I hate flying freight.

[711]

I really do.

I hate the customs detour , I hate to carry my suitcase for miles, I hate the smell of horse piss, I hate making my own "food", I hate the red message light flashing, I hate the roster, I hate to fly tons of lithium batteries, I hate the 2-men ops thru the night, I hate the 11-days patterns, I hate the pxing after a long duty on the same aircraft, I hate to be tired for weeks, I hate the lack of respect from management pilots, and I really really hate BOM and DEL.

[sodapop]

Money for nothing
Chicks for free

[Mr. Bloggs]

I hate the customs detour: Not much you can do there

I hate to carry my suitcase for miles: Get one with wheels

I hate the smell of horse piss: Write it up in the log book

I hate making my own "food": Learn to cook

I hate the red message light flashing: Don’t answer it.

I hate the roster. Make it work for you.

I hate to fly tons of lithium batteries: Do a visual inspection of all the pallets.

I hate the 2-men ops thru the night: Never use discretion, that means everyone

I hate the 11-days patterns: Write it up

I hate the pxing after a long duty on the same aircraft: Don’t, call in fatigued for the PX sector saying you need sleep. Document your sleep patterns for the whole Duty pattern. Write an ASR-F.

I hate to be tired for weeks: Go to the CX doctor, you may get some time off to recover.


I hate the lack of respect from management pilots: It goes both ways

I really really hate BOM and DEL: Get a girlfriend there.

[sorvad]

I love flying freight....I love launching off in our own jet around the world not knowing where we might end up, I love it we don't have to wait for pissed up muppets in the departure lounge, I love the variety of destinations, I love enjoying a cup of coffee that is hot, I love being able to cook my own food,I love not having to call medlink at 3 a.m because some punter has got a migraine, I love going for a few beers, a good feed and a good old yarn with a good bunch of blokes at the Spice Tree, I miss the camaraderie that just does not exist on the passenger fleet.
I love the fact flying the freighter is as close to the old days of tramping around the world with a bunch of mates as you can get in any airline these days....

.... INCOMING!

[duncan McKokiner]

Thats funny because I hate flying pax.

I used to love flying pax - then i came to CX.

I hate the canned discussion at dispatch where we list the obvious and justify it in an attempt to justify ourselves.
I hate the fake shakey hand game with the girls.
I hate the "Hi, I'm XXX" on the bus, when you know the majority will give you a stiff ignoring for the rest of the flight (and the bus ride to the hotel). (and the rest of the layover come to think of it).
I hate not being able to get a tea because at the TOC becuase the girls are "too busy" - really?
I hate some of the attitudes on the flt deck from people who just love walking down the aisle with gold on their shoulders or telling people at the golf club that they are " a senior capt at cx etc etc".
I hate the nights of RQ.
I hate it when i get a sector that i am behind the curve due extensive RQ for the rest of the month.

I would love the extra pay and the days off that the pax used to get when doing W patterns.

I love the freighter because:
You generally make a fuel decision and no-one argues the toss.
Most guys all know each other and you don't have to adapt the operation to suit the particular capt (or a lot less so).
You go when you are ready and not before
You never worry about being late - and if you are you add 5t to catch a flight.
You ignore all roster changes slipped under the door unless they suit.
You ignore all red lights when in your room.
You can go sick knowing some old A scaler is on res ready to experience the freighter.
There are young Capts who split rest fairly and sensibly and are fun to fly with.
You get a brew as you like and when you like - if not you tell whoever made it that they are a xxxx and go make another.
You can be off the aircraft in seconds from the door open.
You dont have to sell your soul in HK.

Roster could be better and no matter how much, the pay could be better but..

[Al E. Vator]

You hate flying freight?

Try unemployment for a few years and see how much you enjoy that.

Why would you post such a stupid topic?

[nitpicker330]

Guys/girls around the Aviation world are losing their jobs at the moment left right and centre.

Just be happy you work for a successful Airline that currently makes a good profit and is well placed to weather any downturn.

If you still don't see the wood for the trees then LEAVE.

Cheers

[gorter]

I've flown short haul freight and pax and I've flown medium haul pax. My dream job is long haul freight. Can't wait to get the hours to throw my cv at cargolux or gss.

[Basil]

Al E. Vator & nitpicker330,
Beat me to it.
I did wonder if the OP is a troll or a spoilt brat.
I'm not anti CC but:
"You can be off the aircraft in seconds from the door open"
"I love being able to cook my own food"

BUT, as said;
"Do a visual inspection of all the pallets."

Recollect crew shut off packs to start and promptly had serious breathing problems due cracked glass chemical container; and lithium batteries, well, know your drills and y'all be careful.

