How is it on BA Mixed Fleet, are you enjoying it?
Join Date: Mar 2011
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Thats why the allowances are not disimilar to NRT Count. I was there 2 months ago and breakfast was £38. You can do it cheaper as there is a supermarket out of the hotel and to the left about 10 mins walk . You can also fill your bag with flip flops lol. Oh and please please please please dont show wealth ie leave your mobiles, watches, rings locked in the hotel safe. Its a great trip and I for one hope it swaps back soon.
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Talking to managers. Perhaps I misquoted when I said BA would be "happy" with 30%, rather upto this figure would be within the planning assumptions made when MF was set up. As I said the concept of MF is not one of long term careers with their associated high costs, the model is one of high turn over and fresh faces. Ultimately the labour market will decide on what the turnover is and there will a training cost implication in a high turnover rate. This will have to be balanced against the higher costs of long term retention of MF crew. It may well be a strategy that only works in the short term while the world economy is still struggling, as the economy picks up and jobs become easier to find the turnover rate may well increase to an unsustainable level and T&Cs will improve, but at the moment BA are not concerned about the turnover rate. It is, however, early days.
By the by, I am merely reporting things that I have heard from sources that I consider to be reliable. Please do not infer or conclude that I am defending these opinions, they are not mine but just things that I have heard, also feel free to believe others if you think they have more concrete information.
By the by, I am merely reporting things that I have heard from sources that I consider to be reliable. Please do not infer or conclude that I am defending these opinions, they are not mine but just things that I have heard, also feel free to believe others if you think they have more concrete information.
Yes I know the supermarket, but it is a bit small. If you cannot afford to eat in Rio, at least the Bacardi is cheap.
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Ollie,
Working backwards from your quoted figure of £990 for a full month, with £100 on Host that gives a net monthly of £1090. A quick play with the 'annual salary calculator' lurking on the net would give you a gross annual of £15,800 (assuming no pension contributions) or around £17,000 (with pensions at 8% of salary).
Out of interest do you know what you pension contribution rate is (assuming you have any.....).
How do those figures compare to what you were led to believe prior to joining?
No agenda, just curious to know how far adrift of expectations the salary is, and how far it needs to move to get to the oft quoted 'market rate +10%'
Working backwards from your quoted figure of £990 for a full month, with £100 on Host that gives a net monthly of £1090. A quick play with the 'annual salary calculator' lurking on the net would give you a gross annual of £15,800 (assuming no pension contributions) or around £17,000 (with pensions at 8% of salary).
Out of interest do you know what you pension contribution rate is (assuming you have any.....).
How do those figures compare to what you were led to believe prior to joining?
No agenda, just curious to know how far adrift of expectations the salary is, and how far it needs to move to get to the oft quoted 'market rate +10%'
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I've really enjoyed reading this thread and appreciate the frankness of crew on the the new M/F flying. My only thoughts, and I am certainly not an expert in this, is that having worked for BA in the past and now working in North America, I just sort of see this as taking a North American sort of blueprint and placing it on a rostering and salary system, and I can see some problems with that. The whole single fleet somewhat works over here because crew are paid by the flight hour and fly a certain number of flight hours a month. Once we reach our flight hours, we have days off; therefore, many months some crew enjoy 12-17 days off whilst still being productive. It just seems in bidding for trips through a preferential bidding system, somehow we all for the most part get our needs met. Some North American disadvantages would be the seniority system that renders some routes unattainable by junior crews and the standby system at some airlines where one can sit on permanent standby until his/her seniority reaches a point where a schedule can be held (depending on the location, that can be years). Nevertheless, perhaps in time as Mixed Fleet evolves, conditions will naturally improve and mutually beneficial working schemes will be agreed upon. We all entered this industry for similar reasons: to travel and see the world, to have flexible working hours, and time off whilst earning a reasonable living. I wish everyone the very best at Mixed Fleet and I hope all of your dreams in aviation are realized.
