Ameristar Being Sued?

[CLCAP]

Good record? Hmm having around 60 pilots with four getting seriously hurt or killed within two years - that would be something like 850 AA pilots crashing airplanes every two years.

Or like you having more than 3% chance of dying a year....no thanks!

By the way - I have friends who still work for ameristar (used to work there myself) and it seems like their scheduling (yeah just part 91 it home....never mind that you will be on duty for 20+ hours) together with the "you can do it!" attitude (planes overweight and out of CG) and pretty marginal maintenance (how many Falcons reach published epr these days??, How many MEL sheets did Tom rip out last month? How many engine flameouts companywide last month etc...) all make it a fairly shoddy operation.

 

[PilotAg]

You sir are an idiot to believe that. And if you are a friend of mind, you need to call me sometime so we can discuss this.

 

[CLCAP]

Well, if you want to regress to namecalling go right ahead!

I am only stating the facts as they were a couple of years ago - and as some still are today according to three captains that I know that still work there.

Answer any of my statements instead!! Do you ever:

1. Part 91 home after a 14 hour+ duty day (freight delay or weather delay can extend that one indefinetly! 20+ is NOT unheard of)?

2. Fly falcons that dont get close to published EPR?

3. Fly overweight (Falcons and Lears) or out of CG (Lears)?

4. Hear about several flameouts a month in the lears? (Have you ever had one yourself?)

5. Start your rest time when the parking brake is "set" and end it when you get back to the airport? (I wouldn't call that conductive to safety - you get about 8 hrs of rest including eating, sleeping, etc...and after a couple of days like that during "buildout" I don't think ANYONE feels safe)

6. Have you ever written anything up - only to see that page "dissapear" when you take the airplane the next day?

7. Have you ever heard dispatch tell maintnance that an airplane WILL be ready by certain time?

Go ahead and answer! Make my day! - I don't know whether I know you or not - I left ameristar in 1998.

 

[cruxx@9]

CLCAP

Number 6 on your list used to piss me off all the time! Unfortunately your number 1 happens all the time no matter where you work in the non sked's, someplaces however actually give the pilots the option to do it...unlike Ameristar. Now, not to slam AJI, it has been a long while since I worked there, and as I understand it some things have improved. I just don't understand how they get away without serial numbered log pages....but again, this is the fault of the FAA. The owners are only going to do the bare minimum of what they have to. Did I fly with you? I was there 97-98.

Keep 'em in the green.

 

[Dizel8]

I worked at AJC and while I have moved on to "bigger and better", I still think the it was a decent place to work. Yes, it is not for everyone, some people find the working conditions hard, but you work with what you got.

I never felt pressured, but then again, I flew for other 135's before AJC.

 

[ForgedBlade]

All right, I hate to get in on this too late, but I've lost touch with the 135 cargo community. I was an Ameristar pilot back in '96/'97 and was glad to leave. It was good experience, a lot of work, but just not for me - I'll leave it at that. I had not heard about this accident until now, but hope some of you guys could provide some more info on it.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

OK, caught the thread further down and got some info. Hope the F/O will get better. Always sad when this happens. I had plenty of time in 666TW as well.

 

[CLCAP]

Cruxx - check your pm's

 

[Scube3]

I just saw and ad in planejobs.com, that they are looking for Lear and Falcon20 FO for bases in El Paso, Dallas and YIP. Is that Ameristar? Can anybody confirm that?
I am saying it because in their web-site they say that they are currently not hiring...

Thanks.

Scube.

 

[CLCAP]

Hey Pilotag - still waiting for your reply to the questions!

 

[atpcliff]

Hi!

That Falcon outfit could be "Falcon". They are new, and I know they're looking for Falcon guys in YIP and in TX. They fly Falcon 20s and are expanding.

CLiff
DTW

PS-USA Jet is looking for Falcon guys also.

 

[Rick1128]

Del Rio is a hard airport to operate into even in good weather. Especially coming in from the south. Short runway, poor lighting and non precision approaches. A part time military approach control. While they are reasonably good for the most part, they are more oriented to dealing with the military trainers at the AFB.

It is a favorite airport for the freighters and the like because of cheap fuel and laid back customs.

While the regs MAY be tightened up in the upcoming review of Part 135, I do not expect it to be tightened to the degree that may on this thread would like to see or expect. I have seen this before. This part of the industry is way too varied to have regulations as set in stone as Part 121 is. In fact the current changes to Part 135 have loosened some of the requirements.

While training does enhance safety to a large degree, training is not a substute for good judgement and experience. Both of these can be learned, but they take time. Unfortunately the sterile enviroment of the large training academies has taken a great deal way from the young pilots of today. They are not allowed to walk around the shop and watch the mechanics at work or ask them questions. They get school procedures and answers to all the problems. They are very restricted in what they do during the lessons and are not allowed to vary too far for the path. The lawyers and accountants have taken over the management of pilot training and these young pilots are being refused the opportunity to fill their individual bag of tricks up. These bags of tricks are lessons that we as pilots have learned over the years, generally due to some mistake we made and survived. Usually early in our career and usually a simple mistake. Sometimes they were mistakes our insturctors allowed us to make and used as a training tool. Something that seems to have become unacceptable behavior on the part of an instructor these days.

 

[pilotyip]

135.3C

Training under 121 standards is an option for 135 Turbo jet operators, and in my preivous post I detailed our Training Program at USA Jet. Based upon my experience in military training, training can do alot to make up for lack of experience. At 400 hrs TT I was flying the P-3 at night IFR low level patrols up and down the coast of Vietnam, and doing it safely. You train to make in advance as many decisions as possible, set tight standards, inspect on a frequent basis, and continuely enforce your SOP, to the point of downgrading pilots who want to do their own thing. When pilots are not given this training it is a managment failure. In the long run the extra money spent in traininig is a good investment.

 

[135fr8r]

Enough is enough

After reading regular replies to this post over the past few weeks, I know there are many of you who hate the company. I worked there for 2 years, and was ready to get out. My reason for wanting to leave was simply the lifestyle change. Sure, I had a couple emergencies in-flight, but that can happen anywhere. I never felt my life was in danger at any time due to the equipment I was flying.

Now, let`s get to the facts. After reading the preliminary report, how can any of you say that Ameristar is at fault for this crash? Those guys simply screwed up bad. REAL BAD!!!! I actually feel that after Lisa is well again, the feds are gonna have a justible reason to get the paddle and administer some serious corporal punishment. Ameristar`s equipment, and or maintenace have nothing to do with what happened. They were high, hot, and touched down with very little runway remaining while going off of the end at a high rate of speed. I have no idea who`s leg it was, but I had flown with the Captain many times. He was a very safe pilot, and I can`t see why he let this happen. They screwed up bad end of story.

In closing I would like to say that if all of you Ameristar, Cherry Air, USA Jet, Grandaire, and all other on demand pilots want to have this pissing contest over who`s organ is the largest, just remember this. You are all in the same boat, you all have terrible schedules, sucky lifestyles, and fly old equipment. Nothing is glam about any of these jobs whatsoever, but we all want to be in the same boat. Whether that boat is the airlines, corporate, etc..... Some of us will end up flying for the same companies, and if we can`t all get along on a pissy message board, we will have probs in the workplace.

 

[wingnutt]

^^^ what he said

P.S. 135fr8r...you sound oddly familiar

 

[Scube3]

Hey if any of you Ameristar pilots wants to help a fellow pilot and take my resume in pleeease PM me. I am dying to work for Ameristar. ( I guess different perspective on seeing the company)

Scube.