Originally Posted by klinit
From what I've understood, VS allows commuting crew. Just wondering: What shorhaul airlines do they have agreements with (for commuting), and what kind of discounts do commuting staff receive? Does BA have a similar arrangement?
Officially VS require that crew are able to report to LHR 2 hours and LGW 3 hours after being called out. Now that's the official line. Unoficially they do indeed support commuters as much as they can and many a time I have heard crewmembers easily changing their duties on the day because of closed airports in scotland or strikes in Spain. But it is still somewhat a risk if you lived somewhere with very high flight loads and would fail to report for duty.
Commuting staff receive no special treatment as to flights. Same ZED fares apply with all major airlines. They are available to you 6 months after joining date. So you're looking at about 50-70 GBP per return flight around europe about 4-6 times per month. That will be offset by lower rents (unless you want Paris or Geneva) and mostly tax free pay.
Good luck and keep in mind - some of our crews live as far as New York and Miami and they commute just like anyone else.