Reserve

[Atccfi]

How does reserve work at most regionals? When you are hired on, do you sit reserve every month? Or is there a 1 on 1 off etc. rotation? I am sure all companies are different, I'm just trying to get an idea. Thanks.

 

[ex j-41]

Seniority

It all runs by seniority.
After you have completed your IOE (Initial Operating Experience), you get to bid on the next months schedule.
For an example say you are 125th person on the seniority list you will get in line and when it is your turn....124 people later...you get to pick a schedule for the month.
You might get lucky and get a line or you might get reserve.
Depends on what the more senior people bid for first.
Some people actually bid reserve cause it gives them time with their families or whatever...
This is a really basic explaination of how it works...as the 125th person you would actually bid for 125 plus lines.
All you are guarenteed is that you would get your 125 choice. If you say your prayers and get lucky you might get your 58th choice. But i doubt it.
Hope this helps....

 

[Master Shake]

It sucks. You spend your days cruising this board, furthur pulling you into a sh!tty mood.

Otherwise, you bid on a reserve schedule, days on/days off/phone availability times. When you're on call it's just that, on call. You need a reliable cell phone if you want to leave your house/crashpad. My airline gives me 2 hours to show up in the crew room for a trip once I am activated.

Then there is a little thing called airport reserve. That assignment truly "honks on bobo".

One magical day, you move up just enough senority numbers to hold a relief line. Life slowly gets better until you can ultimately hold a regular line. Clear as mud?

 

[FreedomAList]

MESA SUCKS FOR RESERVE.

First of all, reserve lines go junior. This is SUPPOSED to mean a 90 minute callout to the airport, with assignments handed out to the most junior pilot first . . . not too bad, right?

WRONG! For the past year Mesa has been using more and more "Ready Reserves", i.e., you sit at the airport for 8 HOURS, waiting for a crew tracker to call and cover up their many, many screwups. Forget to contact a pilot for a shift? Can't plan 90 minutes in advance for that guy who called in sick 3 hours ago? No problem, activate a ready reserve, and no one will be any wiser!

If you get activated at the airport . . . they call ANOTHER regular reserve guy from home and make HIM sit at the airport for 8 HOURS. So basically, reserve at Mesa means waiting at the airport for 8 Hours, up to six days in a row. And at a big base like PHX, the ready reserve shifts overlap, so you have have 20-30 pilots and f/a's sitting around doing nothing except griping about what a terrible waste of resources this is.

Oh, and due to a "operational necessity" clause in the POS contract, SENORITY means NOTHING for activating guys on reserve to sit ready reserve.

Hell, we even have one ready reserve shift from 7pm to 3am. And the last scheduled flight leaves at . . . . 10 pm. I don't like to pile on Mesa, but man, in this regard, Mesa really, really sucks.

 

[SkyBoy1981]

There is a solution, however....go work someplace that has a real contract.

 

[Yank McCobb]

There is a solution, however....go work someplace that has a real contract.

Yea, like that matters. I have friends at numerous airlines on virtually every level. ALL tell the same story. The company, scheduling, whoever...has their own interpretation of their "real contract" and the grievance list goes on to infinity.



I doubt it's much different where you work.

 

[SkyBoy1981]

Yea, like that matters. I have friends at numerous airlines on virtually every level. ALL tell the same story. The company, scheduling, whoever...has their own interpretation of their "real contract" and the grievance list goes on to infinity.



I doubt it's much different where you work.

Our airport ready reserve is a max of 5 hours, and I've only gotten it 3 or 4 times since I've been here. We have a minimum 2 hour callout, which I've never been cheated out of. We don't have to call crew scheduling at the end of a trip as a reserve, simply check our schedules on the computer 15 mins after block-in and if we haven't been reassigned, we go home. We have a reserve availability list we can monitor online to see where we are in the order to be called, based on our available days, line value, and phone availability. If we aren't being called in the correct order, we'll notice it, and we can grieve it. The list goes on and on. There is quite a difference between contracts at different regional airlines. I'm not saying that any of them, including mine, are perfect...but I think they all beat the hell out of Mesa.

 

[Atccfi]

Thanks for the pertinent replies so far....

So as far as I can gather, you typically sit reserve every single month until you are senior enough to actually hold a line..... sounds like fun...

 

[ERfly]

There is a solution, however....go work someplace that has a real contract.

That would work for him, if he didn't have that little Freedom blemish on his resume.

 

[Traumahawk]

Whats ready reserve?

 

[Kaman]

Hmmmmmmm,

Where I work the definition of "hot reserve" is; Deadhead to Cape Crud...Oh, wait...we don't have an airplane or another pilot...why are you there again??? Oh, and would you "mind" travelling on your own? We have a time and duty "issue" with you for your next pairing...True story

Regards,

ex-Navy Rotorhead

 

[igneousy2]

ready reserve means you must be at the airport in unioform ready to fly. If you work for a better airline with better contract they may be required to provide you some things...i.e. rest facilities, sofa, etc. It is the worst assignment possible, especially since you are generally on probation while you are on it.


When I was at Eagle after 9/11 I got dumped back down to reserve a couple months but this time I was off probation while on ready reserve. I only had to sit a few days but I did it in downtown Boston. I could be back at the terminal within 30 minutes. By the time they'd figure out I was missing I would be there. There were a few pilots who's crash pads were actually within walking distance of the subway stop with airport shuttle service. They would catch the shuttle in to sign in, then go striaght back home. On ready reserve, at least at eagle, you hardly get used, it's only for less than 2 hour callouts. If you are assigned ready reserve for the month you typically fly 3 or 4 times that month.

Reserve is only horrible...

1. The base you are working in is understaffed and/or
2. You are trying to build flight time.
3. You do not live in your base.
4. You are very junior.

I actually bid reserve a few months even though I could hold a solid line because if you are senior on reserve while there is proper staffing (very rare) you never get called. My record was 52 minutes of flying for the month. I got called to do a test hop. I tell people I got paid 2,500/hour that month.
Later

 

[Traumahawk]

I was being sarcastic.


Now really, seriously.... whats a High Speed?

 

[jobear]

Now really, seriously.... whats a High Speed?

Beer then sex then SLEEP

I was being sarcastic not!

 

[Butafucco]

ready at air wisky can be great. first...we bid ready res lines...no reg reserve can ever be assigned ready. we are on duty rig for 8 hour shifts. nice facility...tv dvd email recliners blahblahblah. duty rig means min 4 hours of pay per shift. if you 1) fly more than 4 hours, the balance for the day goes above guarantee or 2) fly beyond your 8 hours of duty....balance is on top of guarantee. SO....day one you get called out for a 4 hour turn. BAM one day of work and you're at 79 hours for the month. very feasable to fly 25 hours in a month and credit 100. boring...but for guys who live in domicile its a great paying day job. (also they can only use you long enough to get a reg reserve on it, o they are usually day trips) whatever. reserve sucks.

 

[Standby 1]

Yea, like that matters. I have friends at numerous airlines on virtually every level. ALL tell the same story. The company, scheduling, whoever...has their own interpretation of their "real contract" and the grievance list goes on to infinity.



I doubt it's much different where you work.

You are quite wrong. There is a huge, huge difference and those of us who have worked with a weak union (local council) versus one with a strong contract and the ability to enforce it can tell you all about those differences. It is like night and day.