ASA ramp on the 4th. Way to go!

[Tomct]

I'm sure it will get JA's attention when Ma Delta makes a phone call to get things together or he will lose the contract! Oh and NO, the skywst pilots could NOT cover our flying! In fact, I cant WAIT until the skywst pilots come to ATL, then they will get the "infection" that is ATL!:laugh: It will be GREAT! Their performance numbers will take a HUGE DIVE!!!!:laugh: Welcome to ATL JA you TWITT!!!

 

[Palerider957]

This all reminds me of the old ASA E-120 days, waiting to be parked in never never land........yup, chillin' in my Burger King Brasilia in the middle of Atlanta Summer---pants rolled up to my knees, a shirt totally unbuttoned, tie clipped on to visor, and a towel on my head.

At least we had DV windows to open and get fresh (albeit 120 degree) air.

Some things never change.

 

["GO AROUND"]

It's ghetto.

It got me going on my last round trip so I could give a flip if it's ghetto or not.

 

[Huck]

This all reminds me of the old ASA E-120 days, waiting to be parked in never never land........yup, chillin' in my Burger King Brasilia in the middle of Atlanta Summer---pants rolled up to my knees, a shirt totally unbuttoned, tie clipped on to visor, and a towel on my head.

Don't forget taxiing the empty plane over to get her cooled down in the shade of abandoned concourse C an hour before departure from D. (C was empty after EAL shut down....)

 

[captainv]

Last year or maybe the year before, a CMR captain called a chief pilot to refuse an airplane in ATL. The APU was broke, and it was a scorching summer day. Also, while at a previous airline, he'd had a passenger die of heat stroke. He wanted to refuse the airplane for safety reasons.


The response was that if the MEL says the airplane is okay to fly, you will go fly. Highly uncomfortable, yes. Unsafe, no, according to the CP. Make a PA before push explaining the situation, close the shades, open the vents, pass out waters, but do the flight.

You could still refuse the flight, but I would think you'd at least get an unpaid vacation out of it...

Anybody actually refuse an airplane with no APU?

 

[asayankee]

Last year or maybe the year before, a CMR captain called a chief pilot to refuse an airplane in ATL. The APU was broke, and it was a scorching summer day. Also, while at a previous airline, he'd had a passenger die of heat stroke. He wanted to refuse the airplane for safety reasons.


The response was that if the MEL says the airplane is okay to fly, you will go fly. Highly uncomfortable, yes. Unsafe, no, according to the CP. Make a PA before push explaining the situation, close the shades, open the vents, pass out waters, but do the flight.

You could still refuse the flight, but I would think you'd at least get an unpaid vacation out of it...

Anybody actually refuse an airplane with no APU?

We can at ASA...we have something in our FOM that states if cabin temps are above 30C and the airplane has no APU it can be refused. It usually isn't questioned too hard.

 

[ATR-DRIVR]

I refused the airplane several times and didn't have a problem with anyone. I was polite and firm with dispatch and was told they would find a replacement. And they did. Might be different there now though. Still would not take one without and if one came to me at an outstation, go back to the hotel, or poll the passengers and see what their reaction to 95+ in the cabin. Don't think there would be many wanting to ride it out, especially with the ramp situation.

 

[Hobit]

GOOD LUCK ASA

How'd the strike vote go?

 

[regionalcap]

Last year or maybe the year before, a CMR captain called a chief pilot to refuse an airplane in ATL. The APU was broke, and it was a scorching summer day. Also, while at a previous airline, he'd had a passenger die of heat stroke. He wanted to refuse the airplane for safety reasons.


The response was that if the MEL says the airplane is okay to fly, you will go fly. Highly uncomfortable, yes. Unsafe, no, according to the CP. Make a PA before push explaining the situation, close the shades, open the vents, pass out waters, but do the flight.

You could still refuse the flight, but I would think you'd at least get an unpaid vacation out of it...

Anybody actually refuse an airplane with no APU?

I have refused several when it is a hot summer day in good ole ATL. Chief pilots have always told me no problem. It is a health hazard. The temp in the cabin can easily reach near 100 degrees. Are you going to put your passengers through that? I don't want that liability. Old folks can have heat strokes.

 

[regionalcap]

GOOD LUCK ASA

How'd the strike vote go?

It closes July 10. Thanks for your support.

 

[atrdriver]

I had one the other day that the APU DID work on, and we sat after being loaded for about 30 minutes. Cabin temp was showing 31. I fot off, found a supervisor, and told him if we weren't pushing in 5 minutes I was going to evacuate the a/c and they could deal with it from there. Amazingly, we were moving about 2 minutes later.

