I have been retired for about 10 years but a bit of history.
Definition: cap - credit to achieve pay
When bidline was first introduced (70's) there were 13 bid periods of 28 days in a year and the cap was 80hrs per 28 day period.
So 13 x 28 x 80 = 1040 hrs.
When there was a move to calendar bid periods there was a need to adjust that figure and hence 5 hours was added to account for the fact that there are 13x28+1 days in a year and +2 in a leap year.
The 4½ hr minimum credit was chosen as that gives, roughly, 18 working days in any 28 day period, think civil servant.
The cap varies by calendar month to take account of the different month lengths.
Flexi cap was introduced to account for seasonal variations in the available work.
Deleted bit.
The rest may have changed but probably not much.
For planning, trip credit is the greater of scheduled flying hours, scheduled time away from base divided by 4 (?), scheduled duty hours divided by 2 (?) or 4½ hours.
Actual hours credited are the greater of scheduled trip credit or achieved trip credit.
(It can actually be advantageous to grind round the Lambourne hold)!!
Leave/Duty Free Week is decided by a points system - perceived bad weeks (non school holidays) accrue more points.
Plan ahead if you may have a requirement in later life to have school holidays off.
A few words about bidding.
It is a dog eat dog process.
Spend some time reading the rules - many wont.
If you can't get what you want make sure someone else gets what you don't want.
Make time to do it properly - It used to take me a good afternoon every month.
Count how many bidders there are ahead of you and make that number of bids, avoid bids like "any trip line", "any blind line" (some are better than others) take time to put them in order.
Remember you can be wiped but usually the computer will keep trips already on the line.
Remember several will not be bothered, some wont want HEL (too cold), BDA (always a howling crosswind), Lagos (if you've been there you'll know why) and others will cock it up so you may be happily surprised what you get.
Do not bid (unless you particularly want it) for lines with fixed days off in the subsequent period (it may cock next month up, make sure someone else gets it).
Do not break the bank - life ruined for at least one month.
Remember, the more flexible you are the more happy you are likely to be and this includes when the rosterer rings you up (draft can be very lucrative).
My two penneth so I will try not to comment further.
Last edited by finncapt; 9th Sep 2011 at 08:32.
Reason: Incorrect bit deleted.