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Couple of interesting rumours flying around. Does MF have to pay for your bar/DF/bunk keys, and if so how much. Also are you being asked to close the doors behind you in T5 when leaving the a/c as they wont be sending ground staff down to your a/c on disembarkation. Thanks
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Does MF have to pay for your bar/DF/bunk keys, and if so how much.
Also are you being asked to close the doors behind you in T5 when leaving the a/c as they wont be sending ground staff down to your a/c on disembarkation.
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STC - Thanks for that. Thought as much, just the usual bitter rhetoric towards MF by some
Far from perfect as a fleet, lots to work on but let's not deal with fantasy either!
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The issue of closing the doors on the jetty is not based on the ability of anyone to be able to shut a door, it is a question of responsibility.
BA want to reduce the number of its groundstaff, so that it is left to the cabin crew to ensure all passengers have disembarked. Instead of groundstaff assisting passengers on the ground, it will be down to the cabin crew who may already have just completed an exhausting flight.
If a passenger has been left on board because he/she was in a toilet and the crew did not check properly, this would become a disciplinary issue.
Mixed Fleet crew have no choice in the matter whether they make it work or not. They do not belong to a union. They will do as they are told.
BA want to reduce the number of its groundstaff, so that it is left to the cabin crew to ensure all passengers have disembarked. Instead of groundstaff assisting passengers on the ground, it will be down to the cabin crew who may already have just completed an exhausting flight.
If a passenger has been left on board because he/she was in a toilet and the crew did not check properly, this would become a disciplinary issue.
Mixed Fleet crew have no choice in the matter whether they make it work or not. They do not belong to a union. They will do as they are told.
Last edited by Count Niemantznarr; 3rd Jun 2011 at 09:31.
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If a passenger was left on board because he/she was in the toilet and the cabin crew didn't check properly, to be quite honest, they probably deserve a disciplinary. How could a crew together be collectively that unaware of the state of their aircraft? Why should ground staff be more aware of passengers in the toilet than cabin crew?
The cabin crew job starts at the briefing table and ends at the briefing table, regardless of what happens in between - tiring flight or not. If the environment is too fatiguing, this needs to be taken up with the airline and (failing it being properly addressed there) the CAA.
MF crew, all being experienced with other airlines, are much more likely to understand their responsibilities throughout their duty than crew who have been pampered by absurd union restrictions.
The cabin crew job starts at the briefing table and ends at the briefing table, regardless of what happens in between - tiring flight or not. If the environment is too fatiguing, this needs to be taken up with the airline and (failing it being properly addressed there) the CAA.
MF crew, all being experienced with other airlines, are much more likely to understand their responsibilities throughout their duty than crew who have been pampered by absurd union restrictions.
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Whoops I have been doing it wrong for the past 18 years as a CSD by leaving the aircraft only when the last passenger has left the aircraft. The last duty onboard the aircraft for every crew member is to check their area of the cabin including toilets that it is clear of all passengers and any left handbaggage is brought to be handed to the passenger service agent who will be waiting for the all clear so he/she can then leave with any MAAS or whoever. this has certainly been the procedure during my short time of 25 years in BA.
Young Paul the cabin crew at BA do not return to Crew Report post flight at BA as once they clear customs they are free to go and catch their return flights home, busess, tube etc; last flight B747 a team of 15 cabin crew and 3 pilots only 2 lived in the UK so it was a mass run for departures.
Young Paul again you are wrong about MF being ex flyers. CSMs and Future Talent crew are ex flyers; the main crew however are mainly from none airline jobs and for many it is their first time on a aircraft.
This procedure that is being trialled is for most exactly what they have been doing for their BA careers but there will be a question about left on board handbaggage and what happens when a pax discovers at immigration they have left their passport on board or whatever as the door to the air bridge will have been closed and security will then be in charge.
