Alaska guys: Tell me about flying the 737-200.

[ACAFool]

Don't be an enabler!

Repeat after me, I (state your name) have a problem. I am an enabler. I last enabled (#of hours, or days)...(applause). I am here because I need help (applause).

Who are you saying people are enabling? It doesn't sound like the people on this board are enabling the company.

 

[mach none]

On this board, people are not. Listen to ops and you know. People calling for lav service, bag tags, calling for the fuel truck. You get the idea. Are you an enabler. Every time you key this mike to ops, ask yourself..Is this someone else's job?

This is a safety issue. Are you concentrating on your job if you are calling for the agent to bring gate claim tags? NO. Do your job and stop enabling the pi$$ poor middle management at this company. It will hurt in the short term, but in the long run, we will be better off.

 

[BORAT]

The -200 rocks your sox off! I miss the heck out of it...As long as you didn't go to Riddle you'll be fine...Flying in Alaska is flying at its best, and flying for Alaska in Alaska is the best place to be in this company...There is no management around, just you and the plane!

By the way I haven't seen my hat in 382 days...Yes, I'm still looking for it...But I'm proud of my streak!

 

[mach none]

I haven't seen mine in over two years. I am not looking.

 

[BORAT]

Oh, I found it! It was in the aft biffy in one of the 900's! One of the ramp thugs was wearing it because it's "bling"

 

[mach none]

I had to sell my hat bling after Gasher. Come to think about it, Xmas is approaching, I guess I will sell some blood so I can afford presents for the kids.

 

[psysicx]

Is the only way to fly the 200 is to be based in ANC? And how long are people going to be on reserve?

 

[LilCap]

Mach none,

Got a question about your stance on "Enabling". I thought the same as you until I got to thinking (I know my first mistake)... why not return to pre Kastrator level of involvement? Do all that we can do to mask the inefficiencies of mismanagement, make everything as smooth as possible. Then when the time comes, say 2-3-4 years from now, fly the contract and only the contract.

Granted, it would take a majority involvement and that in itself might make it futile in the long run anyway.

 

[AK737FO]

Smooth sailing

LilCap,
I would even add this thought. Kastration is here to stay. -29% club for me, and next year I've got to bump my 401K contributions up to 19% to hit the IRS limit of 15K. I lived on mac and cheese for a lot of years before I got this job, I enjoyed steak for a couple of years, now its back to mac and cheese - or I could sell my house. Point is - I NEED to upgrade. We will not be getting a bunch of $$$ back in 18 months through negotiations. The only way for me to have a comfortable life again is to upgrade. That will only happen (sooner rather than later) if we are growing and profitable. Yes I took one for the team along with 1500 other Alaska pilots, but burning down the house will not get me anything - it will only prolong the mac and cheese. This is not to say that I always agree with our management, or that I like some of the things they did and continue to do - but this is the aviation world that we live in. With the whole industry in the tank we are in far better shape than most, so I'm not going to bite the hand that feeds me, even if it is mac and cheese. I'm going to do everything in my power to enable my airline to grow and be profitable, so I can upgrade and get as much of the pie as I can. If someone is ticked off and wants to burn the house down, what is going to get you in the end? Nothing - no upgrade, no $$$, and maybe no job should our airline fail. Whats the point of that? I still wear my hat, I still polish the cowboy boots, I still do the job the same way I always did. I am blessed to work out of the ANC 200 base where every Captain I fly with feels the same.

To answer psysicx - yes and years.

AK737FO

 

[BORAT]

AK737FO, I'm in agreement with you...I learned the Motto "Be Prepared" when I was in Boy Scouts and I've applied it to my career. We where making money for awhile and though its less now we are still getting paid for doing something most of us used to pay to do. Throughout my career there have been ups and downs but as I approach the end of it, I look and see how damn lucky I really am. Sure I've just taken a large paycut but I've never been furloughed, never been out on the street looking for a new airline. I've been super lucky. I've invested wisely for the most part and have lived within my means. I just think of the other paths I may have taken, Pan Am, Eastern, Delta, NWA, United... Oh well, I've been lucky but not wearing my hat is a little protest to support the next generation of guys who might not be as lucky as I was.

 

[tico]

LilCap,
I would even add this thought. Kastration is here to stay. -29% club for me, and next year I've got to bump my 401K contributions up to 19% to hit the IRS limit of 15K. I lived on mac and cheese for a lot of years before I got this job, I enjoyed steak for a couple of years, now its back to mac and cheese - or I could sell my house. Point is - I NEED to upgrade. We will not be getting a bunch of $$$ back in 18 months through negotiations. The only way for me to have a comfortable life again is to upgrade. That will only happen (sooner rather than later) if we are growing and profitable. Yes I took one for the team along with 1500 other Alaska pilots, but burning down the house will not get me anything - it will only prolong the mac and cheese. This is not to say that I always agree with our management, or that I like some of the things they did and continue to do - but this is the aviation world that we live in. With the whole industry in the tank we are in far better shape than most, so I'm not going to bite the hand that feeds me, even if it is mac and cheese. I'm going to do everything in my power to enable my airline to grow and be profitable, so I can upgrade and get as much of the pie as I can. If someone is ticked off and wants to burn the house down, what is going to get you in the end? Nothing - no upgrade, no $$$, and maybe no job should our airline fail. Whats the point of that? I still wear my hat, I still polish the cowboy boots, I still do the job the same way I always did. I am blessed to work out of the ANC 200 base where every Captain I fly with feels the same.

To answer psysicx - yes and years.

