Cockpit Chronicles: How pilots choose their schedules

by Kent Wien on

Today’s flight was a turn (out and back in the same day) from Boston to Santo Domingo, in the Dominican Republic. The airplane was a 767, which is always nice to fly. We’re able to fly either the 757 or the 767 using the same procedures and training. I think most pilots prefer flying the 767 versus the 757. It’s something we don’t see as often and it handles differently — a little like going from a Honda’s power steering (the 757) to a Cadillac (the 767).

We had some snow pass through Boston a few hours before departure but the airplane was already de-iced and ready to go by the time we arrived. Since the flight time was over 8 hours for the day, we had a relief co-pilot (FB) on board. Tom was the FB, which meant he would typically do the walk around inspection while I did the interior preflight. I stayed nice and warm while loading the FMS (flight computer that stored our flight plan and works similar to a GPS) and checking the equipment.

The flight down to Santo Domingo went without a hitch. We talked a bit about what trips everyone would be flying in March. For most pilots, there are two dates around the middle of the month that are almost like Christmas. The first is the day our bid sheets come out and the second is the day we get our schedule for the next month. A bid sheet is a print out of every possible schedule we can fly. It shows the trips and the days you’ll be flying them. You simply arrange your preferences in the order you want to fly them and hope someone more senior doesn’t pick the schedule that you’re hoping for.

For those pilots flying the 757 and the 767 internationally from Boston, there are 27 different schedules we can choose that fly four different kinds of trips:

  • Turns (one-day trips) – to Saint Thomas, Santo Domingo or Aruba. These high time trips give you the most days off.
  • A three-day Barbados – not much flight time, which means you’ll fly more days in a month, but the full day on the beach on the second day makes up for that.
  • The two-day London – a high time trip that most pilots prefer.
  • The three-day Panama City and Caracas – that departs very early the first day and gets back after midnight on the third day.

These trips change every couple of months, which is why the bid sheet is eagerly awaited every month. Even though there aren’t many different destinations to choose from, I can’t remember a time when we’ve had so many quality trips. I’d be thrilled to hold any of the first three trips above. The Panama City and Caracas layovers tend to go junior, meaning the pilots with the least amount of seniority usually fly there. Even after 15 years at the company, I’m relatively ‘junior’ on the list, with 4/5ths of the other co-pilots above me. The first six pilots usually choose the London flights, and the Caribbean turns where you’re home every night are usually the next most popular.

If you’re at the bottom 20%, you’re likely to find yourself on reserve, which is like being ‘on call.’ If someone calls in sick, the company will call you to fly. Usually you find out what you’ll be doing the day before. Reserve pilots usually fly less often than a scheduled pilot would and they get paid a flat 90% of a full schedule.

I’ve been lucky enough to hold a line for the last six months straight, but I was awarded a reserve schedule for next month. Hopefully I’ll get called out for a NY or Miami based trip (they often run short of pilots there) to someplace we don’t fly to from Boston.

We go to training every nine months, and I’m scheduled to go down for five days of training next month. Of course I’ll be writing about that.

As we approached Santo Domingo today, we had our usual challenge in understanding the controllers there. The tower controller was especially difficult to understand. Since the runway is closed for repairs, we’re landing on what was formerly the taxiway. Because of this, we had to turn around on the runway to taxi back to the gate. After our runway “U-turn” we were looking straight at a Cessna Caravan a few hundred feet off the ground heading toward us. The Caravan pilot obviously saw us, and I’m sure he just continued his approach until it became completely obvious that the controller’s plan wasn’t going to work. He went around and lined up again for landing a few minutes later.

Maybe I’ll bid around flying to Santo Domingo for a while. With just a little more seniority I should be able to reliably hold the Panama City/Caracas trips. And once you get a schedule, you are free to trade around, which is how I’ve been able to fly to London and Barbados on occasion.

With your seniority number deciding what trips you fly, what base you fly from, when your vacation occurs and, most importantly, when you will upgrade to captain, you can imagine just how important this number is to pilots. It’s so important, in fact, that it can even hold up an airline’s merger plans.

Cockpit Chronicles takes you along on each of Kent’s trips as a co-pilot on the Boeing 757 and 767 out of Boston.

Airplane etiquette to keep you and the rest of your flight happy

by Anna Brones on

I hate to admit it, but I actually like to fly; it gets me to new and exotic places. What I don’t like however are fellow passengers who don’t know the basics of how to behave well aboard a plane. I’m talking about the guy in front of you who reclines his seat just as the flight attendant has put a tray of food in front of you, the couple across the row who stays in a lip-lock for most of the 7 hour trans-Atlantic flight and of course, the overly talkative person sitting next to you who just won’t stop asking questions even though you have hidden behind a magazine.

