Line Bidding VS PBS

[VerticalSnap]

For people who have used both, what are the pro's and con's of each line bidding system and the pref bidding system?

 

[labbats]

One you control yourself, the other you trust management to do it for you.

 

[ArcticFlier]

One you control yourself, the other you trust management to do it for you.

Which is which? :nuts:


Just remember: Your line is no better than the pairings within. If you build a pretty mountain out of horse crap...............it's still a pile of shiite.



AF

 

[rickair7777]

The pairings are construcyed by the company in both cases...PBS cannot fix crappy pairings.

PBS
- More likley that you will get a specific day off (unless it is Christmas)
- You may be able to get better commutability
- More lines, less reserves
- Allows senior folks to cherry-pick the best trips
- Often less days off for low/mid seniority lineholders
- No "common sense" applied to line construction
- If you do not understand how PBS works, you will be sitting hot reserve on Christmas day, regardless of seniority.
- If you are not computer-savvy, you are screwed.

Paper Bid
- Lines are often fairly consistent
- More reserve lines
- Low/Mid-seniority folks often get a better deal than with PBS, because the top dogs can't cherry-pick ALL of the best trips.
- If you need a specific day off, you may have to go below your normal seniority (and line quality) to get it.
- Dumbasses can use this system succesfully.


PBS is probably the better system, but it might hurt mid-seniority guys.

 

[immelman79]

PBS seems to give a better balance within comparing senior to junior pilots. My experience is that some of the senior folks don't think to highly of it. My opinion is it works great if you know how to use it. There are a lot of tricks and ways you can screw yourself. It takes a lot of bidding periods to learn how to use it correctly. I love it though.

 

[blott]

7777 nailed it. But, with PBS, your company scheduling can adjust parameters in the computer at will. I.E. running a bid, looking at the results, not liking them, changing things in program, re-run it, etc. over and over-until they get what they want. This can potentially screw up a good system...

Over all I like the flexibility of PBS over the line bid system.

B

NOTE: if you work for a company with a bunch of bases-PBS won't work as well as a company with few bases... MUST have a large base for the PBS system to work at it's best...

 

[Dak]

The pairings are construcyed by the company in both cases...PBS cannot fix crappy pairings.

PBS
- More likley that you will get a specific day off (unless it is Christmas)
- You may be able to get better commutability
- More lines, less reserves
- Allows senior folks to cherry-pick the best trips
- Often less days off for low/mid seniority lineholders
- No "common sense" applied to line construction
- If you do not understand how PBS works, you will be sitting hot reserve on Christmas day, regardless of seniority.
- If you are not computer-savvy, you are screwed.

Paper Bid
- Lines are often fairly consistent
- More reserve lines
- Low/Mid-seniority folks often get a better deal than with PBS, because the top dogs can't cherry-pick ALL of the best trips.
- If you need a specific day off, you may have to go below your normal seniority (and line quality) to get it.
- Dumbasses can use this system succesfully.


PBS is probably the better system, but it might hurt mid-seniority guys.

Yea, what he said except vacation plays into this. Depends on the compant though. On PBS the line the company builds for you will work around the vacation but with a line you may be able to drop trips which conflict with your vacation.

 

[Steveair]

Pbs Sucks!

 

[HelloNewman]

Pbs Sucks!

PBS is hands down better! First of all you don't have to spend hours going through lines and pairings. It would take forever to shift through all the lines in the past. With PBS you have the chance to not have such a monotone schedule. You can work a combo of different trips instead of having to do the same trip every week. You get to meet a lot more crews since you don't fly with the same person all month.

You are on reserve a lot less under PBS. You get as much if not more days off than you did under the old system. Basically your senority gets you a lot more with PBS than it does with hard lines. Its a no brainer really. I spend about 30-40 minutes setting up my bid on PBS. its easy as pie. To go through all the hardlines can take a lot longer than that unless your quite senior.

For the most part you get to write your own line instead of bidding on one that is already made for you. You choose the credit, you choose what days off you want and usually you are able to get it too. Based on this its actually hardlines that suck! Hey I guess if you like living in a time warp doing the same trip over and over each month working with the same crews over and over then you might miss it.

 

[John Pennekamp]

Unless you're really senior, PBS is not likely to give you what you want. That said, regular lines mostly don't either. Truly, it won't affect me, but if I were junior, I'd rather seen the crappy line I was going to get (defensive bid) than wait until it was all over.

My issue with PBS is that it's like every pilot is on a relief (buildup) line. They will backfill your vacation and minimize your days off. Right now at ASA, we can turn 7 says of vacation into 14 days off by bidding right.

PBS is an efficiency and productivity tool for management. Pure and simple. That is the reason it was created. If you don't have it now, bringing it in is a concession.