AK737FO

You have to take what ANC -200 guys say with a grain of salt....They fly out of the best little base in the system and for the most part they have been completely isolated from the management induced meltdown that the rest of us have been living with since long before Kasher.......Am I a little envious(especially since I spent a good while as one of them) you bet. I, like AK, don't want to burn down the house but I am sick and tired of watching these guys piss away my 45,000.00 "investment" every day, all day......On the -200 it is easy to go to work and "make a difference" in SEA we used to try but you can only take rejection for so long before you just plain give up......And I for one am not looking forward to an upgrade so that I can make a pittance more than I would have made as a senior FO with a good schedule....AK, think about this---when you make captain you will not have what the guys you fly with have..the 185's on lake hood, the cabins out at red shirt and east papoose, the mansion on the hill, the boats in homer, the condo's in Mexico, the second house in the San Juan's, the new snow machines every year, the new pickups to go with them and most importantly, the time to enjoy all of that....no my friend, you and I will upgrade just to maintain what little standard of living we finally acheived after all the hard work....and in 25 years when it is all over, our houses won't be paid for and our retirment will not be funded and we won't be taking our lump sum and riding off into the glorious sunset after giving these people 300hrs a month of our lives....So the next time one of those guys that you and I have both flown with sits over there and tells you how it is ok and this company really has good talented people working for it and how we just need to get behind them and everything will turn out just fine...remember that they allready have their's and you don't nor will you....you simply have a decent job that will allow you to make a decent living and if you are very careful and live frugally in retirement you will be OK except of course you will have given up every holiday and every family function etc... for the rest of your career

nuf said !! back to work..

 

[Singlecoil]

Right on, tico! That says it all.

 

[ferlo]

LilCap,
I still wear my hat, I still polish the cowboy boots, I still do the job the same way I always did. I am blessed to work out of the ANC 200 base where every Captain I fly with feels the same.


AK737FO

Bill Ayer was unfortunately correct. In a few months everything will go back to normal. He predicted that pilots will do anything "just to get to fly". He wrapped up this concept in the word "professionalism". I don't think being outraged by Kasher makes me unprofessional. I just hope that by 07, those that get weepy eyed and swoon at the thought of doing an NDB approach into Kodiak finally get it that their time and dedication is worth CASH not gratiutous slaps on the back by Kevin Finan. Flying is a business, our banks and other creditors really don't give a sh*t how much you like to fly. Let's grow up, join the real world, and stop being such whorish chumps.

 

[AK737FO]

computer burp

Tico,
I spent some time this morning, over a hot cup of joe, typing out that I generally agree with you, but I also wrote about some things for us to consider as we fight our way through this profession / career choice at Alaska. Then my computer burped and it was gone... O well.

Ferlo,
Just FYI, there is no NDB approach into ADQ (Kodiak). BUT, the last time I did the NDB into CDV (Cordova), it was at night, to mins, with a circle to land, and it was so good it brought a tear to my eye.

Fly like poetry in motion.
AK737FO

 

[tico]

"I just hope that by 07, those that get weepy eyed and swoon at the thought of doing an NDB approach into Kodiak finally get it that their time and dedication is worth CASH not gratiutous slaps on the back by Kevin Finan. Flying is a business, our banks and other creditors really don't give a sh*t how much you like to fly. Let's grow up, join the real world, and stop being such whorish chumps."

Ferlo, go easy on people that enjoy flying airplanes....hand flying a "real "approach still gets me off too. And occasionaly, with the right captain, I still switch to round dial, turn off the flt directors, autopilot/auto throttles and all of the lnav/vnav crap and actually find a runway all on my own..

All that aside, if I decide to show up to work I still as I allways have give the pax there moneys worth...I would like to have a few of them left when the Bill, Kevin, Benny, Paul and Bob show rides out of town. And they will as surely as the sun mostly rises in the east. And when I get up in the morning and after doing my self-certification before flying as required by the FAR's and cannot with 100% surety say that I am fit to fly, wether it be physical or mental than I do what the law requires and remove myself from flying status..period...I am also working dilligently to turn Alaska Airlines into a decent part time job. I believe that the sun is setting on flying as a profession and it is transiting to "just a job"... Not something I really want to be a part of. However that is just me.....

 

[mach none]

Bill Ayer was unfortunately correct. In a few months everything will go back to normal. He predicted that pilots will do anything "just to get to fly". He wrapped up this concept in the word "professionalism". I don't think being outraged by Kasher makes me unprofessional. I just hope that by 07, those that get weepy eyed and swoon at the thought of doing an NDB approach into Kodiak finally get it that their time and dedication is worth CASH not gratiutous slaps on the back by Kevin Finan. Flying is a business, our banks and other creditors really don't give a sh*t how much you like to fly. Let's grow up, join the real world, and stop being such whorish chumps.

This is scarey but I actually like what you have said ferlo.

I, (state your name), have a problem. I am an enabler.

This is like fighting cancer kids. We are hoping to kill the cancer (Inept middle management) before we kill the patient (the airline).

 

[ferlo]

Okay, sorry if I offended any of you who still like to fly. I think the bottom line is we all, at least to some degree, still like to fly airplanes. The question, in this day and age is, do you like flying more than say...

1. providing a decent roof over your families heads?
2. Having enough cash for retirement when the A plan goes the way of the Dodo bird?
3. Putting your kids thru college without totally destroying the two above?

I could go on all day but the bottom line here is that our ability to operate these aircraft for alaska airlines is the only leverage we have. In '07 we have probably the only remaining chance this decade to right a terrible wrong. This company did not need to rape the F.O's out of over 1/3rd of our income. I fly not out of bliss but out of my responsability to provide for my family. These A-holes threatened that. I will never forget, or forgive for that matter. Recall we got profit sharing checks the same year they bribed Kasher and stole 40,000 dollars from each of us. I just hope nobody gets used to the pain and gives these bastards a free pass to continue. Stay Unified, and fight the good fight in '07. This is truely what a real professional would do, not bend over and accept this as part of the game.