BA Shorthaul Rosters LHR
Join Date: Apr 1999
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Mix of day trips and tours, max 4 day duration.
If you're junior expect to work every weekend unless you have leave.
Touring rosters are not available. You can bid for a line which is predominantly tours but there's usually a day trip or two or back to back tours which make driving to LHR a fag. BALPA are working with BA to see if we can introduce touring lines, but things move at a snails pace where BA management are involved. As a new entrant you can expect to be working blind lines where you don't get much of a say in your roster construction. If you want tours you can get them, but they'll all beover the weekend and be earlies.
12-14 days off per month. No individual leave days possible, leave must be taken in 7 day blocks. It is possible to request a day off after roster publication provided you have enough creidt in your bank to coever the work, but it's at the companys discretion. Trip swaps are easy as long as you can find someone to swap with.
Early starts and late finishes. Earliest report is about 0530 local, with most earlies starting between 0530 and 0630. Latest finish at LHR is about 22:30 local plus delays.
To summarise shorthaul, pretty good roster stability but expect to work hard for the money. 10+ hr duty days are fast becoming the norm, LHR is uniquely overcrowded and stressful in Europe, and it's rare to get through a working day without someone from another department going out of their way to deliberately p*** you off, be they bus drivers, loaders, gate staff, dispatchers or cabin crew. The only parts of the operation (Flight Ops excluded) which work reliably are the bits we don't do - catering, fuelling and cleaning. Oh, and you better be good at apologising to passengers because you'll be doing that every day.
If you're junior expect to work every weekend unless you have leave.
Touring rosters are not available. You can bid for a line which is predominantly tours but there's usually a day trip or two or back to back tours which make driving to LHR a fag. BALPA are working with BA to see if we can introduce touring lines, but things move at a snails pace where BA management are involved. As a new entrant you can expect to be working blind lines where you don't get much of a say in your roster construction. If you want tours you can get them, but they'll all beover the weekend and be earlies.
12-14 days off per month. No individual leave days possible, leave must be taken in 7 day blocks. It is possible to request a day off after roster publication provided you have enough creidt in your bank to coever the work, but it's at the companys discretion. Trip swaps are easy as long as you can find someone to swap with.
Early starts and late finishes. Earliest report is about 0530 local, with most earlies starting between 0530 and 0630. Latest finish at LHR is about 22:30 local plus delays.
To summarise shorthaul, pretty good roster stability but expect to work hard for the money. 10+ hr duty days are fast becoming the norm, LHR is uniquely overcrowded and stressful in Europe, and it's rare to get through a working day without someone from another department going out of their way to deliberately p*** you off, be they bus drivers, loaders, gate staff, dispatchers or cabin crew. The only parts of the operation (Flight Ops excluded) which work reliably are the bits we don't do - catering, fuelling and cleaning. Oh, and you better be good at apologising to passengers because you'll be doing that every day.
Join Date: Jul 2002
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Just out of interest, whilst on this subject, what are the shorthaul (737) rosters like at LGW?
I.E. Tours? routes, days off etc.....
thanx tr.
I.E. Tours? routes, days off etc.....
thanx tr.
Last edited by touchedrunway?; 21st Oct 2004 at 10:51.
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Prefer LHR or LGW Shorthaul?
In terms of schedule and lifestyle, which is better if you had the choice LGW shorthaul or LHR shorthaul? I understand that LHR flies the Airbus and LGW flies the 737.
Which would you recommend if someone actually had a choice and they lived equidistant between the two airfields (location not a factor)? Let's also assume no preference in terms of aircraft type flown.
Which would you recommend if someone actually had a choice and they lived equidistant between the two airfields (location not a factor)? Let's also assume no preference in terms of aircraft type flown.
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LGW has recently moved to mostly day trips i.e few nightstops. As a junior bod, day trips i.e. not 2+ day tours can be hard to come by at LHR.
Previously LHR would usually be the best choice for T&Cs. However, BA have managed to work LHR harder within Bidline, the pay scales have been equalised, so it's a closer run thing. If you can come up with some more specifics of what you'd like, I / others might be able to give you a better answer.
NoD
Previously LHR would usually be the best choice for T&Cs. However, BA have managed to work LHR harder within Bidline, the pay scales have been equalised, so it's a closer run thing. If you can come up with some more specifics of what you'd like, I / others might be able to give you a better answer.
NoD
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Could someone in the indicate how many nights away per month a new entrant on the Airbus at LHR might get?
Would all of the 12-14 days off per month be at home, or are some down route?
Finally, how many earlies per month could I expect?
Cheers,
4AD
Would all of the 12-14 days off per month be at home, or are some down route?
Finally, how many earlies per month could I expect?
Cheers,
4AD
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4Ad...
Very rough figures:
10 nights away per month
Only the odd day off "downroute" (standover) - in fact, these often are not a "legal" day off since they don't trigger 2 Local nights / 34 hours off etc. (get in late one night, out v early the morning after next).
Earlies generally considered unpopular, so since you well be getting what's left over, work on say 75%.
NoD (very junior on the Airbus at LHR)
Very rough figures:
10 nights away per month
Only the odd day off "downroute" (standover) - in fact, these often are not a "legal" day off since they don't trigger 2 Local nights / 34 hours off etc. (get in late one night, out v early the morning after next).
Earlies generally considered unpopular, so since you well be getting what's left over, work on say 75%.
NoD (very junior on the Airbus at LHR)
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Ok. Say you came to Gatwick, you could expect a reasonable roster, albeit quite hard work on the days you come to work (i.e. long days, but you will get a min of 11+ days off a month). You can get a mixture of (up to) 5 day tours and day trips. Me? I like day trips, so end up most months doing about 8-11 doubles with the rest made up of day trips/single nightstops. As a junior pilot, you will get a few weekends off too. This is because we are rostered by Carmen and seniority has less effect. The flip side of the coin is that as you become more senior, you can still expect to work weekends!
The earlies are very early at the moment (something like 6 reports before 5:30), and our lates can get back after midnight. The good thing about Gatwick is the operation. You only ever wait a few moments for a bus (on the stands that we get crew busses - We walk to/from Jubilee from many stands) The time on you roster is when we get home (most of the time - Soz if the a/c breaks, but sh!t happens!) Holding is a thing that we hear about and don't generally do, and the operation is geared up to helping you depart.
But last and not least, remember
Gatwick is a poor cousin of Heathrow
Hence people run away! But I love it here...
The earlies are very early at the moment (something like 6 reports before 5:30), and our lates can get back after midnight. The good thing about Gatwick is the operation. You only ever wait a few moments for a bus (on the stands that we get crew busses - We walk to/from Jubilee from many stands) The time on you roster is when we get home (most of the time - Soz if the a/c breaks, but sh!t happens!) Holding is a thing that we hear about and don't generally do, and the operation is geared up to helping you depart.
But last and not least, remember
Gatwick is a poor cousin of Heathrow
Hence people run away! But I love it here...