 

[Headfake14]

anyone sit for 2hrs last night waiting for a gate?

2.83 block from MGM...included last min. ground stop in MGM then an hour in ATL for the gate.

 

[Dave Benjamin]

Let me get this straight- you would declare a medical emergency to get people off the plane, but on the other hand you have used magazines and cases of water as ballast?

I'd say you have good judgement 50 percent of the time.

What's wrong with using cases of water and boxes of magazines as ballast? They are both relatively compact heavy items. As long as the CG is proper who cares?

 

[Cadillac]

I see nothing wrong with using water and magazines for ballast. It is a known weight. Ghetto or not, it gets the job done. Or maybe they don't teach that at ERAU.

 

[atrdriver]

What's wrong with using cases of water and boxes of magazines as ballast? They are both relatively compact heavy items. As long as the CG is proper who cares?

I have tried several times ar outstations to bring back sandbags over the last month and they (the outstations) will never load them. Maybe someone needs to tell them that ATL needs some back.

 

[HoserASA]

I have tried several times ar outstations to bring back sandbags over the last month and they (the outstations) will never load them. Maybe someone needs to tell them that ATL needs some back.

XNA has it together. They use old suitcases for ballast, send then to ATL with a bag tag stamped XNA, and they get them back to use again. And this idea did not come from the G/O.

Hoser

 

[acaTerry]

I have tried several times ar outstations to bring back sandbags over the last month and they (the outstations) will never load them. Maybe someone needs to tell them that ATL needs some back.

Try using some of the sandbags sleeping on the beltloaders LOL

 

[HoserASA]

You could still refuse the flight, but I would think you'd at least get an unpaid vacation out of it...

Anybody actually refuse an airplane with no APU?

Done it many times on the E120, ATR, and CRJ. CP always backed us up, especially JA when he was CP. Well, there were the DR days, but most of us just ignored him. One instance on the ATR, we almost experienced heat stroke. F/As went to the clinic, FO and myself felt sick. Went to DH and told him about our heat problem. Doug called schdg and instructed them to replace us. Went home and got paid for it. It is a safety and health issue. I won't take one without an APU, especially the RJ200 where there is no flow until takeopff power is applied. Grow a pair, be a Captain!

Hoser

 

[John Pennekamp]

I was told that the ramp is doing a "work slowdown". According to the source, it's well organized, from the supervisors down, and includes the departure coordinators, cleaners, and caters.

Apparently the below the wing workers are pissed about the understaffing and having to do the job of 5 people, so instead of quitting, they're protesting. Moving slowly unloading, parking, cleaning, whatever until ASA hires more rampers and such.

It's about time the ground workers at ASA got themselves organized. I'll put up with the delays just to see the most underpaid workers in the industry "stick it to the man"!

 

["GO AROUND"]

I heard on the radio the other week, an ATR crew had a FA pass out from the heat on the airplane with a full load. In the middle of getting the plane unloaded I heard ops call the flt crew and say "scheduling said don't deplane, the ready reserve FA is on her way out".

For a millisecond I couldn't believe I heard that. Then I remembered who was doing the thinking.



Glad I am not the only one who doesn't think it's ghetto to use water or mag's for ballast.

 

[captainv]

Done it many times on the E120, ATR, and CRJ. CP always backed us up, especially JA when he was CP. Well, there were the DR days, but most of us just ignored him. One instance on the ATR, we almost experienced heat stroke. F/As went to the clinic, FO and myself felt sick. Went to DH and told him about our heat problem. Doug called schdg and instructed them to replace us. Went home and got paid for it. It is a safety and health issue. I won't take one without an APU, especially the RJ200 where there is no flow until takeopff power is applied. Grow a pair, be a Captain!

Hoser

The example I used was actually written by the Chief Pilots and distributed to the pilot group via a company publication (again, at least a year ago). Obviously a difference in philosophy between CMR and ASA. You CPs will back you up, ours have stated they will not. They've gotten pretty good about fixing APUs, so I haven't had to deal with it recently, and not in hot weather.

Someone mentioned it as a policy stated in the FOM. I'm digging through ours now to see if we have anything similar. Which section is yours under?

Kudos to your CPs for letting common sense win out over completion factor. I'm curious if any CMR guys have run into a similar situation and refused the a/c...

>Grow a pair, be a Captain!

well, ok, but only when/if I upgrade...

 

[John Pennekamp]

I heard on the radio the other week, an ATR crew had a FA pass out from the heat on the airplane with a full load. In the middle of getting the plane unloaded I heard ops call the flt crew and say "scheduling said don't deplane, the ready reserve FA is on her way out".

