Well, Remoak, between the Bacon Barbie jokes, for once, you almost make some valid points. I think those of us rashers who are left can see that the Flybe senior “Leadership Team,” commercial and IT are streets ahead of what BA imposed on us and the dross that clung on from within.
It is the operational side of things which are likely to let the new company down. As you say, Easy and Ryan fine tune things on the ramp by the minute and one only has to watch a Baby Formula One turn-round team in action to see how the Loco model should work. Flybe may be slightly better organised at the coalface, but in Baconland, we have suffered for year with having BA handling forced on us. In some of our more remote contracted out destinations, we do still get the full works flexible competent turn-round team meeting us and 15 -20 minute turn-rounds are achievable. In BA land however, we still regularly wait 10 minutes for chocks, 20 minutes for a GPU etc. Parked on a remote stand 1.5 miles from the crewroom? forget the on time departure, you will be lucky if you are only 30 mins late. Need transport? Don’t even think about getting in the “handling agent’s” minibus, that’s reserved for driving the mainline shuttle crews 200m to their machines.
It’s a shame to knock the BA staff, because there are some extremely competent, flexible and proactive despatchers, however, they too are let down and frustrated by the BA machine and the complete lack of management input on the front line unless there is a cappuchino bar within 20 m and its a week day between 10am and 3pm.
Interesting to read the article by le fromage in Flyer where he suggests that if you want a weekend off or need to book a day to plan personal activity, then Flybe is not for you. Strange that, since it doesn’t seem to be a problem in all the other Locos or even mainline companies. I don’t think le fromage has had this problem himself for quite some time. Every weekend guaranteed to be clear, golf on Saturday morning, all weddings and events assured and time off for “personal admin” at any time during the working week.
PS
Give up on the hotel jibes. Most rashers have come from wild west regional backgrounds and have probably clocked up more sleepless hours in flea pits than the combined Flybe workforce. Things are rightly a lot more serious these days, if companies want to get twenty five to thirty hours blocks time out of crews in five days, they do have to face up to having to provide the right support and they have to take their duty of care responsibilities seriously. If there is a noise problem or whatever with a hotel, it is not acceptable. Both the company and the operating Captain would be liable if complaints had been made and they were not acted on, particularly in the czase of a fatigue related incident. Feel free to continue to offer to sleep in the middle of the road, but you will be on your own and not cuddling up with a rasher.
Last edited by biddedout; 18th Feb 2007 at 07:41.