[Captain Dart]

Freight flying is the best airline flying you can have :ok:.

And I don't do the 'handshake' routine with the Hello Kitty girls; it's insincere, time-wasting and unhygienic, especially in Asia!

[geh065]

And I don't do the 'handshake' routine with the Hello Kitty girls; it's insincere, time-wasting and unhygienic, especially in Asia!

...yes but think of all the money you can save from not buying your own hand cream!!

[broadband circuit]

Some of those comments are not just for freighter flying.


I hate the canned discussion at dispatch where we list the obvious and justify it in an attempt to justify ourselves.

So do most pax pilots, that's why this normally happens:

You generally make a fuel decision and no-one argues the toss.

All of these happen on the pax fleet as well:

You go when you are ready and not before

You never worry about being late - and if you are you add 5t to catch a flight.

You ignore all roster changes slipped under the door unless they suit.

You ignore all red lights when in your room.

There are young Capts who split rest fairly and sensibly and are fun to fly with.

[winter959]

Solution: Don't do it.....

[Blogsey]

...yes but think of all the money you can save from not buying your own hand cream!!
What about the left hand?

[flapsupdown]

Most the time when people complain about being treated unfairly by the company or CC I have some sympathy and usually hear them out....

but this is a perfect example of someone being a whiny little b!tch - stop being a baby - truth is, we all have to work for our money, pilot or otherwise, get over it. Life is tough, and nothing is gonna get handed to you.

If you really hate it so much, stop doing it and quit. Better yet, should have thought about this before you decided to pursue this career and chose to do something else.....but seeing what you're like on here I bet you'd be whining about something stupid like having to show up for work.

If you have something legit, share it. otherwise, grow up and grow a pair.

[geh065]

...yes but think of all the money you can save from not buying your own hand cream!!
What about the left hand?

Good point. I suppose you could rub your hands together afterwards!

[Left Coaster]

Oh my God...suck it up buttercup! Plenty of excellent guys out there actually love the lifestyle...why don't you quit and make room for someone who would be fun to fly with? Glad I wont ever have to share a flightdeck with you!

[Fly747]

What a pussy he doesn't even want to carry his own bag!
I much rather pax on the freighter than have hello kitty keep offering me a wet rag. I can fart loudly and scratch my bollocks and walk around in just my shreddies and go for a piss when I want to. Not quite so good now without the FEs but plenty of guys would give their eye teeth to cruise the skies in a 747.
Maybe you just don't want to be a pilot at all.

[Burger Thing]

What a pussy he doesn't even want to carry his own bag!
I much rather pax on the freighter than have hello kitty keep offering me a wet rag. I can fart loudly and scratch my bollocks and walk around in just my shreddies and go for a piss when I want to. Not quite so good now without the FEs but plenty of guys would give their eye teeth to cruise the skies in a 747.
Maybe you just don't want to be a pilot at all.

Ha Ha. So funny but true! Glad I wasn't drinking coffee when I read this. :p

[stilton]

I can't really think of a downside, people used to say 'well if you fly freight it's all night flying'


90% of my flying is either in the dark or it's dark at home base so 'so what ?



I would be quite happy to fix myself something to eat / drink than have to deal
with these fat old bitter dragons we have on the western side of the pond, plus I could go back to whiz without having to interact with them.


No passenger issues ?


Bring on the Lithium batteries, I'll take my chances :eek:

[Iron Skillet]

Obviously, few people are paying attention to the problem. The F PX problem is not about having to make your own meal or get your own drink. People in HK still think a PX means a little ride to TPE to pick up a stranded jet when crew hours have run out, or when filling in for someone sick to end up riding back from EUR or somwhere.

Try endless months of PXing to ANC from NAM, the go back and forth twice to HKG but with another PX on one of those to keep the hours down, then after operating HKG-ANC and clearing customs, staying on the a/c (1-2 hrs of ground time) to PX to MIA and staying on the plane to PX (1.5-3 hrs of ground time) to PX to your base at LAX, covering 3 of the 4 corners of NAM after arriving from Asia, for 1 1/2 days in the plane, perhaps with a few others sharing that small space and the 1 remaining bunk, with no TV. Think I'm making this up? Then you're supposed to drive home, or show up at a terminal and use the 1 ZED partner still available to get home.

Or how about flying 2-man through the night (but not 2-6AM, of course, 205AM-10AM) only to spend another 1.5-3 hrs on the ground before continuing to PX to EUR via another stop, or VIA EUR and continue to PX back to India, or vice versa?

Or how about PXing to HKG only to go back where you came from the next day with the previous day's operating crew PXing you back to where you came from, 10 1/2 hours away, just so nobody gets 1 hour of EFP?

