The new airline thread

[mp5g]

50 minutes ago, herkbum said:

So what’s the deal with this SWA/UAL feud?


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https://viewfromthewing.com/airline-feud-escalates-united-pilots-barred-from-southwest-airlines-jump-seats-after-controversial-incident/
 

“A newer hire at United jumpseated on SWA recently from SFO-SAN and after the flight was over, decided she would notify the FAA on the inadequacies of the crew whose jumpseat they graciously offered.”

[tac airlifter]

The memes generated from this UA jumpseater are on point.

[Lord Ratner]

7 hours ago, Polar Bear said:

When do these furloughs start? I thought DAL was still hiring. 
 

i don’t remember AA furloughing during COVID. I thought the early retirements worked.

If I had to guess a time, it'll be next year, but the more relevant metric will be whenever the next economic downturn happens. Traffic and consumer spending are at very high levels. If they normalize or retract, we will go from a pilot deficit to a pilot surplus very quickly.

 

We've already basically returned the industry to the adequately staffed level, but as someone said, age 65 remaining in place will help mitigate.

 

Again you have to view it from the context of the people running these companies. It's not Jeff bezos and Elon musk, it's a bunch of accountants who got to where they were by aping the people above them. Now they all just ape each other until something changes. So they all started hiring massively until suddenly they didn't need to. No forecasting went into it, the forecast was "whatever happens today is what we need to plan for for the next 10 years." When one company furloughs you'll see all the others follow suit because "cost savings" will become the Wall Street mantra during a contraction.

 

AA furloughed. It wasn't a long furlough since the government stepped back in, but it happened in September of 2020.

[FourFans]

1 hour ago, herkbum said:

So what’s the deal with this SWA/UAL feud?

UA new hire jumpseated with a SWA crew, then filed an ASAP on that crew without telling them she was doing it.

Edited May 10 by FourFans

[SocialD]

Lots of rumors on this one, with no real solid evidence.  It's going to suck for this girl if it turns out to be false, because her name has already been drug through the mud.  Like the accused rapists that turned out to be innocent and just a victim of a scorned chick, it's really hard to unring that bell.  

[O Face]

 

Edited May 10 by O Face
Double

[O Face]

[SurelySerious]

Was on a UAL jumpseat yesterday, and the CA said I could go as long as I wasn’t going to call the FAA on them. Now it all makes sense.

[Sua Sponte]

5 hours ago, FourFans said:

UA new hire jumpseated with a SWA crew, then filed an ASAP on that crew without telling them she was doing it.

She? Makes sense. 

[Polar Bear]

On 5/5/2024 at 3:32 PM, SocialD said:

 

 

Glad to hear!  Just going off what my broker shared and what some of the locals at my airport are seeing.  The broker said they just had to tell one of their long time customers  that he's probably better off just self insuring at this point.  He's 70 with no accidents.  Hope yours continues to stay reasonable. 

 

 

 

 

I flew international before, but was displaced during rona.  Chose 717 FO for seniority.  Opted to stay on the 717 and upgrade rather than reinstate to the 330.  I found that one time zone was way better for me than doing international.  But I also live local and can often snag day turns where TAFB is less than pay.  My last two day trips I was back in my house before 1300.  To me, a layover is a layover...all I need is enough time for a quick run, maybe a beer and 8 hours of sleep, though I prefer to never layover if at all possible.  Most of my domestic cities aren't any worse or better than the same 6-9 places I went international.  AMS got boring after the 69th time I was there, nevermind I was constantly walking around with a headache.  I think I could fly longer do this over ocean crossings all the time. 

You live local and don’t bid reserve to get paid to sit in your underwear. 

[BashiChuni]

14 hours ago, SocialD said:

Lots of rumors on this one, with no real solid evidence.  It's going to suck for this girl if it turns out to be false, because her name has already been drug through the mud.  Like the accused rapists that turned out to be innocent and just a victim of a scorned chick, it's really hard to unring that bell.  

there's definitely SOMETHING there. the SW capt found out when the FAA called him and asked for details. i think the real question is was it said 25 year old UA FO or her husband.

[SocialD]

17 hours ago, Polar Bear said:

You live local and don’t bid reserve to get paid to sit in your underwear. 

 

I bid reserve most of the year and drop days so as to only be available on 1 or 2 days stretches.  It's just getting harder to drop days and the trips are generally shit as of late.  So when I know I'll be used a lot on reserve (summer), I'd rather just pick my poison, or have the option to dump my trips and pick up broken up trips that are way better than bid packet trips. If you're talking when I was WB, I was junior 10% and got used quite a bit on reserve.  I actually have less TAFB and more nights in my own bed on a NB than I did as a WB guy.  

[Doc]

[hindsight2020]

Apropos of nothing, the gays, grannies and grandes fiasco was a windfall for the offender because of doxxing. Based on the online environment so far, it seems possible this FO could end up laughing all the way to the bank with a similar outcome.

[Springer]

Here is what is being said:

- The pilot was not a new hire
- This incident happened weeks ago
- This pilot helped trap the errors on the flight in question. The entire crew discussed it after landing. They all left on good terms.
- The pilot discussed their day later with a friend.
- The friend, without permission from the pilot and without their knowledge, called the FAA hotline.
- The pilot’s name, picture, and other personal info has been shared across multiple airlines.

