Originally Posted by Jay5150

Buzz:

FWIW, I'm in the same furlough group as you, and I didn't take Scambo's posts the same way you did. Seemed to me he knew guys were out, in general, a good, long while. He was just saying that IF a furloughee were out from an airline for only a couple of months and never came back, that might be a meaningful stat as it related to the desirability of his/her airline for employment. However; once you start racking up the furlough years, especially 5, 8, 10 etc, it is less indicative of the desirability of the company, and more because that guy has had to move on with his life and his current gig is good enough to not leave.

Having said that, I agree with everything else you said. My little anecdotal story:

A few years into our furlough, I'm riding as a paying pax on DAL. I don't know if we still had those furlough I.D.s (remember those?) I stopped by the cockpit to say hello and mainly to see if there were any good rumors. After I gave my quick intro including the fact I was a DAL furlough, the captain wheels around in his seat and says "I didn't know we still had guys on furlough!" The number was still above 1000 at that point. I remember the green slips as well. I also remember the COBRA payments, and that was much appreciated. You get this large of a group and you're gonna have all kinds.

Originally Posted by daldude

Well if we are sharing stories-- My most memorable stories was when the chief pilot in DFW called security to escort me and another furloughee out of the DFW pilot lounge following our last flight. Needless to say I was surprised. Talk about the walk of shame, I would say that single 10 minute event is my most memorable experience at Delta.

Originally Posted by kiteflyer

That Chief Pilot had to have been a complete A##hat to do something like that. I hope he is long gone from Flt ops.

Originally Posted by Delta1067

most see him for the tool that he is.

Originally Posted by formerdal

Not to be picky but your numbers are way off. I was almost exactly in the middle of the furloughed south group and came back 3 years to the month. There were guys back on the property about 6 months before me, still a long time but at not anywhere close to 5 years...

Originally Posted by Hillbilly

The shortest tenure for pre merger DAL pilots on furlough for FM 1 would have been just shy of the 2 year point. The longest tenure without an opportunity to return (TK) was just over 5 years and 3 months. Everyone out longer than that would have been because of the individual choice to bypass recall. Pilots now returning from furlough bypass have been out for 11-12 years with the exception of some pre merger NWA pilots who have been out for 7-8 years since their last furlough.

I believe the pilots who have chosen not to return were likely never going to return. They bypassed when recall came and sent in a letter prior to the 10 year point to preserve one last option to return because they had nothing to lose by doing so. While it is noteworthy to see how many chose not to return, it's also interesting to note the 30+ JBLU 320 Captains who have been there for 10+ years that are returning to Delta. I don't think either of these things will have any effect on negotiations for our next contract.

Originally Posted by daldude

Well if we are sharing stories-- My most memorable stories was when the chief pilot in DFW called security to escort me and another furloughee out of the DFW pilot lounge following our last flight. Needless to say I was surprised. Talk about the walk of shame, I would say that single 10 minute event is my most memorable experience at Delta.

Originally Posted by daldude

Well if we are sharing stories-- My most memorable stories was when the chief pilot in DFW called security to escort me and another furloughee out of the DFW pilot lounge following our last flight. Needless to say I was surprised. Talk about the walk of shame, I would say that single 10 minute event is my most memorable experience at Delta.

Originally Posted by daldude

With that said, I did complain to Ops and I guess the policy was changed following that to have a Delta Staff member escort you out. I believe we were one of the first to turn our I.D.s and such in.

Originally Posted by scambo1

Jay,

Thanks. Your first paragraph was exactly what I meant. Just the same, while I am not the most empathetic tool in the shed, Buzz makes some good points. When LD was furlough coordinator, I sent him job leads and mil re-entry info...it was stuff he probably already had, but one thing I think Buzz is correct about: The rank and file did not generally keep the furloughees in their hearts and minds...generally....broad brush.