Overmanning is a good thing
Well guys, I think you should take this overmanning of the bases as a good thing. It means you are more likely to PX to/from HKG, according to Phil. That gives you 9+ hours to sleep or study or watch movies, if it is on the pax a/c. Those 3 man flights to/from Australia are hard work. Now with overmanning CX will ensure you are well rested in J/F and ready to do a days full of chores with the family...and you get half credit as well!
I have been based, temp based and commuted....give me commuting anyday as at least I get a few hours rest. PXing is even better than commuting - free ticket, 1st priority, no downgrades (unlike my FOC) - 50% credit for zero work...much better than our free reserve!
You are more likely to have reserves on your base - and because it is so overmanned you are unlikely to be called out;-) You will be G day limited and duty hour limited since the PX time counts as duty hours - so you no longer have to worry about those troublesome 84+hr months.
So all in all, you are likely to 'work' the same number of days but a lot of that work will involve selecting which wine you want with your meal PXing backwards and forwards;-)
Maybe I just see the silver lining in any cloud;-)