Virgin Atlantic pilots consider strike over fatigue
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uNHAPPY aIRCREW
T28B, RARA9, HUNTERBOY, 70 MUSTANG
Thank you for your replies and the valid comments that you make which are appreciated.
However, the issue that I raised was the lack of trust between pilots and managements,
and your comments don't really address that aspect. Aren't many airline managers ex pilots?
Do they change their spots when they go into management!!
And how can mutual trust be earned ? Serious question.
I'm one of those guys sitting the back of the aluminium tube, trusting that the pilots up front
are not stressed. Wasn't the stress of the Captain of Trident 'Papa India' a contributory factor
of the deep stall near Staines , with two inexperienced co-pilots?
I also didn't say safety was a gimmick.
I meant that using safety as a means of achieving contractual bargaining rights could be considered a gimmick.
Being responsible for a vessel's safe navigation is not always easy and plane sailing (.... pun intended !)
Many stressful hours are spent on the bridge when navigating in restricted waters without the help of
a sea pilot. e.g Straits of Malacca, Straits of Singapore, English Channel ( .. cross channel ferries putting an
additional stress as they cross the shipping lanes ) ... and many other restricted waters.
Swiss Steve
Thank you for your replies and the valid comments that you make which are appreciated.
However, the issue that I raised was the lack of trust between pilots and managements,
and your comments don't really address that aspect. Aren't many airline managers ex pilots?
Do they change their spots when they go into management!!
And how can mutual trust be earned ? Serious question.
I'm one of those guys sitting the back of the aluminium tube, trusting that the pilots up front
are not stressed. Wasn't the stress of the Captain of Trident 'Papa India' a contributory factor
of the deep stall near Staines , with two inexperienced co-pilots?
I also didn't say safety was a gimmick.
I meant that using safety as a means of achieving contractual bargaining rights could be considered a gimmick.
Being responsible for a vessel's safe navigation is not always easy and plane sailing (.... pun intended !)
Many stressful hours are spent on the bridge when navigating in restricted waters without the help of
a sea pilot. e.g Straits of Malacca, Straits of Singapore, English Channel ( .. cross channel ferries putting an
additional stress as they cross the shipping lanes ) ... and many other restricted waters.
Swiss Steve
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Did I misread the title of this thread?
Fatigue in plain English.
How can you "trust" management who do not experience fatigue like flight crew do? Even if a pilot, most management pilots I've encountered hand pick their once in 90 days to stay current flight. It's human nature to "forget" fatique sitting in the office, with only the risk of falling out of the chair if overcome with fatigue.
You can only trust yourself on the day, whether you're fit to fly. You can also trust that if you stand your ground and refuse a duty due to fatigue or make a mistake in flight due to fatigue, you will soon discover how much you can trust management.
How can you "trust" management who do not experience fatigue like flight crew do? Even if a pilot, most management pilots I've encountered hand pick their once in 90 days to stay current flight. It's human nature to "forget" fatique sitting in the office, with only the risk of falling out of the chair if overcome with fatigue.
You can only trust yourself on the day, whether you're fit to fly. You can also trust that if you stand your ground and refuse a duty due to fatigue or make a mistake in flight due to fatigue, you will soon discover how much you can trust management.
Last edited by 70 Mustang; 21st Aug 2023 at 18:14.
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Fatigue and evidence based science
Scientists know very little about fatigue since desynchrony is a normalisation of deviance only made possible by the advent of longrange aircraft about 65 years ago and there is no commercial interest in finding out that fatigue is a threat to flight safety that needs to be professionally managed by objective means such as checking the individual biomarkets of every crew.
Engineers trend monitor parameters ”vital signs” of every engine and even in flight, whereas pilots may have slept poorly, may suffer from an undetected infection or the metabolic syndrome at check inn without any concern from anybody that the lack of homeostasis may cause pilot errors during the flight.
An Apple Watch could already detect low HRV, high resting pulse, poor sleep patterns, low blood oxygenation and a slower reaction time and in future higher blood pressure to more objectively vet the fatigue of a crew as compared to filling in a fatigue ASR.
Who is using the wearable development to at least launch studies into fatigue?
Crew health is hence still a black hole in flight safety “management”.
There is simply nobody in the CAA, the unions and amongst crew that has the slightest idea about how to mitigate fatigue to an Acceptable Level of Safety Performance, an ALoSP at the moment and few that would attribute ATC and pilot errors to fatigue..
