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View Full Version : Do Airline Fleet Management talk to Line Pilots?


Shitsu_Tonka
1st Mar 2006, 09:23
This needs to be aired.

ATC's are told - constantly - by their management, that the major airlines do NOT want to be taken off STAR or off SID or to have speeds cancelled in the approach / departure phases of flight - nor do they want track shortening. (Weather Diversions / Inflight Welding notwithstanding)

The argument (and please don't shoot the messenger) is that such things will cost fuel. (And anger the flight path free NIMBY suburbs)

(BTW - ATC do understand about power off FMC descents - unfortunately, your FMC aint talking to the FMC of the aircraft in front or behind - yet. Or the FMC in the busted ass Chieftain.)

I am wondering, politely, if anyone from your fleet department is telling you pilot types these things? Because - Often the first thing heard on frequency - sometimes before such trivialities as assigned altitudes, or a friendly hello, is a request for DCT here or there, or DCT the next STAR point or any chance of 'high speed descent for the visual'. And ATC luuuurve to facilitate this .... but are being told t h a t y o u d o n o t W A N T t h i s ..... (it is very confusing for our simple minds)

Just so you know - a certain ATS provider is Australia (?) is so serious about adherance to this, that direct tracking, or track shortening, is in fact technically still verboten, punishable by dismissal, then execution - or worse, more overtime.

So - whats going on? (seriously!)

[If we still had famil flights we could talk about these things - PPrune is next best - as long as it isn't a slanging match]

Dropt McGutz
1st Mar 2006, 09:52
We've always been encouraged to get any track shortening due to the savings involved.

404 Titan
1st Mar 2006, 12:19
****su_Tonka

I believe the airline I work for signed some agreement recently with your employer to consult and work with each other to streamline things like this. If your management is telling you that we don’t want track shortening, high speed etc, you are being told a fib and the next time we have a meeting with them they may be brought to task on it. We are in the business of doing this job as safely and efficiently as possible. Getting the aircraft on the ground as quickly as possible helps us achieve this.