AirGuardianC141747

Comm or cyber, they all are responsible for not fixing this from the beginning. Now it’s tougher as I am older with these “cheaters” (reading glasses) on. Not all keyboards, but no one put a work order change to the manufacturer. Daaaang it.

Still makes laugh, original craft or not, very well done. I have to sleep before the NYC virus spike gets me while I’m tired. I know this is sort of a repost, but I have added some thoughts - just digging deeper to the core of what may or may not come to fruition regarding impacts. I unfortunately am leaning now towards the airlines changing their business model (nothing new I guess) to come back slowly to meet the demand accordingly by right shape sizing. No one knows for sure but you can better grasp of what’s going on at the core. The big hit is they are not the first ones actually doing this. Businesses are getting savvy with video teleconferencing (VTC) yet again and savings costs they literally forgot about, but now are reminded of. Let’s not forget having employees with home offices devalues brick and mortar real estate costs, building codes, no utilities, or TP, just a tax right off if possible. Travel, hotels per diem are operating costs. This generation craves such ease of life measures as it pseudo emulates a GIG economy on a smaller scale. Heck, honestly I would too. Work during the week when I want, obscure hours at my choice and have food delivery rather than stuck in a cubicle from 8-5 M-F or more when I did it (was 9-5), even weekend access to employees. This is dangerously efficient and I would be wrong to assume the bean counters aren’t crunching numbers right now. Service providers such as large restaurants which seems to be laying workers off vs furloughing them and bringing them back. Several individuals interviewed said they thought this was temporary and go back to work when it gets back up and running soon after the lock down was over here in NYC. Employers indicating right sizing, doing more with less. How could they not accomplish this with a surge of unemployed most likely willing to work even harder, longer and for less. We see plenty of this normal type of discussions/proposals on the APC forum as an example. Parents of 54 million children mandated for home schooling, picking up study materials and trying to work this out and work at home just announced. It’s far deeper than leisure travel taking a hit as people dip into savings if they have any. Every day counts but who knows where the break even point is to lift lockdown and get back to work too early and spread again. But they now have a deal on the Relief Bill / Bailout package is agreed upon. Hope it works well. 3AM Eastern 25 Mar. Spike seems to be coming. Hate this, just being frank.

Yeah, that went horribly wrong. Crazy people.

Bud, what are you doing up? I am in New York City and Leadership is going nuts. I hope your in a better place than here. On a good note: Bailout - Deal has been agreed upon 3AM / 25 Mar eastern of course. So we have that going for us, which is nice! You really did make my day with the millennial camel stuff, fell out of my chair! That was quality enlightenment. Thanks! The memes coming out are a good change vs mental strain. Thanks to everyone, and no one is being mean. We just have to drive on and have a laugh for our own sake. We all understand the issue at hand is tough to say the least.

This is exactly where the rubber is meeting the road right now regarding change. Forced back to telecommute/video teleconferencing at an accelerated rate. Companies quickly invested in the software and business sector will come back regarding travel meetings but not nearly as strong. It was going to happen anyway and now the real estate is truly the home. The brick and mortar will decrease as it is required no longer. Probably some good sized tremors if the bean counters really do their homework.

A few Pics doesn’t really justify the mass of iron laying around, but seeing this here, there at least everywhere I’ve been lately is surreal.

The above was directed towards torqued who I don’t know, but I just figured I’d distract the situation so we could move on. Seems to have worked, maybe.... Oh my Lord, it’s looking at me now. Clever, you gave some thought to this one. I don’t deserve your attention or time but thank you. Not R. Lee Ermey worthy, but very good nonetheless. Not being sarcastic, I thoroughly enjoyed that, it made me raff. Sorry, my generation (Gen X) is to blame for that facetube, selfie, GIG economy, etc. thing you mentioned. I don’t even have Facebook or Alexa but YouTube is great for fixing things. I’m not you, but I’d add podcast to your “Interests.” You seem like the most interesting man in the world. Now back to your normally scheduled program my apologies. World is changing rapidly right now and it’s a forced learning curve with some major impacts globally. Sitting in this Hyatt in the New York City area, front desk said they just spiked to 40% capacity vs the average 15-20% of most hotels and they are thankful. Pictures are from Korea (2 days ago) and Hong Kong (dark 3 days ago, and we’re at least a month behind them), Europe is the same. Virus should worry me more perhaps but witnessing first hand cities around the world concerns me a bit. Obviously quick snapshots of my phone - just that lazy/not tech savvy anymore.

