Australia, New Zealand & the Pacific Airline and RPT Rumours & News in Australia, enZed and the Pacific

Toughest Duties

Old 17th Mar 2017, 07:22
  #21 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: Perth Australia
Age: 80
Posts: 280
Likes: 0
Received 3 Likes on 1 Post
Got someone going.

Different era, lots more fun, knew most of the Pax we carried by first names and they us.

A 5 channel VHF, tuneable HF receiver, no FSU except MKR, engine starts were an acquired art, 2 Gal oil jugs carried up to the top of the cowell via the wing, over wing refuelling in ALL weathers.

IFR plan, VFR procedures, an indifferent auto-pilot, no aircon, box lunch put on in Perth.

NDB at Magnet and MKR with 2 NDBs at Perth with an ILS no VOR anywhere.

Shoes were required as the rudder pedals could be quite warm:

No magenta line, wiss wheel calculations.

An employer who actually cared, Horrie Miller always called me by my name so he remembered or asked when we arrived so he could do this.

All on less than $3500 a year, pure gold those days, regrettably no more.

greybeard is offline  
Old 17th Mar 2017, 07:54
  #22 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Australia
Posts: 4,955
Likes: 0
Received 1 Like on 1 Post
2 NDBs at Perth
One at the old flying boat base on the river (PH 400??)

an indifferent auto-pilot,
An autopilot, what luuuxxxxury!!! That's what the co-pilot (before they became known as First Officer) was for, to fly the aeroplane ---- and that ILS thingy, that was strictly "secret Captain's business".

At least we did have 90 channel Murphy VHF comms ---- the one with the two dirty great selector wheels, to select the numbers either side of the "dayceeemal" ---- to select the actual crystals, none of this frequency synthesis.

The A in ADF was a bit of a fiction, but never mind, the loop ( BRT - Big Round Thing) was in the cockpit roof, withing a short reach of either seat, not like the crank handle on the Bendix ADF box's from the land of the septics.

Tootle pip!!

PS: I have a Bendix "A"DF receiver out back, the box weight is just over 70 pounds, about, about 30 kgs in new money ---- a current equivalent is lighter than just the Bendix cockpit controller.
LeadSled is offline  
Old 17th Mar 2017, 08:36
  #23 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Australia
Posts: 642
Received 19 Likes on 5 Posts
Any duty towards the end of the month, as the A380 movies haven't been updated yet...


Last edited by ruprecht; 17th Mar 2017 at 09:03.
ruprecht is offline  
Old 17th Mar 2017, 09:12
  #24 (permalink)  
Man Bilong Balus long PNG
 
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Looking forward to returning to Japan next year, but in the meantime continuing the never ending search for a bad bottle of Red!
Age: 69
Posts: 2,959
Received 87 Likes on 50 Posts
What Mangi Fokker said!

Tokua - Lihir (Buka)
Buka? You got to Buka.... to perve on the Meris??

Half ya flamin' luck Mate!!
Pinky the pilot is offline  
Old 17th Mar 2017, 13:21
  #25 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Just over the bridge!!
Posts: 13
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Mangi Fokker!

You forgot the "quick " Kandrian shuttle just to top the day off.

If was tough working in the bush but I find 4 sectors in a shiny jet swapping from lates to earlies with a red eye thrown in more knackering now��.

The Kid
Callicutt Kid is offline  
Old 17th Mar 2017, 19:33
  #26 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: sincity
Posts: 1,192
Received 27 Likes on 15 Posts
Daylight in your own timezone. Heh.
maggot is offline  
Old 17th Mar 2017, 21:19
  #27 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Mar 1999
Location: Someday I will find a place to stop
Posts: 1,017
Likes: 0
Received 4 Likes on 3 Posts
Sign on 0600
Single crew
2-8 sectors
Sign off 1900
DeltaT is offline  
Old 17th Mar 2017, 21:49
  #28 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Australia
Age: 58
Posts: 416
Likes: 0
Received 8 Likes on 3 Posts
Looking busy on a day off.
CharlieLimaX-Ray is offline  
Old 18th Mar 2017, 09:29
  #29 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: OZ
Posts: 1,116
Received 11 Likes on 5 Posts
Back in the GODs when Moby Dick was a sardine, we used to have a truly delightful night ex LHR on the B747 Classic. We did LHR-AMS-VIE-BAH departing around 1900 ex LHR every Thursday. Doesn't sound too bad but try 2 Cat II approaches and a bit of circadian disrhythmia in winter and 2 short sectors. Now it's tough, very tough. Luckily we were young and silly. Also the Swechat brewery supplied excellent bevvies through our ops people in VIE, life had its compensations. Seniority worked as it should, the most junior FEO, me, did lots of them.
mustafagander is offline  
Old 20th Mar 2017, 11:22
  #30 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Feb 2017
Location: Toowoomba
Posts: 45
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
More PNG "good ol days"

First day working for Laurie crowley in Lae, 30 mins in a 205 with the chief pilot to prove I could fly it, then Lae - Telefolmin -Yellow R. - Green R. - Wewak -Lae. Long haul in a 205.

and then there was the day finding a bush strip by starlight..
FL235 is offline  
Old 21st Mar 2017, 10:40
  #31 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Freedom At Last
Posts: 82
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Mate,
I thought my
SIN - MLE - SIN ETOPS
13 hr duty from 6pm - 7am was tough.




