Eicas GP
to steal commands from GSS F/Os
If you join a two aircraft company set up to serve a limited BA cargo contract its rather rash to assume you'll get a command based solely on the possibility of a future expansion.
. It does not take many brain cells to realise that in order to take BA direct commands, GSS will be forced to reduce their existing establishment and redundancies are likely to follow
Errr, no. Not unless GSS are currently flying around with three aircrafts worth of crews instead of two. If they're not then the third aircraft will require
recruitment to crew. 50% of the
new commands are available to BA pilots. 50% of the
new commands are available to existing GSS pilots, 100% of the
new FO positions are available to GSS pilots. Where does redundancy come into it?
Fiftyfour- GB is indeed a small and profitable airline, and BA are large and currently unprofitable. However without the BA brand GB effectively become a high class charter airline, no different to, say, Monarch scheduled services. Would they continue to be as profitable in that form? We're acutely aware of modern commercial reality as we watch privately-owned flag carriers do things better than us, whilst state-owned ones do it worse but get away with it anyway because of subsidies. Are you confident GB would last as a stand alone outfit against the charter big boys and the low costs?
Jack Point - Four sectors? Bring it on! Thats 20% less than I used to do in a day, and I used to bring my own crusty sandwiches because they were better than the crew 'meals'.
Ornithopter - As an ex-regional pilot I have to take issue with two of your points:
2. Create a 'regional' payscale - make it the same as the BACX scales.
BA already had a 'regional' payscale and a 'regional' scheduling agreement, which they used for the
profitable BA Regional division. You propose a new and lower payscale. Perhaps when the losses mount management could propose a lower scale still? Gotta be cost effective for BA! It appears you've fallen for the managment line of 'crew wages to blame'. Regional profitability stands or falls on far larger issues than pilot wages. Compare and contrast the better paid and profitable BA Regional, with the poorer paid and loss making BACX operations at BHX and MAN.
It should be remembered that quite a few BACX guys work there because that is the sort of flying they want to do. Home every evening to see the kids or not many nightstops.
Thats what the vast majority of BA Regional guys wanted to do as well, which is why they tolerated poorer pay and conditions. Strangely enough, there was no sympathy for them when the base closures were announced and a number wanted to stay on the RJ100. In fact if you trawl through the archives of PPRuNe you'll find plenty of people rubbing their hands with glee at the news and telling the BAR guys to F*** off back to LHR. This very thread contains some posts filled with resentment that they actually got to stay.