Hey Southwest- how come...

[propsarebest]

How come you guys NEVER take off or land on the 25's at LAX??? The airline that I work for has all of its gates on the south side of the field, but we are ALWAYS having to use the north complex. How do you guys get away with it?

 

[RightBettor]

I dunno... good question. The former carriers I worked for (who also parked on the south side) used both the north and south complex. Here at SWA, we almost always go from 24L. Why? Again, I dunno. If you happen to run into an LAX ATCT person, then that might be a good question to ask. On a side note, when I flew for ATA, we operated out of terminal 3 and always went off 24L too... maybe it's just got something to do with the way the SIDs are set up. I just go where I'm told... "Roger,taxi 24L."

 

[XR650R]

Lot's of complementary KrispyKremes I would suspect, or they just got tired of hearing our constant requests for 24R.

 

[dhampton]

Normally arrivals from the North land 24R and arrivals from the East land 25L. I have landed on 25L a number of times from the Paradise arrival, however, SOCAL will make an effort to put us on 24R if there is room.

As far as takeoffs, our gates are right at 24L, so location would appear to be the answer.

 

[TWA Dude]

Lot's of complementary KrispyKremes I would suspect, or they just got tired of hearing our constant requests for 24R.

AWA has a standing request (in writing) to land on the north side. Some days we're the windscreen, some days we're the bug.

 

[AA717driver]

TWA almost always got the North complex and occasionally got 24L, too. ATC knows what you want and it really helps to ask nicely.TC

P.S.--Hookers sent to the tower and approach late at night don't hurt, either...

 

[SWA/FO]

I think its easier for ATC.... everybody wins.

Then we don't have to run over anybody taxiing over from the south side to make DOT. But that is an entirely different thread.

 

[chase]

IMHO it comes down to one person....SWA's ATC liaison....I won't reveal his name or initials but those inside the company know him....his incredible rapport & ability to work with all ATC agencies around the company & help them find solutions that work from one city to another is legendary. He will however, unabashedly claim his aiblity to make changes is due to the overall goodwill earned over the years by SWA pilots who have tried to help ATC whenever they could (I bet 2 posts before that is refuted by someone).

If he ever rides on your jumpseat, please take the time to thank him profusely & shake his hand. The efforts he has made in PHL to cut down on the delays, increase the arrival flows & design more effective taxi routes is slowly working....I was told the PHL delays have begun a steady decline (minus snow storms obviously)....he is another one of the secret weapons that SWA has but it isn't because he has some great technical skills....it comes down to his personality, work ethic (endless) & creativity in finding solutions...those traits are greatly revered by SWA & aren't a bad thing to highlight when you're choosing stories to tell about yourself (got the discussion back on to "interview"...since this is a place for interview information, right?)...cheers

 

[propsarebest]

any truth to the suprise pizza partys for LA center??

 

[Mach 80]

ATC knows what you want and it really helps to ask nicely.TC

This is precisely why I DON'T ask. They do indeed know which runway you prefer so I never ask and it seems they appreciate not being pestered for what they already know you want.

 

[DX Jake]

25's in LAX ?

uhhhh....

pizza parties? ATC liason? Pref treatment? Your outfit must not have that many flights into LAX. Rest assure we have landed on the south side before. If 100 plus flights were to go to terminal one, I think the ground controller would want them on the 24's as well. I didn't think it was a big deal.

 

[propsarebest]

we have TONS of flights...

 

[canyonblue737]

we land on rare occasion on the 25's but you are right we get primarly 24R even when coming from the south. why? i don't know. i suspect volume of flights, SWA/ATC relationship (supported by our first class ATC liaison), it eases LAX's work load in some situations due to the nature of our gates etc.

 

[Ex737Driver]

How do you guys get away with it?

Two words...........Neal and Bob.

Kidding.

We get the same treatment. Land on 25L and takeoff on 25R. We park on the South side.

 

[Tejas-Jet]

How come you guys NEVER take off or land on the 25's at LAX??? The airline that I work for has all of its gates on the south side of the field, but we are ALWAYS having to use the north complex. How do you guys get away with it?

OF course it's because of the wide flat screen HDTV the pilots bought for the controllers....also the weekly cookouts at the beach held during the summer for the controllers and their families.

Last but not least, lets not forget the huge ( 7 figures) Christmas donation made to the Air Traffic Controllers Benevolent Fund (ATCBF).

Tejas

 

[furloughed dude]

24L/R or 25L/R? Doesn't much matter, it is tough enough keeping these guys on the airport property...

 

[canyonblue737]

24L/R or 25L/R? Doesn't much matter, it is tough enough keeping these guys on the airport property...

negative karma is a b*tch dude.

 

[furloughed dude]

You ought to tell your boy SWA/FO about that....

 

[Chest Rockwell]

You ought to tell your boy SWA/FO about that....

dude,

You are giving him a run for his money in the no class department.

 

[TexaSWA]

24L/R or 25L/R? Doesn't much matter, it is tough enough keeping these guys on the airport property...

Say what you want but our safety record is still better than whatever airline you used to work for. You really should keep that in mind when you try to take shots. Karma thing too.

 

[SWA/FO]

:bawling: :bawling: :bawling: "SWA/FO schooled me before....I can't take it. I've been furloughed more times then all of Southwest's Pilots combined and this makes me cry" :bawling: :bawling: :bawling: - furloughed dude 2/13/06

Furloughed Dude, is running away with the prick of the year award. He is at his 3rd airline... this tool quit his 2nd job at jet Blue.

Your not going to find many friends when you talk like that furloughed dude and the way you run through jobs...you might want to keep some friends.

 

[SWA/FO]

What no internet access at Home Depot?

 

[AceCrackshot]

The three most common heard things on Regional Approach...

1) "Eagle, unable."

2) "Southwest, you're cleared direct."

3) "American, I don't have time to argue."

Old but still funny.

 

[N7167L]

The three most common heard things on Regional Approach...

1) "Eagle, unable."

2) "Southwest, you're cleared direct."

3) "American, I don't have time to argue."

Old but still funny.

The Southwest Effect (i.e. the "gold-standard") comes to mind.

 

[Bringupthebird]

So which happens first, the fuel hedges run out or the ATC liason retires?

Is there any truth to the rumor that the microphones in SWA aircraft actually contain a small microchip on which is embedded a program that requests directsomewheredowntheroad even before the pilot begins speaking? Wouldn't it be more efficient to get "direct" from the clearance delivery man?

 

[Tripower455]

we land on rare occasion on the 25's but you are right we get primarly 24R even when coming from the south. why? i don't know. i suspect volume of flights, SWA/ATC relationship (supported by our first class ATC liaison), it eases LAX's work load in some situations due to the nature of our gates etc.

Rare? I am running at least 75% landing on 25L coming in on the PDZ arrival......... In fact, I am surprised when we get the north side coming in from the south or east....... They do it once in a while, when traffic permits...

I've even had to pull the brake cooling charts out after taxiing all the way to 25R for T.O. a few times.......