What would you do?

Mr. Roboto

Mr. Roboto

Well-Known Member
Working for Colgan I, and others, fly in and out of the same airports here in the great white North. At one of these airports there are a couple of FAA inspectors living in the area who commute to and from work on us on a weekly basis. One of these guys has been doing this for years and he doesn't give anyone a problem, he just pokes his head in the cockpit and asks if there are any write ups then goes back and takes a nap. The other guy, however, has become quite the nuisance. Every single time he wants to get on the plane he feels the need to ride in the jumpseat regardless of whether he has flown with the same crew the week before. That alone is extremely annoying, but add to that the stench of stale cigarettes following him around and his horrible personality makes for a nightmare flight.
Now for a little history on the guy. He used to work in the training dept. for Colgan, but he was asked to leave not too long after 3407. Immediately following 3407 he did the same thing to us until he was chased away. I myself had him on 4 different flights within a week!

So here's the question; is there anything that can be done about this? Can a call be placed to a supervisor to alert them to his behavior? To me he is clearly abusing his power. If he wants a ride to work, no problem. Just don't make it a jeopardy event every time!
 
It doesn't sound like he is doing anything outside the realm of his authority. I would probably approach him directly and say that his "stench" is distracting you and if he wouldn't mind not smoking before the flight or sitting in the back. Of course you would want to work on the phrasing of this, but you might be able to solve both problems at the same time.
 
You could look into or have the company look into talking to your FSDO regarding this. This definitely seems overboard. You could also refuse him cockpit access on the grounds of safety if you deem he is distracting or something, but I would highly recommend getting the company's backing before doing something that drastic.
 
How much O2 do you need to take a cockpit jumpseater? Is there a way (without violating company policy) to ensure you have enough for 2 guys, but not enough for 3 when he shows up?
 
I'd go the other way. Be his bestest buddy. Be proactive. Ask him if there is anything you can do for him. Have your certs and MX logbook ready for him when he asks. Make sure the aircraft is squeeky clean as far as MX or MEL paperwork.

Eventually, probably, he'll stop bugging you, and focus on something more worthy of his attention.

Richman
 
Eat a lot of Mexican (and have the other pilot eat Indian, you know, can't eat the same thing!) before you know he's going to be trying to ride jumpseat. I bet he won't try it again.
 
JordanD said:
Eat a lot of Mexican (and have the other pilot eat Indian, you know, can't eat the same thing!) before you know he's going to be trying to ride jumpseat. I bet he won't try it again.
Click to expand...

The guy already smells like an ashtray though, I doubt he would mind.
 
In addition to what Richman said, if you haven't done this already, ask for his badge every time, and make sure you and the CA record his name and badge # in your crew logs. Also ask who his supervisor is at the FSDO.

I did this with Feds I used to fly with everyday. They'd look at my stuff, I'd look at theirs, and we'd both encourage the other pilot to do the same.

He knows who you are, your certificate numbers and who your boss is. Do the same.
 
Don't forget you're supposed to be checking for good flow on the blinker indicator in the O2 line to the mask and making sure it's not just residual pressure in the line on your preflight. There's no way to check the position of that valve from inside the cockpit.
 
BobDDuck said:
How much O2 do you need to take a cockpit jumpseater? Is there a way (without violating company policy) to ensure you have enough for 2 guys, but not enough for 3 when he shows up?
Click to expand...

Leaky masks... Bummer..

Saw a pretty nasty mainline guy who was rude enough to make some pretty low brow "regional pilot" jokes miss his commute home once due to a LEGITIMATE low O2.

Was a total shame.
 
BobDDuck said:
How much O2 do you need to take a cockpit jumpseater? Is there a way (without violating company policy) to ensure you have enough for 2 guys, but not enough for 3 when he shows up?
Click to expand...
But if they don't know exactly when he's going to be on the flight, this could result in a jumpseater missing work if the flights full, couldn't it? Unless he's on the same flights on the same days or something.
 
$20 in quaters, and a tube sock? j/k, but talk to the guy. Tell him his personal hygene is causing your allergies to act up, and causing a safety issue.
 
Talk to your POI or Call the FSDO he reports to. Also the next time he does it make sure he has a badge number and name and call OK city directly. If you go to those lengths those things usually resolve themselves.

Also if you know he is gonna be on dump a coffee all over the JS and get that thing good and wet. That's another fav of mine.
 
Had the privlage recently! Good times, gotta get home!

20 mins late to get some ballast, of course it was our Friday too.
 
ChasenSFO said:
But if they don't know exactly when he's going to be on the flight, this could result in a jumpseater missing work if the flights full, couldn't it? Unless he's on the same flights on the same days or something.
Click to expand...
On the saab it's very rare for the performance to allow a full flight, much less full flight +js. This guy just loves to sit in the JS even if there's nobody else on the flight.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top