Young Paul the cabin crew at BA do not return to Crew Report post flight at BA as once they clear customs they are free to go and catch their return flights home, busess, tube etc; last flight B747 a team of 15 cabin crew and 3 pilots only 2 lived in the UK so it was a mass run for departures.
Young Paul again you are wrong about MF being ex flyers. CSMs and Future Talent crew are ex flyers; the main crew however are mainly from none airline jobs and for many it is their first time on a aircraft.
This procedure that is being trialled is for most exactly what they have been doing for their BA careers but there will be a question about left on board handbaggage and what happens when a pax discovers at immigration they have left their passport on board or whatever as the door to the air bridge will have been closed and security will then be in charge.
Last edited by prism; 4th Jun 2011 at 10:08.
and Botox is a saviour LOL. I stopped ageing at 40 
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Prism: The point is, the job isn't over till it's over. Count's suggestion was almost that it was bad that the cabin crew should be held responsible for passengers once the doors were opened, because they might have just finished a "tiring" flight. That, IMO, betrays a disconnect between his/her idea of what the cabin crew role is and that of the rest of the industry. You agreed, in effect, with your ironic "I have being doing it wrong ..." I would suggest, with respect, that the fact that only 2/18 of a crew live in the same country as their base, is another sign of a pretty fundamental disconnection with the real world.
A fair number of bright and experienced cabin crew from my airline have joined MF, both as CSM/FT and normal crew, and I know that on the courses there were people from a good number of other airlines.
A fair number of bright and experienced cabin crew from my airline have joined MF, both as CSM/FT and normal crew, and I know that on the courses there were people from a good number of other airlines.
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Young Paul BA recruited in the 1990's to a spec that you didnt even get an interview unless you were fluent in at least one other european language so we therefore recruited directly in Spain, Eire, Italy, France, Netherlands etc. More than 50% of our Pax do not speak English as a first language as we are a global airline. Our language skills are constantly in use and the skill is invaluable. It is normal to have at least 4 languages spoken amongst the crew if not more. Once people have their concessions they then tend to move back to be with families and loved ones hence why we have so many thousands of cabin crew and pilots who fly in pre flights be it from Sydney Australia to JFK to Barcelona to Dublin.
You are making the mistake by believing that BA crew are not the last to leave the aircraft. In my 18 years as a CSD I can not remember a flight where I was not the last to leave the aircraft as this is a practice we have always done. As I said normally the CSD and the Pilots are last. That is and always has been our responsibility. Ill repeat it IT HAS ALWAYS BEEN CABIN CREW RESPONSIBILITY to ensure the aircraft is clear of pax and left handbaggage.
You wrote Young Paul :
MF crew, all being experienced with other airlines, are much more likely to understand their responsibilities throughout their duty than crew who have been pampered by absurd union restrictions.
3rd Jun 2011 10:06
This is not true only CSMs and Future Talent Crew have to have flown before and in selection we treat everyone fairly so because someone has flown before does not negate that they will be successsful. We have outstanding people coming from all walks of life and people joining us from 19 years of age to people of 58 years as main crew.
You are making the mistake by believing that BA crew are not the last to leave the aircraft. In my 18 years as a CSD I can not remember a flight where I was not the last to leave the aircraft as this is a practice we have always done. As I said normally the CSD and the Pilots are last. That is and always has been our responsibility. Ill repeat it IT HAS ALWAYS BEEN CABIN CREW RESPONSIBILITY to ensure the aircraft is clear of pax and left handbaggage.
You wrote Young Paul :
MF crew, all being experienced with other airlines, are much more likely to understand their responsibilities throughout their duty than crew who have been pampered by absurd union restrictions.
3rd Jun 2011 10:06This is not true only CSMs and Future Talent Crew have to have flown before and in selection we treat everyone fairly so because someone has flown before does not negate that they will be successsful. We have outstanding people coming from all walks of life and people joining us from 19 years of age to people of 58 years as main crew.
Last edited by prism; 4th Jun 2011 at 10:48.