BA and Virgin bases?

[What to do?]

Are BA and Virgin pilots solely based in and around Gatwick and Heathrow?

That’s about it!

Cheers

[ultimatepro63]

ba are based at heathrow and i think virgin at gatwick but i know ba are based at heathrow for sure:O

[scroggs]

All Virgin Atlantic pilots are Heathrow based.

Scroggs

[Human Factor]

Not sure about VS, but BA longhaul is dual based with a direct report to either LHR or LGW. At the moment, it's only the 777 which does this, although if the -400 ever returns to LGW the same will apply. Shorthaul has different rules for LHR based pilots reporting to LGW. There is also a seperate shorthaul 737 operation at LGW.

[smith]

Do BA have pilot bases at other airports for shorthaul eg MAN, GLA etc and for MAN on the likes of MAN-JFK routes, or are all based in London and just night stop in the regional airports?

[Tandemrotor]

smith

There are some mainline pilots based at MAN and BHX on the 146-RJ100 (possibly EDI soon too!) However, in the short term at least, there will be no future vacancies.

The MAN JFK is a profitable, BACX (wholly owned subsidiary) route, which is crewed in the front from LHR (and is apparently quite a senior trip!)

Of course, there are also a handful of BA pilots at Stansted too!

[scroggs]

Sick Virgin operates a continuous shuttle bus service between Gatwick and Heathrow. You are welcome to park at whichever of the two is most convenient for you, and then get the bus if appropriate. Duty times for LGW departures reflect a nominal 1 hour earlier report at LHR.

There is no petrol money paid at VS.

[Dan Winterland]

I love the way the Virgin roster has you reporting at LHR one hour before your report time at LGW and then it says 'LIMO', implying that there is Roller manned by Carruthers ready to whisk you at speed round the M25.

In fact it's a smelly old bus driven by a bloke called Bob with halitosis, and it leaves on an hourly schedule. So you could actually have to report to LHR up to 1 hour 55 minutes early should you wish to take the bus. So most people just continue to drive themselves round to LGW and save themselves the bother of parking at the not too convenient staff car parking at LHR, getting the bus to the QE building and then getting on the 'limo'.

[scroggs]

I'm lucky - I live exactly the same distance from LGW and LHR, so I rarely use the bus. However, I think you're being a bit harsh about both the bus and the driver - the bus is a rather posh 40-odd seater thingy with a loo and a mini-galley on board and, in my experience, is pretty comfortable. Never had a problem with the driver, either!

The rostered hour is a legacy thing between VS and the CAA and isn't going to change, though it is somewhat galling when you have to turn up at LHR 2 hours or more before your report at LGW. It's hardly a deal-breaker, though, otherwise none of us would commute from far-distant countries, accepting all the inconveniences that implies!

[Dan Winterland]

Agreed, I was a bit harsh about the bus. But I found the 'limo' bit galling because I had to drive from the west. Taking the bus added over two hours to the journey, so I always drove which was about an hour extra.

However, I got the tax man to agree that as LGW was not my normal base and that it was impossible to take the bus and be rested enough to operate up to a 13 hour duty day, that I should get tax relief at the standard mileage rate for the 80 miles return journey between LHR and LGW.

So if the Inland Revenue don't think getting the bus is feasible, why do the CAA? Considering that reporting an hour early for these trips usually leads to discretion under the Florida 2 variation and often some more after that, I'm suprised it's allowed. It certainly leads to a very long and tiring trip.

When more of the 744 operation moves to LGW, Virgin will have to revisit this problem as more pilots will run up against the Florida 2 limits. They've been getting away with this crewing scam for too long. The VACC needs to address this issue asap, otherwise the 744 crews will suffer, finding themselves with a LGW base when they thought they had an LHR base. And knowing Virgin, the relocation won't be generous!

Of course, these are the views of an outsider as I left Virgin 2 years ago.

[Halitosis Bob]

I'll have you know Capt. Winterland that we do indeed have a fleet of limo's at VS which we use to transport our 'preferred' crews around the M25. Just because you were not part of our elite club doesn't mean that the 'LIMO' service didn't exist.

I'm just sorry you had to endure the rickety, clapped out omnibus that I had to drive around all those years because some crews just weren't good enough for the limo service. Still, I'm enjoying my retirement now. Hope you're enjoying the sandpit! :}