Originally Posted by Mangi Fokker
5:30am bus Kimbe
6:30am sign on Hoskins (DHC6)
7am departure Hoskins- Uvol
Uvol - Jacquinot Bay
Jacquinot Bay - Gonalie
Gonalie - Manguna
Manguna - Cape Orford
Cape Orford -Tol
Tol - Tokua
Tokua - Lihir (Buka)
Lihir (Buka) - Tokua
Tokua - Tol
Tol - Cape Orford
Cape Orford - Manguna
Manguna - Gonalie
Gonalie- Jacquinot Bay
Jacquinot Bay - Uvol
Uvol - Hoskins
6pm sign off
7pm bus drops you home in Kimbe
11.5 hours duty, 12 hours rest
Sign on again 0630 next day. Do it all again.
West New Britain 1990s post eruption.
FlyingChipmunk is offline  
Old 21st Mar 2017, 23:03
  #32 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: Perth Australia
Age: 80
Posts: 280
Likes: 0
Received 3 Likes on 1 Post
What, no more speed boat rides in the dark to and from Bandos.

Crap duty hours, not good at all.

greybeard is offline  
Old 22nd Mar 2017, 04:32
  #33 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: May 2016
Location: Townsville
Posts: 82
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Those 16 sector days were single pilot, but with the right engine running and an efficient male (due heavy lifting) Flight Attendant, it was possible to have some very quick turn arounds. Only refueling was Tokua and Hoskins. Also Airlink and Islands Aviation competed on the service, so we were generally racing each other. Big days though, all the pilots were under 35, that undoubtedly helped.
Mangi Fokker is offline  
Old 22nd Mar 2017, 05:59
  #34 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: In a lot of different Hotels
Posts: 70
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Great days flying back then, had a ball with Islands Nationar my girlfriend at the time used to occupy the right seat of the Otter sorting out the tickets and fares.
splat72 is offline  
Old 23rd Mar 2017, 09:32
  #35 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Australia
Posts: 34
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Originally Posted by Lookleft
Never let the truth get in the way of a good story ( I think it now has a name!)

The Jetstar sector was MEL-ADL-PER-ADL and the flight crew and CM got off and overnighted in ADL. It was all very civilized and a pleasant duty. Unfortunately with most things LCC if the crew enjoy a pairing it will be changed or dropped altogether.
You haven't been round long enough. It used to go all the way back to MEL with the whole crew....
limitedrisk is offline  
Old 23rd Mar 2017, 09:50
  #36 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: closer to hell
Age: 52
Posts: 914
Received 2 Likes on 2 Posts
Originally Posted by splat72
Great days flying back then, had a ball with Islands Nationar my girlfriend at the time used to occupy the right seat of the Otter sorting out the tickets and fares.
Hmmm....I don't recall too many male FAs at INA, in fact some of the tidiest female FAs worked there
troppo is offline  
Old 25th Mar 2017, 23:59
  #37 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: The Outer Marker hut
Posts: 229
Received 8 Likes on 5 Posts
Toughest duty? I don't think any duty in isolation is particularly fatiguing or tough. By far the worst of the worst is the constant grind of max duty, lots of short sectors, crappy forecasts, crappy ATC, crappy efficiency policies, early starts after RDOs with late finishes before. Then there's the passive aggressive sh!t from management when you decide not to extend or go fatigued.

It's the chronic nature of shabby rostering and predatory managers that are creating this fatigue (and morale) bubble. When it busrts is anyone's guess, but when it does, it's going to be fugly. CASA?? What are you doing?
bazza stub is offline  
Old 26th Mar 2017, 02:20
  #38 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: 133*50 23*50
Posts: 162
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
The NE Mail out of Alice Springs. 12 hours dead reckoning in a 210 at 40 degrees+. 17 or more stops, my memory fails me now.

I'll agree long BOC's can be tedious and tiring, but the above mentioned was the most physically and mentally draining by the end of a day.

Wouldn't trade those ga days for anything now : )
Mail-man is offline  
Old 26th Mar 2017, 11:21
  #39 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: Surrounding the localizer
Posts: 2,200
Likes: 0
Received 2 Likes on 1 Post
As has been said, most duties if you are adequately rested..you can cope with.

How about this 2 weeks for fatiguing

Day 1
9.30am DXB-CMB-SIN..11pm at the Hotac 7pm Body clock
Day 2
10.15pm local sign on SIN-CMB-SIN at home 5am
Day 3 Rest day
Day 4
11.20pm DXB-JNB 8.30am at the Hotac 6.30am Body clock
Day 5
7.30am local sign on JNB-DXB at home 9.45pm
Day 6
2.25pm DXB-KWI-DXB at home 10.50pm
Day 7
DAY OFF
Day 8
3.00am DXB-MAN 7.45am at Hotac 10.45am Body clock
Day 9
7.15am local sign on MAN-DXB at home 8pm
Day 10
7.45pm DXB-RUH-DXB at home 00.15am (into day 11)
Day 11
REST DAY
Day 12
3.15am DXB-COK-DXB at home at 3.30pm
Day 13
2.00pm DXB-DEL-DXB at home 11.45
Day 14
Day off


At the end of that little lot, alternating between day and night, east west etc...I could barely count to 10.
haughtney1 is offline  
Old 26th Mar 2017, 11:34
  #40 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: 41S174E
Age: 56
Posts: 3,080
Received 442 Likes on 121 Posts
I'm surprised you could stand!
framer is offline  

Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service

Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.