Engineers trend monitor parameters ”vital signs” of every engine and even in flight, whereas pilots may have slept poorly, may suffer from an undetected infection or the metabolic syndrome at check inn without any concern from anybody that the lack of homeostasis may cause pilot errors during the flight.
An Apple Watch could already detect low HRV, high resting pulse, poor sleep patterns, low blood oxygenation and a slower reaction time and in future higher blood pressure to more objectively vet the fatigue of a crew as compared to filling in a fatigue ASR.
Who is using the wearable development to at least launch studies into fatigue?
Crew health is hence still a black hole in flight safety “management”.
There is simply nobody in the CAA, the unions and amongst crew that has the slightest idea about how to mitigate fatigue to an Acceptable Level of Safety Performance, an ALoSP at the moment and few that would attribute ATC and pilot errors to fatigue..
However, the issue that I raised was the lack of trust between pilots and managements,and your comments don't really address that aspect. Aren't many airline managers ex pilots?Do they change their spots when they go into management!!And how can mutual trust be earned ? Serious question.
Yes, most of the managers who were pilots that I worked under did change their spots. They became very goal orientated and the goal was to maximise profits by cutting costs. The concept of yield management et al were left to salesmen (most of whom started life as barrow boys)
T28B, RARA9, HUNTERBOY, 70 MUSTANG
Thank you for your replies and the valid comments that you make which are appreciated.
However, the issue that I raised was the lack of trust between pilots and managements,
and your comments don't really address that aspect. Aren't many airline managers ex pilots?
Do they change their spots when they go into management!!
And how can mutual trust be earned ? Serious question.
I'm one of those guys sitting the back of the aluminium tube, trusting that the pilots up front
are not stressed. Wasn't the stress of the Captain of Trident 'Papa India' a contributory factor
of the deep stall near Staines , with two inexperienced co-pilots?
I also didn't say safety was a gimmick.
I meant that using safety as a means of achieving contractual bargaining rights could be considered a gimmick.
Being responsible for a vessel's safe navigation is not always easy and plane sailing (.... pun intended !)
Many stressful hours are spent on the bridge when navigating in restricted waters without the help of
a sea pilot. e.g Straits of Malacca, Straits of Singapore, English Channel ( .. cross channel ferries putting an
additional stress as they cross the shipping lanes ) ... and many other restricted waters.
Swiss Steve
Thank you for your replies and the valid comments that you make which are appreciated.
However, the issue that I raised was the lack of trust between pilots and managements,
and your comments don't really address that aspect. Aren't many airline managers ex pilots?
Do they change their spots when they go into management!!
And how can mutual trust be earned ? Serious question.
I'm one of those guys sitting the back of the aluminium tube, trusting that the pilots up front
are not stressed. Wasn't the stress of the Captain of Trident 'Papa India' a contributory factor
of the deep stall near Staines , with two inexperienced co-pilots?
I also didn't say safety was a gimmick.
I meant that using safety as a means of achieving contractual bargaining rights could be considered a gimmick.
Being responsible for a vessel's safe navigation is not always easy and plane sailing (.... pun intended !)
Many stressful hours are spent on the bridge when navigating in restricted waters without the help of
a sea pilot. e.g Straits of Malacca, Straits of Singapore, English Channel ( .. cross channel ferries putting an
additional stress as they cross the shipping lanes ) ... and many other restricted waters.
Swiss Steve
Let us offer an illustrative example (school book) of how management boils the frog:
Day One, the roster is 230 pilots and FAs for this monthly flight tasking of X. Crew rest and such are adhered to.
Day One Thousand someone wants to save some money, now 210 pilots and FAs are the manning level for the same work load
Day Two Thousand: someone wants to save money, now 190 pilots and FAs are the the manning level for the same work load.
"How little can we get away with paying for personnel?"
Does that answer your question on the lack of trust?
It is this kind of stuff (there are other bits, but this one is easy to illustrate) that unions call out as abusive.
Now for your homework:
Calgon Flight 3407
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Can’t believe this actually needs explaining… but a ship moving at 14kts covers ONE timezone in 74hrs at the equator (1035 miles). In 74hrs a LH airline pilot has been 7 timezones East, rested for 24hrs, flown 7 timezones west and is now 26hrs into 72hrs of rest at home before flying 8hrs West. Until you’ve experienced that 5 times in a month then your opinion on the subject adds little value.
