newKnow

FtB,

I'm gonna wait to see how it all plays out, and I admit I had to skim all of you guys analysis on what you think is gonna happen with the new reserve changes. But, if your goal is to stay at home, I think you should be ok.

Here's how I look at it. The company and union saw a lot of people complaining about being forced to commute to reserve. These changes probably address those concerns by not allowing a difference of 1 point in RAW score to be the cause of someone who doesn't want to fly to have to fly when there is someone out there who want's to fly. Make sense? (I know, probably not. )

Ok. Maybe an example is better. Let's say you are a reserve pilot who lives in base and you want to stay at home. You've got a raw score of 0, but there is a guy who has to commute to reserve who has vacation at the end of the month, so he has a RAW score of 16. Both of you start your reserve days on the 1st, and a trip comes up for the second. (Of course, he's in base because he had to sit SC his first day.) He want's to get out of there because he burning up hotel expenses, or his crash pad buds are in town and they don't take baths, or something. Under the old system, even though he wants the trip to escape the funk, he can't get it, and he's stuck and unhappy, while you get the the trip that takes you away from home.

I'm thinking the buckets and increased seniority honoring provisions will even themselves out and allow people to fly when they want to based on seniority. If I'm on reserve and someone gets a trip I wanted because he's more senior to me, at least I know he wanted it and it's not a situation where he has to go fly and I have to sit in a hotel room just because of a point or two.

I think the changes assume that there are a certain percentage of people in every category on reserve who want to fly. For the people who want to stay at home, they should be able to do so, up to a point.

Well, that's how I see it.

New K

Roadkill

I'll concur, something is happening with reserve... category with 90ish people in it, last line holder went 9 lower than last month, and quite a few senior guys bid reserve in Feb. Can't think why, as nothing to stay home for but SBowl, and that can't be a bigger pull than Xmas and Thanksgiving. Let me bid 7 places higher than I did last month for PBS. I was surprised.

buzzpat

I agree New. I'm a junior line holder/senior reserve guy. Even though I live in base, I'd rather fly than sit SC (at least unti SC started counting for raw credit). I like the fact that my seniority will now allow me to pick up a YS and not be at the sole discretion of the scheduler, days available, etc. I've always believed that there was far too little insight into how SC and trips were assigned to reserves. At least to some degree, when I bid reserve now I have a little input into my schedule whereas in the past it seemed like a crap shoot. I'm going to wait and see how the buckets work out but the way I read the LOA it will change based on base and equipment. Let's let it play out a bit. At least we're moving in the right direction...and not stuck on stupid.

buzzpat

Ditto. I fly in and out of there all the time. I've learned to always ask. I've seen it play out both ways. Cleared to 350 but meet the hold downs. Also, cleared to 350 and altitude restrictions deleted. It's a violation waiting to happen. Some SLC controllers will clear the restrictions with the clearance, some won't. Gotta ask. Same with the speeds there.

forgot to bid

New,
I think the changes to YS and credit for SC were badly needed and good for all reserve pilots and especially helpful if you commute. And I hope things do indeed even themselves out, you're a glass half full and I hope you're exactly right New.

What I fear though is that a bucket system with a high threshold to bucket 2 will in essence allow a senior pilot to fly 0 times that month while a pilot that is 1 number junior to fly 60+ hours all for the same amount of money.

All in the name of fixing this perceived injustice: "A senior pilot is forced to fly simply because his RAW value is one point lower than an available junior pilot."

Now I know we can say that won't happen but technically it can. Because the idea that the flying will be done by the most junior pilot is not correct. If you're senior and escaping a Monday-Thursday trip that's not going to be flown by the bottom of the list but rather someone no less than halfway up the list and probably higher than that. Given that's who is available over the same time frame.

And 80 points is a threshold, if you've flown 7 days and have 79 points then you still haven't hit 80 so you're still number one to fly and can get a 4 day. By the time you get back youre in bucket 2 but it took 11 days and 60 hours of flying to get there not six days and a SC.

Hence my concern about high bucket thresholds as it has the 50% and up flying in place of the top.

As to SC if you sat your allotment of six-ish that's not going to count more than a single 3 day. Now under the current system points for SC would help us all especially a commuting pilot get credit for working, but the new system undercuts it's value.

I think a 4-day and a SC should have you I bucket 2. Not 2 4-days or 3 3-days.

FTB
A glass half full is probably poisoned.

DAL73n

Can't speak to the other A/C but this kind of stuff out of SLC was getting such high level attention that everyone that went through CQ on the 73n did a departure out of SLC that focused on this very issue. Apparently, it's still a problem.

johnso29

So you're saying that getting Sec 23G/FO obligations when removed for OE eliminated, less restrictive PCS moves, RAW points assigned for SC, etc is a big win for the company?

Amish Pilot

FTB,

Don't worry, I am sure screw scheduling will manipulate the buckets sizes to inflict the most pain possible, just like they do now. I really enjoy the every other day short call followed by the five day trip (4 SC & 5 day = 58 RAW). If it's true that reserve gets more senior then maybe it will be better to bid a line. One thing that I have learned in the my military and airline career, if you have a good deal, it never seems to last long enough. If it sucks, it seems like it goes on forever. So embrace the suck!

Good Luck

sailingfun

The superbowl is the largest single sick call day of the year for Delta.

sailingfun

Most of it is PBS. Keep in mind the old 30 percent reserve number was for regular lines verses reserve lines. It was not the actual percentage that ended up in reserve because after the lines were awarded there was a round of moveup bidding where reserves could still pick up a regular line or a portion of a regular line. Then the remaining open time was built into additional lines reserves could bid. Now with PBS all of that is incorporated into one process. That is why you get more regular lines and fewer reserves.
In summary we used to have a 3 step process. After step one about 30 percent of the pilots were on reserve lines. After step two and three it was 15 to 20. We now have a process where all 3 steps are incorporated in the initial award. The overall change is not great.