Best schedule for three crew one plane?

[icefr8dawg]

We're trying to formalize a schedule for our three person, one plane flight department. Anyone have experience running a mostly domestic operation on three pilots? Part 91 and 135 work in a hawker. I'm thinking of hard days vs. soft days whereby we each have a pre determined set of days off per month.
Any input appreciated...

 

[KSUPILOT]

we are used by a company where they have a 3 man department. They rotate through the airplane with a schedule that is pic, sic, off. there is no way for them to determine a soft schedule. But when they do have a guy off they use one of our hawker pilots to fill in.

 

[Lead Sled]

We're trying to formalize a schedule for our three person, one plane flight department. Anyone have experience running a mostly domestic operation on three pilots? Part 91 and 135 work in a hawker. I'm thinking of hard days vs. soft days whereby we each have a pre determined set of days off per month.
Any input appreciated...

The best schedule? Let the other two guys fly it and you go fishing.

If that won't work then simply work a rotation. I used to do it in a Lear - we'd typically go out on a 3 to 4 day trip each week. On week one I'd be lead pilot; week two I was "the other guy", and I had the 3rd week off. We all rotated though that cycle. It was fair for every one and we could (and did) swap trips if someone wanted or needed specific day off. It worked well for us - we normally knew our schedule 4 to 6 weeks in advance with very few pop ups to it was easy to work with.

'Sled

 

[English]

Hijack...

Hey Lead, I hear you got a new car....Honda S2000? Nice wheels!

 

[icefr8dawg]

Cool, thank's for the info. The rotation might work for us but we have the occasional pop-up so we'll need to have two ready to go with 12hrs. notice.

 

[Lead Sled]

Hijack...

Hey Lead, I hear you got a new car....Honda S2000? Nice wheels!

Yep. It was time to have a mid-life crisis, so it was either a girl friend or a sports car. When I mentioned this to my wife she wanted to know if the girl friend would cook and clean our house. I figured out real quick where that was leading so I bought the car.

'Sled

 

[CarjCapt]

Yep. It was time to have a mid-life crisis, so it was either a girl friend or a sports car. When I mentioned this to my wife she wanted to know if the girl friend would cook and clean our house. I figured out real quick where that was leading so I bought the car.

'Sled

Went through somewhat the same situation except I bought her a 911 turbo. She lets me drive it sometimes.

 

[some_dude]

I used to work with a flight department which rotated trips. You flew two trips, then the next trip you didn't go (with flexibility for having a specific day off). This might work for you.

A different way to do it is to have whoever does the scheduling just try to keep things fair. If one person is flying a lot, schedule them off and put the other guys on it. Likewise, if somebody needs a specific day off, give it to them.

Cool, thank's for the info. The rotation might work for us but we have the occasional pop-up so we'll need to have two ready to go with 12hrs. notice.

 

[Lead Sled]

Went through somewhat the same situation except I bought her a 911 turbo. She lets me drive it sometimes.

Based on the principle of "one for me, one for you..." my wife is expecting something nice for herself now. She keeps hinting about a new Mini Cooper Convertible. It's really going to hurt if I ever get that used Mooney M20J I've been looking at.

'Sled

 

[501261]

I simply buy cars for the wife, what's best for her. I'll take the beater to the airport .


PS the "beater" just doesn't hold the kids, the way "mom's" car does .