[Billy Pin]

Yes sirrrrrrrrr

[Steve the Pirate]

I can fart loudly and scratch my bollocks and walk around in just my shreddies and go for a piss when I want to. Not quite so good now without the FEsEr, I think I know what you mean...

[Evanelpus]

just my shreddies and go for a piss when I want to

Do you have to put your hand up on a pax flight then?

[Fly747]

Yes you do on a pax flt when the seat belt sign is on.

[8driver]

Iron Skillet,

The PX abuses on the freighter are well known. The recent cases of 074 being rerouted to go ANC-MIA-LAX and having LAX guys ride the entire way from ANC is one of the worst. People need to refuse when this is assigned and take the hotel in ANC. Unfortunately, if the same pattern runs the next day they will try to force it again, and really there is no excuse for there not being a PT ticket to LAX.

The freighter PX works for a lot of us in NAM though, and it is the only way to get to our homes or preferred ports without much of a hassle. In my case I am based in LAX with a preferred port in MIA, and I live in Florida. A majority of my patterns include a PX to MIA from ANC at the end of a trip. If I were to refuse to PX on the freighter here is what would happen. I would never get a PT ticket to MIA because a ticket to LAX is much cheaper. Both cities require a hub stop most of the year, Alaska Airlines will have some LAX non-stops in the summer. The ticket will be in economy class in most cases, because in CX's world of warped definitions US domestic first class is somehow "better" than trans-pac business class. This of course is not the case, but trying to get them to accept that US domestic first class seats don't even have as much legroom as the seats in the back of the freighter seems to be impossible. So I would get to ANC, clear customs, go to the pax terminal, do the security thing, then sit and wait for a flight to LAX. My seat would be not of my choosing in the back, I would transit SEA, then in LAX I would either have to sit in a terminal some more or buy a hotel. Then I could ride the full fare ticket I have purchased to my home in Florida, because pass riding hasn't been possible since 2008 with reduced domestic capacity.

Compare this to how it works now. I clear customs, get back on the jet, have a meal, and crawl into a bunk for at least six hours and I'm in MIA by six AM, hopefully rested and partially adjusted to my home time zone. Rarely are there more than one of us on board PXing. This works for a lot of us. Yeah, DFW-ATL is a long PX after operating but would you rather have a wait and have an economy seat in the back of Delta for seven hours? That's one of the longer ones. For me its a no brainer, I don't want to PT/PD anywhere in the back of a US carrier these days if its more than about three hours. Especially after operating out of HKG and if a freighter gets me there in half the time.

The reason I put this out there is that there isn't one solution for everybody. For a lot of guys having the option to refuse to PX on the freighter as their Cos guarantees would improve lifestyle. In my case the back end of a lot of trips would cost a lot of money and time and would turn into hell. So it should be a choice. And of course turning sectors to PX to drop credit hours oughta be flat out banned. If its your sector you should only come off it as operating crew for limitations reasons.

[On the beach]

Bloody 'ell, sounds like the makings of the lyrics to a new "Coldplay" song. :ok:

Music to slash your wrists to. :E

On the beach

P.S. Perhaps half an hour in the hold listening to "James Blunt" will cheer you up? :O

P.P.S. How are you guys on Mondays? :eek: (rhetorical question, I've heard you!) :)

[Steve the Pirate]

Sorry 8driver, that just won't do - far too lucid and balanced.

STP

[Cavallier]

Regarding farting loudly when px ing on the freighter, did a DAC - HAN px sector where the riding engineer was so shameless when doing it I thought he was constantly ****ting himself!!!
Personally I have no real problem with positioning on the freighter. It is the half credit for positioning that I have a major problem with as it makes the rosters so inflexible. My 9 pX sectors next month are testament to this.

The Cav

[Iron Skillet]

8Driver, no argument, it should be a choice, but right now it's their choice, against our COS, and because it suits some, many others suffer.

The solution is simple: We all agree (and it seems the company finally does too) that the COS does not allow it, but we all agree to give into the company's desire to keep using F PX when the rostering of PX follows certain rules that suit us. Win-win: They save money some or most of the time, and we get what we want (either PX or no PX depending on the situation).

But that would make everyone happy through compromise. :ugh:

[Ohm Sweet Ohm]

I was Px'ing on a pax flight the other day, I was sound asleep only to be rudely poked in the arm and woken by a CC because my seat was not upright. When I moved the seat it moved just under 2 inches! iRobots! :ugh:

On the Freighter you don't have the joys of that or of the CC storming up to you and demanding you turn your iPad off at 19,999ft!

[grounded27]

You want a 9-5 quit, why the rant?