It could be a gimmick for Virgin pilots to be saying that they’re fatigued so need a 35% payrise to make it safer, but in this case everything that’s being asked for is about getting more sleep - either on the aircraft, downroute or at home. Things you might be grateful the pilots have had when you’re in the back of the aluminium/composite tube
It could be a gimmick for Virgin pilots to be saying that they’re fatigued so need a 35% payrise to make it safer, but in this case everything that’s being asked for is about getting more sleep - either on the aircraft, downroute or at home. Things you might be grateful the pilots have had when you’re in the back of the aluminium/composite tube
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If it wasn’t for the skill and hard work of their pilots, XXX* would have gone belly up ages ago. Worth every penny.
* Fill in the name of any airline, but for consistency with this Thread, start with VAA.
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Try reading "Pulling Wings from Butterflies"
Yes, most of the managers who were pilots that I worked under did change their spots. They became very goal orientated and the goal was to maximise profits by cutting costs. The concept of yield management et al were left to salesmen (most of whom started life as barrow boys)
Yes, most of the managers who were pilots that I worked under did change their spots. They became very goal orientated and the goal was to maximise profits by cutting costs. The concept of yield management et al were left to salesmen (most of whom started life as barrow boys)
(For this topic, that is a book worth reading.)
Scientists know very little about fatigue since desynchrony is a normalisation of deviance only made possible by the advent of longrange aircraft about 65 years ago and there is no commercial interest in finding out that fatigue is a threat to flight safety that needs to be professionally managed by objective means such as checking the individual biomarkets of every crew.
Engineers trend monitor parameters ”vital signs” of every engine and even in flight, whereas pilots may have slept poorly, may suffer from an undetected infection or the metabolic syndrome at check inn without any concern from anybody that the lack of homeostasis may cause pilot errors during the flight.
An Apple Watch could already detect low HRV, high resting pulse, poor sleep patterns, low blood oxygenation and a slower reaction time and in future higher blood pressure to more objectively vet the fatigue of a crew as compared to filling in a fatigue ASR.
Who is using the wearable development to at least launch studies into fatigue?
Crew health is hence still a black hole in flight safety “management”.
There is simply nobody in the CAA, the unions and amongst crew that has the slightest idea about how to mitigate fatigue to an Acceptable Level of Safety Performance, an ALoSP at the moment and few that would attribute ATC and pilot errors to fatigue..
Engineers trend monitor parameters ”vital signs” of every engine and even in flight, whereas pilots may have slept poorly, may suffer from an undetected infection or the metabolic syndrome at check inn without any concern from anybody that the lack of homeostasis may cause pilot errors during the flight.
An Apple Watch could already detect low HRV, high resting pulse, poor sleep patterns, low blood oxygenation and a slower reaction time and in future higher blood pressure to more objectively vet the fatigue of a crew as compared to filling in a fatigue ASR.
Who is using the wearable development to at least launch studies into fatigue?
Crew health is hence still a black hole in flight safety “management”.
There is simply nobody in the CAA, the unions and amongst crew that has the slightest idea about how to mitigate fatigue to an Acceptable Level of Safety Performance, an ALoSP at the moment and few that would attribute ATC and pilot errors to fatigue..
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Thanks Beardy,
I have just ordered 'Pulling Wings from Butterflies'.
Thanks for the 'heads up' on this and I'm looking forward to reading it and
increasing my understanding of the issues.
Swiss Steve
I have just ordered 'Pulling Wings from Butterflies'.
Thanks for the 'heads up' on this and I'm looking forward to reading it and
increasing my understanding of the issues.
Swiss Steve
I have followed many threads on PPRuNe regarding the friction between flight crew and airline management.
Why is there this seeming lack of trust ? Pilots referring to managers as 'bean counters' and only looking at short term benefits. The pilots stating that fatigue is becoming a major safety issue, really ?
A recent thread compared plane and train unions citing 'safety issues' when really it had nothing to do with safety but just a bargaining chip to try and get the publics sympathy for what is really just wage and benefits negotiation.
I am a retired Master Mariner who served on British flag Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCC's), and then became an ocean freight logistics manager for a fleet of over deep sea 400 vessels.
In all my time at sea we never once used the 'safety' gimmick to try and obtain better conditions.
In fact in all my time at sea we officers never undertook industrial action. Similarly, there were no industrial disputes on our time chartered fleet.
Are airline pilots a superior breed that need to be mollycoddled, and always to be at the throats of their airlines?
Or are the airlines really that bad to work for?
What happened to mutual trust and appreciation ?