“but I’m not synthesizing hours worth of material for your intellectual laziness.” - SurelySerious “But if I do and it isn't everything you're telling me it is, I'm gonna be pissed.” - torqued Come on maaaan! Let’s go outside and do some pushups maaaan! Someone here is a “Lying Dog Faced Pony Soldier!” Sorry, I don’t mean that - but if you started from the beginning that it was hours and probably even more hours of research we could have circumnavigated this whole Flat Earth Worth of discussion. World is going to do what this diverse world is going to do. With no data to support, the world will not be like it was just over 2 months ago - the landscape will change and I wish the Best for all. Let’s flatten that curve. At least that’s what the digital boards show on the highways here in NYC. I’m out, I’ve got to go catch up on some NetFlix before I go do some gov sanctioned work. Now where did I put that El Presidente permission to travel slip... dang it!

Phew! So not a total rug pulled from under you, that’s much better to hear. Yes, these moves do not solidify trust. Thank you for clarification. Public needs you back, you need you back and least of all by far regarding our importance (we’re behind the scenes) us box haulers need you back. So much easier than chasing company iron around. Appreciate what you do.

If it was “just” taken off the table, did anyone manage to secure it prior - or it didn’t matter if or when as it just dissipated like vaping entirely... basically an expired shelf life for management to capitalize on? No take-backsies dammit. This blows...

Never trust CEOs, CFOs, etc. Very few names come up as stand up folks. They’re like politicians, take the credit during good times, lay the blame elsewhere during hard times which they contributed too behind the scenes or blatantly in your face. “Mongo just a pawn in game of life!” A dropped ball never bounces as high from whence it came. The rebound is dependent upon the gravity of the situation, in this case specifically public health, confidence and any surplus savings. Paychecks have stopped completely in many areas. Stay strong, stay inside and we don’t need this to spike twice or more. Thank God for truckers amongst many others. *Just flew into JFK early this morning from ANC, still too many people out joy riding around. Definitely less than last week so that’s good. Oceanic control had some turmoil last night due to virus concerns kind of like New York shutting down temporarily for virus exposure. Yeah, good times - not.

Are you an early riser Huggy? Or late to bed sleep all day type. Impressive. I just flew in from ANC, here in quiet JFK / New York City. Toooo quiet. But it’s a good sign that these people need to hunker down. We’ll see what victims to be daylight brings. Had my mask and thankfully my Uber Driver had his, granted he was Asian and well ahead of the game. Not his first rodeo. Log jams of applications - totally agree. Cargo applications especially. Compass to close 7 April and even sooner Tran States (Regionals) closes its operations 1 Apr. GoJet is mixed up in this as well with its relationship with Delta which may disappear by the end of 2020. So far that’s nearly 1,100 pilots out of their jobs. This may be just the beginning as the Majors consolidate themselves into critical mass to survive. Won’t disappear as transportation is a critical/vital national asset, but the structure/landscape will change and yes retirements will damper the effect and hopefully offset this crushing situation. Sooner we bounce back the better and that is why the public needs to be disciplined just for a few weeks. Longer it goes, the longer it will take to recover having depleted savings, retirements, small and large businesses, trade conventions, etc.. More debt, less leisure travel. Companies swung back quickly to video teleconferencing, etc and the bean counters may find it’s a more profitable venture and limit former employee travel having set up shop with VTC. We did in the DoD during budget constraints so we know it all too well. Google, Microsoft, Zoom to name a few offering free trials for companies = “the new call for video will lead to a “fundamental, permanent shift in how people work.” - Zoom CEO. We’ll See how this matures and it worries me somewhat. Of course there will be the must travel for actual sales and hand shake agreements, but it is concerning. We all have a Big Flat-Screen TVs now in your homes, it can’t be too hard with telecommuting running the show right now. Our appetite for entertainment and social gatherings will come back fastest after being cooped up for awhile is just my guess. Some things will come roaring back hopefully, but others will have morphed into a non-travel adaptation forced by this crisis at hand. Flatten the infectious curve fast is the key judging by the more successful nations coming thru this. It will take some time unfortunately. Military aviators have very competitive resumes. Having civilian airline hours as well even shines brighter as proof of your assimilation from Blue to gray (or whatever mil background you come from.) As you are witnessing unfortunately but a proven fact, timing is everything.

