Our cost:
125 characters =.75us cents
Average #of characters per TAF / Metar/ ATIS =250=1.5usd
If a crew prints ONLY ONE of this(assuming that the briefing documents do not have and already accurate TAF or Metar) per sector the outcome is as follows:
We have around 5000 sectors per month
5000 sectors x1.5usd=7500usd per month=90000usd per year!
NOW how many times have you see a colleague print the same **** every hour on a flight that will last 12, just to realize that during approach the rwy was changed at the last minute.
If this is the case, make the numbers and they will keep adding up.
If we as professionals, (forget the airline management , chief pilot, crappy schedule) don't behave as such, no complaining or winning when they make us redundant, cut our pay or there is no future expansion. The fact is that those ACARSHOLICS became part of the problem instead of part of the solution.
Good grief! talk about penny foolish..90K USD per year????? if you think that sum of money is a large amount in the grand sceme of things, then I'm afraid you are looking in the wrong place
Hmmmm I wonder what a pair of brake units on the 380 go for these days