I don't know,! Can someone help me understand.?
Swiss Steve
Why is there this seeming lack of trust ? Pilots referring to managers as 'bean counters' and only looking at short term benefits. The pilots stating that fatigue is becoming a major safety issue, really ?
A recent thread compared plane and train unions citing 'safety issues' when really it had nothing to do with safety but just a bargaining chip to try and get the publics sympathy for what is really just wage and benefits negotiation.
I am a retired Master Mariner who served on British flag Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCC's), and then became an ocean freight logistics manager for a fleet of over deep sea 400 vessels.
In all my time at sea we never once used the 'safety' gimmick to try and obtain better conditions.
In fact in all my time at sea we officers never undertook industrial action. Similarly, there were no industrial disputes on our time chartered fleet.
Are airline pilots a superior breed that need to be mollycoddled, and always to be at the throats of their airlines?
Or are the airlines really that bad to work for?
What happened to mutual trust and appreciation ?
I don't know,! Can someone help me understand.?
Swiss Steve
T28B, RARA9, HUNTERBOY, 70 MUSTANG
Thank you for your replies and the valid comments that you make which are appreciated.
However, the issue that I raised was the lack of trust between pilots and managements,
and your comments don't really address that aspect. Aren't many airline managers ex pilots?
Do they change their spots when they go into management!!
And how can mutual trust be earned ? Serious question.
I'm one of those guys sitting the back of the aluminium tube, trusting that the pilots up front
are not stressed. Wasn't the stress of the Captain of Trident 'Papa India' a contributory factor
of the deep stall near Staines , with two inexperienced co-pilots?
I also didn't say safety was a gimmick.
I meant that using safety as a means of achieving contractual bargaining rights could be considered a gimmick.
Being responsible for a vessel's safe navigation is not always easy and plane sailing (.... pun intended !)
Many stressful hours are spent on the bridge when navigating in restricted waters without the help of
a sea pilot. e.g Straits of Malacca, Straits of Singapore, English Channel ( .. cross channel ferries putting an
additional stress as they cross the shipping lanes ) ... and many other restricted waters.
Swiss Steve
Thank you for your replies and the valid comments that you make which are appreciated.
However, the issue that I raised was the lack of trust between pilots and managements,
and your comments don't really address that aspect. Aren't many airline managers ex pilots?
Do they change their spots when they go into management!!
And how can mutual trust be earned ? Serious question.
I'm one of those guys sitting the back of the aluminium tube, trusting that the pilots up front
are not stressed. Wasn't the stress of the Captain of Trident 'Papa India' a contributory factor
of the deep stall near Staines , with two inexperienced co-pilots?
I also didn't say safety was a gimmick.
I meant that using safety as a means of achieving contractual bargaining rights could be considered a gimmick.
Being responsible for a vessel's safe navigation is not always easy and plane sailing (.... pun intended !)
Many stressful hours are spent on the bridge when navigating in restricted waters without the help of
a sea pilot. e.g Straits of Malacca, Straits of Singapore, English Channel ( .. cross channel ferries putting an
additional stress as they cross the shipping lanes ) ... and many other restricted waters.
Swiss Steve
Ships move at what, 20kts max? The slowest an airliner flies is about 140kts, the fastest, up to about 450kts true airspeed. An aircraft can roll inverted in a few seconds if grossly mishandled following an engine failure. Pilots need to be absolutely on top of their game - ready to react correctly at any time of the duty and any time of the day or night.
When I toured a Brittany ferry with my young son, there were four people in the engine room and four people on the bridge, (the Captain was off duty; asleep in his bunk for that crossing).
On almost all flights there are only 2 pilots in the cockpit, occasionally 3. No flight engineers.
If a ship breaks down or loses an engine, it will just drift. This can have its dangers but it will not sink or overturn.
If an aircraft suffers sudden decompression, or loses an engine at 40,000 feet over the ocean it is a
big deal. Unless the aircraft is handled just right, there could be extremely serious consequences. Meanwhile your ship is drifting but still floating. The Captain has been woken up and the engineering team are working to replace the broken engine air valve or fuel valve etc.Back at 40,000 feet, or actually 30,000 feet now, since an aircraft cannot stay at altitude on one engine, or following a decompression; the two pilots who have been up for 7 hours already, after a stop over of disturbed sleep in the hotel where the cleaners were vacuuming the corridor outside their rooms during the day , and other hotel guests were slamming their doors and talking loudly in the corridor when the pilots and aircrew tried to sleep in readiness for their return duty.