Totally agree, the faster we do the right thing and confront reality of separation, the quicker we come out of it. Taiwan, Singapore, HKG numbers makes other nations look bad. S. Korea had their own way to stifle it with 10-15,000 tests a day and flattened their curve. Just walked thru HKG streets 2 days ago. Smaller crowd but very large amount still shopping constantly dodging each other, masks on and more cordial than normal. Billboards stating Wear your masks, be vigilant, etc. Someone placarded a cardboard statement with “Hey You Gweilo, are you too poor to buy a mask?” Embarrassing since I saw several without them ( a few HKGers weren’t either, but limited and the ratio was far less). 1 every 100 vs 3 out every of 5 of us. I wore the mask they gave me, gloves, wipes, contact list and thermometer given as well. It was blatantly obvious. We will spike, don’t be a Spring Breaker, etc.

I believe this is the key (above) as “pawnman” indicated. Find a way, lockdown has been proven and our military is the most disciplined within our country to execute this within their community. You will not be combat effective in the near term and be ready long term if this is not implemented. Our civilian sector, not so much with our current culture of selfie before others it’s all about me. We are not practicing social distancing, masks, staying inside unless needs need to be met = sustenance, etc. Look at NY right now, this is just the beginning of the spike. Asian culture has been through this and several maintained structure/discipline without so called Draconian measures. Having our military entirely shutdown would work, but not feasible and no one should be advocating this, but separated shift work and cleanliness is the game. With your remaining supplies it’s not beyond policing yourselves. I wipe down every touchable area I normally use as I bounce around hotels:, switches, locks, door knobs, phones, lights, table, especially the remote, etc. (thankfully I brought a ton of wipes with me). In Asia my remote was cleaned and sealed, total pain to rip off but I respect it. I don’t doubt how they mitigated it when I watch them clean our aircraft. Not a perfect situation, but they are sincerely doing their best. I clean the flight deck multiple times every leg. It’s a mindset, get on board. Spray that Lysol, etc. If your truly out, it is what is and drive on. We really have no excuses because we were not lead car in this race. The best solutions at this point were practiced by cars, 2, 3, 4, (Dang China being #1) and some of the following cars are bouncing off the walls (Italy, soon France, etc. and US most likely) Taiwan, Singapore, HKG, and more or less were able to flatten the curve. Just returning from Asia yet again and having been through their process, we unfortunately are lagging way behind with our populations lackadaisical attitude in many areas and the false sense of security of a superior healthcare system is being overwhelmed. I’m just saying. Hope I am wrong but the spike looks like it’s well on its way.

Enjoy your career. It’s the camaraderie/life long friendships that makes the difference thru thick and thin. Some of the Best Times of my life we’re running missions with my fellow patriots knowing they had my back and I had theirs. Have some cheers with beers responsibly and getter done. Welcome aboard to the Best AF in the world and it’s the warriors that make it happen, politicians who watch what happened and those who never knew what the heck happened. Press on!

I see what you did there. That’s awesome as I am not a lyrical genius.

I know it’s situation dependent, but from my vantage point I totally agree with xaarman. It’s rather odd some younger newcomers show up and talk about when they make their Big Move to one Major airline or another and start rolling in the cash needing the 3-400K (it’s weird that they don’t know it doesn’t happen overnight). Maybe they are smart and are just “Preppers”, getting ready for the 2-3 wife, RV, Boat package, etc. I still let them know, if you can’t manage 3-400K, you definitely can’t manage 1-200K. I know there’s a bottom limit, but it’s being tested right now.

