What would you do?

This probably does not apply in your case but whenever I had a Fed on board I would ask him/her about their background and whether they had a type rating in the a/c we were flying. Normally they did not and it set the "who is the more qualified" tone for the flight.
 
Another classic is to find out what your zero fuel weight is and make sure you have enough gas that adding a jumpseater would put you over.
 
Fly782 said:
Rumor has it he'll make you fly at 10K instead, true story.
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"ok Mr Inspector. I will have to delay this flight for a new release from dispatch to reflect the lower cruise altitude and fuel burn numbers"

After that I would seriously ask why all of this is necessary and then file a complaint, sounds like borderline harrassment.

I think some people would land gear up if a Fed told them to
 
Fly782 said:
Rumor has it he'll make you fly at 10K instead, true story.
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You said rumor and true story in the same sentence.

You'll have to tell me sometime who he did this to because we MEL'd the J/S because of O2 with him once and he just went to the back. It was a blistery day to minimums in PQI too and he didn't put up a single huff about it.
 
crazyjaydawg said:
You said rumor and true story in the same sentence.

You'll have to tell me sometime who he did this to because we MEL'd the J/S because of O2 with him once and he just went to the back. It was a blistery day to minimums in PQI too and he didn't put up a single huff about it.
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Whoops, will do.
 
Fly782 said:
Rumor has it he'll make you fly at 10K instead, true story.
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Regardless of this being rumor or not...

The 02 is also for a smoke/fumes issue. I can't tell you how many times MX has asked me to take an airplane with an MELed O2 system, and just fly it at 10,000. That is one I will never take. And yet they still ask.
 
So.. unplug his mask, tell him fine we are going at 10k, but if there is a fire, you're on your own :-)

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TUCKnTRUCK said:
So.. unplug his mask, tell him fine we are going at 10k, but if there is a fire, you're on your own :)

Sent from my Xoom using Tapatalk
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In the Saab you better hope that there aren't more than 4 pax anyways, otherwise the masks are going out to the highest bidders!
 
There has been some good and some not so good advice in this treat along with a couple basic misunderstandings.

Don't run the oxygen down to limit the available seats in the cockpit. That tact is well known and is fraught with a lot of potential problems downstream.

Do NOT refuse to let the inspector ride the jump seat. If you think there is a big enough safety issue that you will not take the flight with the inspector on the jump seat, then don't take the flight, period. I know of just such an event and although the captain was very sincere in his safety concern and his desire to support the carrier, the whole thing worked out very badly for him personally.

The inspector is supposed to be showing the captain his credentials before the flight. They should do it automatically, but if they don't, it is your right to request to see them before granting their request to be on the flight. For an FAA inspector it is a photo ID card called an FAA Form 110A, commonly referred to as just a 110A. A DoD inspector will have a 110B. The metal badge that almost all FAA inspectors carry is not valid identification. Each carrier's procedures are different, but I believe every carrier records and tracks the employee identification number (badge number) of any inspector they carry on an en route inspection.

The best course of action is to make the carrier aware of your concerns. They can decide if they want to pursue the matter and they know how to proceed if they choose to take action.
 
Polar742 said:
Also ask who his supervisor is at the FSDO.
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Bad idea. You can get that information on the Internet. There is no requirement for the inspector to provide you with that information. Asking such a thing will do nothing but foster an adversarial relationship.

Now, if you happen to be familiar with the people at the FSDO and you want to say something like "Is Jimmy still working over there or did he retire?" then that puts things on a more positive note and forms a bridge for a personal connection.
 
Mr. Roboto said:
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.
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Given the choice of an uncomfortable jumpseat, or a more comfortable seat in the back, why would anyone want to ride in the cockpit? Especially in a regional aircraft or smaller mainline aircraft? L-1011/DC-10 or similar, those I can at least see.
 
Houston said:
Bad idea. You can get that information on the Internet. There is no requirement for the inspector to provide you with that information. Asking such a thing will do nothing but foster an adversarial relationship.

Now, if you happen to be familiar with the people at the FSDO and you want to say something like "Is Jimmy still working over there or did he retire?" then that puts things on a more positive note and forms a bridge for a personal connection.
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I don't know if you work for the FAA, but you write like it.

What I wrote is exactly how I deal with FAA inspectors. Luckily, in what was 9 years of almost daily interactions, I ran across one jerk.
 
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