Let’s face it, there is airplane etiquette, and some people just don’t seem to know it. I was therefore happy to read James Wysong’s recent blog post over at MSNBC, Airplane Etiquette 101. Being a flight attendant, Wysong knows his stuff, here are a few of his suggestions:

– Don’t offend your fellow passengers; dress as if your parents were along for the trip.
– Wait to use the lavatory when the flight attendants are NOT serving meals or drinks.
– Before reclining your seat, look behind you, then slowly recline.
– The unwritten armrest rule: passengers in the window and aisle seat get one, the passenger cramped in the middle gets two.
– Spare other passengers from your amorous feelings for your travel partner; “get a room!”

For more etiquette go here.

Is getting “bumped” for chumps?

by Aaron Hotfelder on

Because airlines routinely overbook flights to insure against no-shows, some passengers must get bumped from their flight to one later. Still, only about 1 out of every 1,000 passengers gets bumped, and nine of the ten that get bumped do so voluntarily.

Over at the San Francisco Chronicle, Ed Perkins offers the 8 things you need to know about getting bumped, including the fact that volunteering your seat may be getting riskier:

“When airlines started routine overbooking, getting bumped was no big deal. Load factors (percentage of occupied seats) in the 60s meant travelers who volunteered to get off could find replacement seats easily, often on a flight only an hour or two later. Now, with load factors in the 70s and 80s, finding those replacement seats could take days, not just hours.”

The article also warns against volunteering to be bumped unless you know in advance what you’re getting in return: “If possible, get a firm future seat commitment before you accept any vouchers or free trips. And watch the fine print on any voucher or free trip an airline offers: Make sure it’s valid long enough that you can really use it, and make sure there aren’t any undue restrictions on its use.”

As a general rule, airlines are usually pretty good about compensating those who are bumped from flights, as acting any differently would be horrible PR. But everyone’s trying to cut costs these days, and it’s best not to assume that an airline will be generous to you just because they should.

Whole thing here.

Also see: Gadling’s guide to getting bumped.

Around the world with miles – Cheaper than you think

by Grant Martin on

If you’ve been hanging on to a cache of frequent flyer miles or are trying to burn them (due to an impending merger, for example), I’ve found a great way to use them up:

Around the world tickets for 140,000 miles.

Using a special fare created by airline alliances, you can take advantage of an entire network of carriers to work your way across the globe. So you can use a combination of services to bounce from one city to another to another around the world.

Market prices of these tickets could easily reach into multiple thousands of dollars.

The requirements, at least, per Skyteam’s rules, state that you can stop a maximum of six times, three times max. per continent, for a minimum of 10 days and maximum of 1 year. That’s a lot of combinations though.

I’ve been thinking about the ideal itinerary for myself bearing the requirements in mind and have tentatively decided on the following routing:

Detroit – Paris – Johannesburg – Dubai – Mumbai – Beijing – Sydney – Detroit

I’m starting to save miles now.

Should you postpone your travel plans when ill?

by Erik McLaughlin on

The recent incident involving the woman who died mid-air has drawn attention to travelers who choose to fly when seriously ill. CNN ran an article offering advice for those who fly while sick, and to summarize, they advise against it. I consider myself a student of remote medicine and medical care with limited resources, and I am finding it difficult to think of a more remote, under-equipped location than a commercial airliner at 30,000 feet.

The CNN article discussed a company called MedAire and their advice to consider postponing flight plans when ill. The basic theory is that if someone is sick on the ground, their condition will likely be exacerbated by the cabin pressure, making them worse. MedAire reports that they receive approximately 50 in-flight calls per day from pilots with sick passengers and documented 97 on-board deaths for 2007.

Federal law requires that all US commercial airliners carry basic medical supplies including an AED (automatic external defibrillator), oxygen and a basic medical kit. The purpose of the AED is to detect a lethal cardiac arrhythmia and deliver a lifesaving shock, that hopefully converts the heart to a safe rhythm. The contents of the medical kit vary, but generally include aspirin, nitroglycerin, alcohol swabs, anti-histamines, broncho-dilators, epinephrine, dextrose, a blood pressure cuff and stethoscope, shears and IV tubing with saline fluid. The article also points out that although flight attendants have training in handling in-flight emergencies, they are not medically trained.

Perhaps the most important lesson that can be learned from this article is that a traveler is ultimately responsible for their own safety and well-being at all times. There is a tendency to take for granted the fact that most people reading this live in areas where an ambulance service and trained medical care are merely a phone call away. This is not always the case when traveling — especially at 30,000 feet above the ground.

Some basic pre-planning for a flight should include a carry-on bag with ample supply of medications and a list of medical conditions. Loose, comfortable clothing and proper hydration cannot be stressed enough.

A very good and informative article from the Aerospace Medical Association offers some tips for healthy airline travel.