If we could just get our public on board expeditiously like they did/have here in Hong Kong, we would have had a much quicker recovery no doubt. It’s also a cultural based momentum and previously had their butts kicked by SARS and gained a huge learning curve from it, so there’s that. Although the initial choke point has passed for the US, we really need to hunker down accordingly and tamper down the effect as best we can as a society. Met with mask kits, temp checks (airport & hotel), paperwork, escorted as needed, even the hotel TV remotes are sealed accordingly. People may argue overkill, but the effectiveness whatever it may be specifically is undeniably working. If we’re going to subsidize incomes (not calling it a bailout, it’s a natural disaster if you will) with $ our nation really doesn’t have, discipline and adherence must be attained. The more protracted this becomes, the worse it will be. Just my thoughts. Super eerie landing here midnight and taxing to the cargo ramp where there’s minimum parking available (Very large ramp) and cargo/workers everywhere and like an anthill. Other side almost completely dormant, no movement, no people to be seen, pax carrier silhouettes on the vast ramps where they left a few lights on. Truly surreal... You can’t make this sh*t up. We need to get these economies rolling again. Great to hear some measure of subsidies/provisions are being given and people have planned accordingly. Drive on, Press on and be safe!

Yup, just made a deal with the Wendy’s manager across from my hotel to be able to walk thru the drive thru and get some grub. Frozen meals might get super boring I stay here too long, variety is better. Gotta do what ya gotta do.

Won’t lie, not fun after operating from Anchorage. At least it was a Tahoe and not a Camry and have a couple of days off sleeping/working out (nothing worth venturing out for ) here in DE. Heck, even the Wendy’s shutdown dining-in at 8 PM / drive thru only for the foreseeable future today. Lucky I made a deal with manager today, making the drive thru a walk thru if I don’t want to eat hotel food or microwave food. This is getting messy, but I have food access for now and I am logistically sound with TP. Catch up on my reading, rest and movies I guess.

Briefed BG Orcutt several times before I retired from the AOC at Tyndall. He seemed a nice enuff guy, but behind the scenes he didn’t want any of us calling each other by our call signs and he made it known when 1st AF Bossman wasn’t anywhere to be seen. What a PC bend over or whatever you want to call it. 1st AF Boss didn’t care... he used our call signs. Cucumbered would be fine with me, 😐 sorry that wasn’t too funny...

Landed JFK today (Sunday 4 PM) and as we taxied to the cargo ramp I counted 11 Delta Heavies (767, A330, 777) clustered amongst ground vehicles (ice trucks, etc.) behind the terminal which had another actually 4 Delta Heavies attached to it. Are these 11 aircraft backup maintenance aircraft, overflows or “parked”??? Our Tahoe driver drove thru part of NYC to the Holland Tunnel since it was faster he said. We never go thru the City in the evenings due to traffic. We listened to the Mayor speech live as he indicated NYC schools are closed officially and first plan is to evaluate reopening end of April and be prepared to call the 2019-2020 school year over. Driver was right, it was quicker up to Dover, DE barely any traffic therefore constant fast movement... Granted, it was Sunday but very weird.

I hope you land rubber side down and sit-out this fiasco comfortably. Great to hear you didn’t cut ties with your unit. Always good to have options which is a gem. May you land safely and content, at least for now while this thing burns up, down and eventually out...

I envy you, I hope to leave at 60 myself for personal reasons of health, financial health and the ability to focus on family, hobbies and travel (ground travel) while I can still hike around and not stumble around significantly. I stumble now. I was wrong not to state there is another study that shows pilots live longer than the general population as well and yet other data indicating we all are the same regardless of occupation. I can get on board that genes play a big role and pilots of today tend to be much more fitness conscious and have changed their eating/drinking habits these past several decades compared to the aforementioned studies form 1992 (pass earlier) and 1996 (live longer) therefore live longer. Couple of FedEx guys who jumped with us last year gave me the following info which bodes well in your case “Springer.” I still have this in my notes: Retire 60 - Live an average of 18 years after retirement = 78 Retire 65 - Live an average of 8 years after retirement = 73 I think you’ll live longer as long as you remain engaged in some form of mindful activity. My father passed at 78 and he was at the pinnacle of specialties as a doctor when he retired and created other challenges to keep his cognitive skills sharp as a tac, but cancer attacks the best of us. 3 times in his case, true fighter! My CPAP and Colonoscopies barring other anomalies will increase my longevity whatever that might be. Dang, I envy your 59 departure. Going to be tuff walking away from this gig not necessarily the monetary value, but the pond hopping adventures I get myself into aside from the current fiasco going on.