The pilots need to select an alternate airfield to fly towards, the only one available with allowable weather having quite a challenging visual circling approach, surrounded by high ground, which is tricky to do properly even when fully rested and in a simulator in daylight conditions. (they cannot continue to their planned destination on one engine).
Etc, etc. I hope you get the point. Do you see now why pilots get genuinely upset when their own management - some of whom used to be pilots - reduce their Ts & Cs even more and increase their fatigue? And for what reason? To subsidise the passenger's ticket prices by not employing enough crew to allow crews to get sufficient rest and time off. Do you understand why we complain? It most definitely IS all about safety.
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Unlinked knows the square route of fa about the maritime world. A ship can sink in seconds when mismanaged. Becoming the captain of a large vessel is way way more difficult and a longer process than joining Ryanair and being a captain within 4 years.
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Hideki, my original post was not to start a 'war' between the aviation and maritime sectors. Rather, it was a genuine desire to understand the seemingly endless disputes between pilots and their airline managers. Granted some correspondents have to tried to enlarge the debate as to whom has the most stressful jobs. That has not been useful.
Your comments are thus of little value to an honest debate.
Swiss Steve
Your comments are thus of little value to an honest debate.
Swiss Steve
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Back on topic
This strike issue is nothing to do with pay. If the union and management can resolve this, it may avert a strike now however when it comes to pay talks unless there is a significant change in remuneration I suspect a strike maybe back on the cards !
VAA is looking at significant recruitment of pilots and when you look at what’s on offer there in terms of lifestyle ie trip, 2 days off, repeat x6 a month , I wonder who they’ll get volunteering for that fatiguing a lifestyle.
This strike issue is nothing to do with pay. If the union and management can resolve this, it may avert a strike now however when it comes to pay talks unless there is a significant change in remuneration I suspect a strike maybe back on the cards !
VAA is looking at significant recruitment of pilots and when you look at what’s on offer there in terms of lifestyle ie trip, 2 days off, repeat x6 a month , I wonder who they’ll get volunteering for that fatiguing a lifestyle.
Virgin Atlantic pilots consider strike over fatigue
Bit wide there. Depends what you mean by "trip". One lasting four days followed by two off times six gets "no compute" in my little head when trying to fit into a month.
Very tough balance call for Management who have hands on the till and us lot with hands on the tiller.
I had the rare pleasure of working for a company that got it right. Top view was that there was no need for Unions if Management was right. It worked. Some schedules were looked at really hard and binned when fatigue issue became obvious to the planners. Some trips were planned with generous layovers which impacted profit margins but it all seemed to work. For a while.
Try, after min rest in LAX with inability to actually rest, for any number of reasons and advise the Company that you are unfit to operate.
It takes top-class management to recognise, deal with it and and research ways to avoid. REsults are probably far too expensive and you have this wretched impasse.
Very tough balance call for Management who have hands on the till and us lot with hands on the tiller.
I had the rare pleasure of working for a company that got it right. Top view was that there was no need for Unions if Management was right. It worked. Some schedules were looked at really hard and binned when fatigue issue became obvious to the planners. Some trips were planned with generous layovers which impacted profit margins but it all seemed to work. For a while.
Try, after min rest in LAX with inability to actually rest, for any number of reasons and advise the Company that you are unfit to operate.
It takes top-class management to recognise, deal with it and and research ways to avoid. REsults are probably far too expensive and you have this wretched impasse.
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... Do you see now why pilots get genuinely upset when their own management - some of whom used to be pilots - reduce their Ts & Cs even more and increase their fatigue? And for what reason? To subsidise the passenger's ticket prices by not employing enough crew to allow crews to get sufficient rest and time off. Do you understand why we complain? It most definitely IS all about safety.
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Back to that favourite old quote, "If you think that it's too expensive, try an accident." Especially, as this Thread is referring to, a fatigue related accident.
The CAA's priority is the continued prosperity of UK airlines. They have no interest in acting to ensure safe operations. So unless the Daily Mail presents them with a smoking gun (or a smoking hole) it's business as usual at the CAA.
Around 10 years ago the UK had a mature sensible FTL scheme. The regulations were formed over many years as a result of accidents, incidents and deaths where we promised the bereaved that we would learn from our past mistakes. Then one day we threw that ruleset in the bin in favour of a Pan-European system that bore no resemblance to either of the 'Gold Standards' of the UK or Germany.... All in the name of EU political expediency.