[Danger41]

As much as this story sounds plausible, my inner misogynist thinks this chick may be reconstructing history in the debrief after she gets crushed industry wide for being lame. I know it’s highly unlikely for a female to not accept the consequences of her actions, but it’s possible.

[Danger41]

18 hours ago, hindsight2020 said:

Apropos of nothing, the gays, grannies and grandes fiasco was a windfall for the offender because of doxxing. Based on the online environment so far, it seems possible this FO could end up laughing all the way to the bank with a similar outcome.

That guy got paid? I’d pay to listen to his standup routine but otherwise huh?

[BashiChuni]

19 minutes ago, Danger41 said:

That guy got paid? I’d pay to listen to his standup routine but otherwise huh?

rumint he didn't get paid but is sitting on a nice lawsuit if SWA ever tried to fire him

hell of a great guy to fly with from buddies at SWA

Edited May 12 by BashiChuni

[BashiChuni]

24 minutes ago, Danger41 said:

As much as this story sounds plausible, my inner misogynist thinks this chick may be reconstructing history in the debrief after she gets crushed industry wide for being lame. I know it’s highly unlikely for a female to not accept the consequences of her actions, but it’s possible.

agree. what random "friend" calls the FAA...

sounds fishy

[Biff_T]

Sounds a like a good friend. 

[M2]

On 5/11/2024 at 9:01 PM, Springer said:

Here is what is being said:

- The pilot was not a new hire
- This incident happened weeks ago
- This pilot helped trap the errors on the flight in question. The entire crew discussed it after landing. They all left on good terms.
- The pilot discussed their day later with a friend.
- The friend, without permission from the pilot and without their knowledge, called the FAA hotline.
- The pilot’s name, picture, and other personal info has been shared across multiple airlines.

That goes back to Rainman's mantra of never passing up the opportunity to keep your big mouth shut! 

[Champ Kind]

United just expanded their military pilot program (UMPP) eligibility to include AGR:

"To be eligible to participate in UMPP, all Candidates must satisfy the following requirements:  

...currently serving as a full-time Active-Duty member of the Armed Forces of the United States, including active reserves currently serving as TAR, FTS, or AGR"

https://careers.united.com/us/en/united-military-pilot-program

[AirGuardianC141747]

Probably just the tip of the iceberg as others will follow. Definitely a demand out there despite hiring slowdowns due to various issues. Great for those who plan well unless something unforeseen happens which is under no one’s control and that’s our industry. Timing is everything!

[AirGuardianC141747]

It’s been well over 15 years since Atlas has stopped their hiring. It will be a minute while Atlas starts to retrain a vast majority of its 76/73 folks due to steering away from Amazon finally. Most of the 76 fleet will be leased to the other subsidiaries under the Titan Division supporting Amazon while the pax birds for mil/team contracts remain. It’s about time we focused on the high profit areas involving the 74/777 fleet vs the low profit margin areas. Picking up eight aircraft this year with more to follow later. Heavy/Large cargo aircraft is the future and hiring will resume once the transitions are finalized. Personally, this was a good move to distance ourselves from low profit areas and the whipsaw that other entities create.

 

[Springer]

This is a bummer: 

American Latest to Halt Pilot Hiring

The Fort Worth-based carrier said on Thursday that it would pause pilot hiring through the end of the year.

American says it plans to cease pilot hiring for the remainder of 2024. In a memo to conditionally-hired pilots on Thursday, the airline said all new hire classes would be paused through the end of the year as it evaluates ‘commercial and talent needs.’

The carrier joins a growing list of major airlines pumping the brakes on recruitment after a record-setting period of pilot hiring. Both Delta and United have substantially scaled back their pilot hiring outlooks this year. Southwest stopped hiring new aviators altogether.

In an April briefing, American’s Vice President of Flight Operations Russ Moore initially said the carrier would only pause hiring during peak summer and winter holiday months. He added that it plans to hire roughly 1,000 fewer new aviators this year.

“In fact, we hired and trained more pilots in 2023 than we have in the history of this airline, and we did it efficiently enough that we were actually a bit ahead of where we needed to be for the summer of 2024,” Moore shared during the briefing. “This allowed us to transition from a ‘hire and train as many as you can’ approach to a more traditional approach, which in and of itself reduced our hiring targets for 2024.”

Among the reasons for the hiring slowdown are aircraft delivery delays at Boeing, Moore said. American is currently awaiting the delivery of 787-9 Dreamliner and 737 MAX jets from the embattled manufacturer.

“As part of our previously announced capacity adjustments, we are temporarily pausing new pilot class start dates for September, October and November. This decision allows us to optimize our capacity and tailor our talent growth plans to best serve the current needs of our airline,” the carrier said in a statement Thursday evening.

Last year, American hired around 2,300 pilots, according to data from FAPA. Even with the pause, Moore noted that up to 850 of the airline’s pilots retire annually over the next five years.

Editor’s Note: This story was updated on June 20, 2024 at 7:26 p.m. ET to add a statement from American.

Edited June 21 by Springer