For a millisecond I couldn't believe I heard that. Then I remembered who was doing the thinking..

Yeah, I heard that one too.

I'm glad to know ASA values our lives so much. "Yeah, throw her dead body out the door when the RR shows up and get the flight out!". Beautiful.

Maybe you 50 drivers aren't aware, but on the 70 (and ATR), we have to have two FAs to board. An unconscious one doesn't count. The FAA takes this so seriously that if one of them steps beyond the threshold of the door she can be fined by the FAA and disciplined by the company.

I cann't believe that some peahead in scheduling would suggest to not deplane a flight with an unconscious FA. Can't speak for all captains, but on my flight, we wouldn't be going anywhere. I would instruct everyone to remain seated until Echo could get on and get her off, then have a redcoat bring everyone upstairs. Period. That's the kind of leadership captains need.. the balls to say NO when the company asks you to do something stupid.

 

[Ganja60Heavy]

The question "how would this look at an FAA hearing?" must be continually rerun in your head.

If you say "but the scheduler said not to deplane", your ticket would be yanked on the spot.

The company is very slick at suggesting to pilots that they bend the rules which put only their own careers on the line, whilst hiding behind published procedures in the FOM. The company will always nail a pilot to the wall as a rogue rule-breaker.

My suggestion: follow the FOM to the letter.

 

[John Pennekamp]

Exactly. They'll ask you to bend the rules to get the flight out, and then pat you on the back for being a team player. Right up until the day the FAA finds out and ASA throws you under the bus with "self disclosure" to save their butts.

 

[Morning Wood]

What's wrong with using cases of water and boxes of magazines as ballast? They are both relatively compact heavy items. As long as the CG is proper who cares?

Dave..we can carry that stuff but we call it "Comat", not ballast. Matter of
semantics I suppose. Whatever it takes to GIT R DONE.

 

[Citrus531]

Man....here at FL OPS it kills me with some certain individuals who cry on the radio all the time when they hold out for 20 min during the 8/9pm push! I can't imagine what they'd say for 1 or 2 hours.

Guy pulling in tonight was upset b/c he had to hold for 24 whole minutes b/c the only gate we had left(which we share with US Airways) was taken. He landed at 2145 and blocked in at 2211...and btw he was a scheduled 2225 arrival.

"Well D5 is open". No s*it Sherlock....And good ole Clipper Juan Trippe is on the ground for that gate. Can't borrow it

"What about D7?" Frontier Airlines A319 due in 15 minutes...can't borrow it

"Well we have connections".....Again, no s*it....and the first one doesn't start rolling for another 44 mins!! I think they'll be fine sir. I then get a call from his dispatcher....he had called down there complaining like the dispatcher can do anything about an ATL gate assignment....dispatcher laughed and said to me "what else is new"?

 

[gator_hater]

I was told that the ramp is doing a "work slowdown". According to the source, it's well organized, from the supervisors down, and includes the departure coordinators, cleaners, and caters.

I have not been there for a couple weeks, I did not think that it could get any slower than it already was. Sorry guys.

 

[shamrock]

I was told that the ramp is doing a "work slowdown". According to the source, it's well organized, from the supervisors down, and includes the departure coordinators, cleaners, and caters.

Apparently the below the wing workers are pissed about the understaffing and having to do the job of 5 people, so instead of quitting, they're protesting. Moving slowly unloading, parking, cleaning, whatever until ASA hires more rampers and such.

I still can't figure out how to tell the difference between a "slowdown" and a normal day on the ramp.

 

[ASARJMan]

I still can't figure out how to tell the difference between a "slowdown" and a normal day on the ramp.

Hmmm, ya got something there. I can't either. Just heard that they were all on an organized (haha) slowdown. Anyway, I VOTED IN FAVOR!

 

[wms]

I was told that the ramp is doing a "work slowdown". According to the source, it's well organized, from the supervisors down, and includes the departure coordinators, cleaners, and caters.

Apparently the below the wing workers are pissed about the understaffing and having to do the job of 5 people, so instead of quitting, they're protesting. Moving slowly unloading, parking, cleaning, whatever until ASA hires more rampers and such.

It's about time the ground workers at ASA got themselves organized. I'll put up with the delays just to see the most underpaid workers in the industry "stick it to the man"!

And I'm supporting them. The pilots have been talking smack about a slowdown to change things but we can't get unified, and now we're caught in the middle of one. Want to see real results, let it ride.

In reality it's probably more of a bad attitude and lack of people than an organized slow down, but it may have a good effect in the long run.