Around 10 years ago the UK had a mature sensible FTL scheme. The regulations were formed over many years as a result of accidents, incidents and deaths where we promised the bereaved that we would learn from our past mistakes. Then one day we threw that ruleset in the bin in favour of a Pan-European system that bore no resemblance to either of the 'Gold Standards' of the UK or Germany.... All in the name of EU political expediency.
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Why Managers Hate Pilots
hoistop
Given that the thread is about Virgin pilots and fatigue your comment about EASA finger pointing over CAMO/airworthiness seems rather irrelevant?
SteveHobson
When I left the armed forces and joined the airlines I was flabbergasted at the vitriol that existed between airline managers and pilots. I quickly learnt the reasons for that animosity.
1. Airline managers are ambitious individuals chasing more superior positions. It very much supports their mindset to see subordinates they 'manage' as being inferior to them. Unfortunately most Captains (for their skill-set and licence) get paid more than these managers and that very much sticks in their throat.
2. In the big, bad world of competitive management everyone has KPIs.... Some target you have to reach by the end of the financial year in order to trigger your bonus. For many managers that can be as little as 0.5% increase in productivity. Every pilot has seen notices published that inform of changes to procedure or reduced manning levels in some area and thought.... 'Another disaster in prospect'! The author however does not care if Rome burns as long as he triggers that bonus, problems in other departments are not his concern. After all, he is only going to be here for a couple of years, he will do untold damage and move along elsewhere with another gold star to add to his CV. Just like the manager who joined EZ a few years ago and decided he could run the summer programme with fewer crews. The fallout cost EZ a fortune and a summer of chaos ensued.
3. Managers are constrained by company procedures and rules, in many cases their sphere of influence ends at the edge of their desk. Pilots OTOH work in a huge dynamic environment where thinking outside of the box is a part of daily life. Whilst the manager is scraping around trying to find another 0.5% productivity to make his bonus, the two guys at the sharp end have infinitely more latitude to make good decisions and serve the bottom line (or otherwise) than the airline manager can ever aspire to. The possible corporate liability that lies in the hands of pilots is mind-boggling.
4. Pilots don't have to wander down the corridor and get every decision the make OK'ed by their boss.
5. On the HR spreadsheet of salaries pilots stand out like a dog's hind leg. Consequently, every pay round sees the pilots as the aspirational target for 'more work/less pay'. The annual cycle is utterly predictable.
Originally Posted by hoistop
I cannot say for FTL, but definitely CAMO/airworthiness management was taken pretty much from UK model. So pointing a finger in EASA is futile here I think.
SteveHobson
When I left the armed forces and joined the airlines I was flabbergasted at the vitriol that existed between airline managers and pilots. I quickly learnt the reasons for that animosity.
1. Airline managers are ambitious individuals chasing more superior positions. It very much supports their mindset to see subordinates they 'manage' as being inferior to them. Unfortunately most Captains (for their skill-set and licence) get paid more than these managers and that very much sticks in their throat.
2. In the big, bad world of competitive management everyone has KPIs.... Some target you have to reach by the end of the financial year in order to trigger your bonus. For many managers that can be as little as 0.5% increase in productivity. Every pilot has seen notices published that inform of changes to procedure or reduced manning levels in some area and thought.... 'Another disaster in prospect'! The author however does not care if Rome burns as long as he triggers that bonus, problems in other departments are not his concern. After all, he is only going to be here for a couple of years, he will do untold damage and move along elsewhere with another gold star to add to his CV. Just like the manager who joined EZ a few years ago and decided he could run the summer programme with fewer crews. The fallout cost EZ a fortune and a summer of chaos ensued.
3. Managers are constrained by company procedures and rules, in many cases their sphere of influence ends at the edge of their desk. Pilots OTOH work in a huge dynamic environment where thinking outside of the box is a part of daily life. Whilst the manager is scraping around trying to find another 0.5% productivity to make his bonus, the two guys at the sharp end have infinitely more latitude to make good decisions and serve the bottom line (or otherwise) than the airline manager can ever aspire to. The possible corporate liability that lies in the hands of pilots is mind-boggling.
4. Pilots don't have to wander down the corridor and get every decision the make OK'ed by their boss.
5. On the HR spreadsheet of salaries pilots stand out like a dog's hind leg. Consequently, every pay round sees the pilots as the aspirational target for 'more work/less pay'. The annual cycle is utterly predictable.