Originally Posted by
Willie Nelson
Wear the Foxhat:
Runway changes and checking flap settings are issues around flight safety that have squat diddly to do with any level of management other than their capacity to ensure safe procedures are in place to mitigate the risk, which I believe is now done quite well...
The job is indeed stressful at times and will always be so, its not all the fault of your employer though. There are plenty of less stressful jobs around and it gets to us all at times but I think things have improved a lot since I started and I therefore try to look on the positive side of things.
I know many of the things we do are expected as professional pilots, for example rebrief and flap / data setting check after rwy change. Ive got no beef with that or similar. What I was highlighting is the job is busy enough as professional pilots, without all the decisions management have made to load us up even more. Why do I need the leading hand to attend the cockpit to tell me he has done his job, why can’t this airline after 18 months work out how many people are onboard. Why do I need multiple different zone reports, one correct one will be fine. How hard is it to have marshallers available, stairs on arrival, engineering checks complete when I get to the aircraft for the first flight of the day.
Why am I inundated with rubbish FSO’s, notams, intap’s.It looks like an arse covering exercise from people who have no care for the people who work at the front line.
I get that Syd is 4 sector central, but why make turnaround times unachievable, factor in time for A/C swaps, MEL O procedures. Yes, I choose to live here, is it practical if all Syd crew take the advice of some posters on her and move base or leave? Does that solve anything? How about practical fixes.
If management were serious, they would address the multitude of rostering issues, a preferential bidding system, open time, access to annual leave, access to flexi line without making you wait 12 months. They could recognise that long duty periods with a car park out the back of bourke is counterproductive. The rostering rules we work under weren’t designed with 45 minute commute from car park to terminal, nor 1hr plus commute from home to car park in mind. Factoring in those realities should change maximum duty periods.
To do any of that, they would have to be engaged. And I don’t mean more yammer, FB or notes from Georgina. I mean face to face, stand infront of the troops and tell us what you are doing. Multiple meetings in all the bases so pilots can get heard.
Instead we have an absent Group CEO, Invisible JANZ CEO, Chief pilot who’s never taken any interest in what the NB pilots life is like. Disengagement to the MAX.
No management bulldust, no bluesky this, no aspirational that, no endeavour to do this, project to do that, no looking into this. I want changes, I want recognition that the current work practices are unsustainable and an iron clad commitment to change it NOW. Not in 6 months, not ‘we are recruiting pilots to fix the problem’, we’ll have more pilot in 6 months. Because you wont, pilots are leaving quicker than recruitment can keep up.
No more ‘diversity’, no more ‘celebrating our stars’, no more propaganda in the weekly wrap. I don’t care. ‘We’ve noticed you haven’t logged into Bravo’ No $#@& Sherlock, I don’t care. Instead we get management pilots awarding eachother bravo awards – yes Flipper that’s YOU. So disconnected from the front line it aint funny.
RUN THE AIRLINE. FIX THE ROSTER, LEAVE, FATIGUE, ROSTER SWAPS, RDO’s.
Chook raffles are run better than this joint.