Originally Posted by johnso29

I always shut the APU off as soon as I can, but keep this in mind.....just because the GPU cord is plugged in does not mean the power is good. Often times it's not hooked up correctly, & the rampers don't even confirm it's good. They just plug it in & run off, or the GPU isn't providing good power so we can't turn it on. I make radio calls to get it fixed, or maybe go down to the ramp and ask them to mess with it but it doesn't always fix the problem. Also, in your example it's possible that those 3 Airbus were all w/in 10 mins of departure. I'm not saying that guys don't leave them running, I've seen it & feel frustration too but lots of guys do get them off.

Originally Posted by johnso29

In regards to the SE taxi, you have to remember that NWA had SE taxi weight limitations. A lot of guys have a hard time forgetting that we no longer have these limitations, & out of pure habit just start both. If I feel we are light enough I'll ask if the CA would like to SE taxi. Our max break away thrust is the top of out N1 boxes, & that's about 30%. It's often not enough to get an average weight aircraft going, certainly not a full A320.

Originally Posted by johnso29

I always try to save gas with higher altitudes(so long as winds aren't too strong) delayed descents, SE Taxis, etc and it'll usually works. I hope in time we have more DAL N guys doing SE taxi, but it's not always feasible

Originally Posted by Cycle Pilot

Ya, the -88 gets hot, too, especially during the Summer time when it's 90 degrees out. The day in MCO when I saw all these APU's running it was about 65 degrees out. I've been in the back of many Airbuses over the years that single engine taxi. The noise is no worse than the hydraulic pumps running on -88. I think it's actually quieter.

It's been hammered into me to save fuel since I was at Skywest. Delta also hammers us on saving fuel. It's almost like a challenge to see if you can have the APU come on line just as the Captain sets the brake at the gate. After working so hard to save gas, it's frustrating seeing DAL-N aircraft not doing the same thing. I don't understand the operational reasons why you wouldn't shut an APU down when you have good air and power hooked up on a mild temp day. Or why you wouldn't taxi single engine when you have a 20 minute long taxi in LGA or MSP. My only conclusion is that there's just a different mindset and the DAL-N crews weren't hammered on saving gas. That's why I'm bringing this up. Maybe things will change as the crews integrate more and we become "mixed nuts." It's hard to change after you've been doing something the same way for a long time.

Originally Posted by BigGuns

I doubt that they were all 3 with in 10mins of dept. I notice north a/c on the gates with APU running all the time with no one on the A/C. Mostly the Airbus fleet. Sounds like we need to move the APU Sheriff up north...

Originally Posted by 1234

I don't think that anyone (well, most anyway) are not against SE taxi. I know that right now (and for the last year) when we talk about the taxi plan and brief, it is determined that with all the changes that we are working through, it is safer to start both engines at the gate which will allow us to focus on the other stuff. Taxiing in, different story and we usually shut one down after 3 minutes. Threat and Error Management.

Also, LGA in the summer used to be a 2 engine taxi out due to the soft asphalt. As for at the gate, I am not going to speculate and give the benefit of the doubt to the other crews as to why the apu was going.

What really irritates me is when a Pinnacle has to "pull off to the side and burn some gas because they are too heavy for takeoff". Why is this such a common occurrence?

Originally Posted by Cycle Pilot

Thanks, johnso29. This was exactly what I was looking for. That makes total sense what you're saying about the SE taxi restrictions. Maybe the Airbus has issues with its external power receptacle. The CRJ 700/900 was a total pain with external power and would cut out all the time. Maybe the MCO aircraft were close to departure, though I doubt it because we were pushing back 30 minutes later and those aircraft were still at the gate.

I'm glad you're doing your part to save gas. Hopefully, oil prices stay where they're at, although I'm not holding my breath!

Originally Posted by Lifeisgood

Funny, but Delta doesn't run our monthy scheds, Navtech does, our PBS provider. Could be a lot worse.

I am sure there is a way to make them to come out the next day. 10% paycut maybe?

Originally Posted by newKnow

Just to lighten things up a little, have you guys checked out the seniority crystal ball at the new ezopenboard.com site?

It projects when you can hold an aircraft and when you move through the markers of that list. (Bottom, 90%, 75%, 50%, 25%, and most senior.)

All this in a cool, color-coded graph form.

Of course, it's all BS. Who knows what will happen. It's just cool and something different than North v. South. It's all about you, if you can remain healthy and out of trouble.