the fleets? IOW, there are enough 76T and 756 pilots to fly the block hours, they just need them rearranged a bit. That's how it would work if the fleets were merged, which is what BAT is all about. Now, did they game the system by filling massive 76T bids unnecessarily? Probably. But they could have just jacked it up. Kinda like the ORD 747 thing? "Let's close the base and bump everybody....oops, let's re-open it. my bad"

They would for sure fill all 100 slots ... With mostly non 75/76 pilots which will create backfill and more training. (Not our problem as pilots... Just mentioning it)

Legally the company can do this... And jsled is right, this is very similar to just merging the two fleets. Which, if they have enough pilots combine (and I think they do) they would not need a vacancy if they just outright merge them.

If a current and eligible united pilot (not on a freeze) wants to fly the 756 out of EWR I guess they should bid the next 76t vacancy and then BAT over. Clearly from the snapshot any seniority can voluntarily BAT right now? Just an observation.

Fyi - I'm junior 76t in EWR and not super excited to BAT over. But it's legal and I'm junior, so that's how it goes!

Got it. Thanks for the explanation...

As for this... It is your problem as pilots, ultimately... If the allow unlimited movement, instead of displacing within the 76T fleet, the run the risk of massive training backlogs a la this past winter/spring. I continue to hear how badly UAL needs pilots, and filling via vacancy would slow hiring again... Or at least that's how I see it -- Class in 2 weeks for me... Displace me all you want. Just give me my seniority number first :)

Welcome! (In 2 weeks!)

I was referring to the cost required with displacing and re-training so many pilots. As pilots, it's not our job to manage the company and how they spend their money. It's our job to report to a flight, as required/assigned, and fly it safely from point A to point B per the FOM/FM.

If they can't figure it out... unfortunately, we can't do it for them.

Also, we don't have unlimited movement, we have training freezes for 1 or 2 years (depending on the vacancy bid/awarded).

Got it... And thanks for the hearty welcome!

I'm starting indoc 29 July and anticipating the 76T. Can someone quickly explain BAT and how it will apply? Thanks for all the info.

BAT in effect is an agreement between ALPA and UAL that allows company to provide difference training and move a pilot within fleets. They start with volunteers and then reverse seniority if no vols. it's supposed to be 4 days. Normally would not impact someone in training but they could BAT you once complete with 76T at Denver.

And, I'm pretty sure it is only to swap fleets within the same base/domicile.

IE, if you are a new-hire 76T in EWR, you can't apply for BAT to 756 in LAX.

What does BAT stand for?