Could Jumpseating ever come to an end?

[browntail]

Don't worry, the jumpseats will be back in the near future. The airlines and the FAA dillrods are working on a system for verifying crews. This system will provide instant verification of employee status. I also urge you guys to tell any FAA jumpseaters that may show up on your flight that they are not welcome!! If they think our ID's could be faked how do we know their ID's are for real.

We can have our seats back, but it's going to take every pilot standing strong against the companies and the FAA to make it happen!!!!!!

 

[Morning Wood]

Re: already happened to most of us

Offline jumpseating has already ended. At this point, the airlines are allowing us if there is a seat available in the back. In effect, we are just low priority non-revs. I hope that we never lose the ability to ride upfront on our own carrier, but unless our unions make the jumpseat a priority, we will probably loose the online privelege as well.

The companys don't like jumpseaters because the practice represents our freedom of movement, and management doesn't like "free/independent" workers. They're being short sighted when they feel that way, because our ability to move freely about the country is what makes us able to put up with the rest of their crap; but they only see jumpseating as the cause of no-shows and missed work.

The Feds don't like jumpseating because it now exposes the pitiful state of pilot identification. They ordered offline jumping shut down as a way to cover their tails in the event of another hijacking.

Therefore, I conclude that we pilots are the only ones who want to continue the practice of jumpseating. I believe that our only effective voice comes from our unions. So, I suggest that we all get active and contact ALPA/SWAPA/APA/etc, asap, and voice our support for the resumptiom of on and offline jumpseating. I have already written a short note to the ALPA magazine, and have made my views known to my LEC reps.

regards
8N

Excellent post. I could not have said any of this better.
The only thing I might add is that employees in other
departments that do not have this privilege don't like
it either. So we're doomed from all sides I'm afraid.

MW

 

[lazy8s]

New licenses coming

As Ifly4food put it: "The hijackers may have sat in the jumpseat after taking over the plane, but they were ticketed passengers, not jumpseaters"

It is an urban legend.

The FAA's concern started when the Delta crew in Rome had their ID's and uniforms stolen in Sept.

I talked to a Fed last month about this very subject and was told the FAA is looking at going to State Drivers License type Pilot licenses for us all. Also there amy be a 121 ID change coming down the pipe as well.

Anybody else have any info on that?

Lazy 8's

 

[dispatchguy]

When we restarted operations, I was on one of the first TW DC9s to leave DFW after the restart, when US Border Patrol and US Customs agents were at each checkpoint, along with the Army dudes.

I passed thru security with 2 pilots in uniform, and a customs agent asked to see all of our IDs and licenses, so he could learn what they look like.

His first reaction was - how can you tell if this is genuine (meaning licenses), this would be so easy to fake.