121 guys, how does this happen? (AKA,Oh Delta)

[EIR]

At UPS they had an APU usage campaign and didn't want us to use the APU cause MX will give you ground power within 90 sec after block in. That was a joke. A pipe dream procedure some guy in an office dreamed up and sounds great to management but nobody gonna get those mechanics to be everywhere at once to get your ground power in 90 seconds. I tried it for a couple weeks and gave up.

Nothing has changed since you retired.

Nothing has changed, you'll be stunned to learn, I'm sure. The guys in CGN are *usually* on the spot (Ze Chermans sind sehr Efficient, ja?). And most east-Asian gateways are ok, too. But anywhere else, 90% of the C/As I fly with just tell me to crank it, and on the rare occasion that they don't, we sit there for 5 minutes with #4 running while the circus music plays in our heads.

I would love to see an experiment regarding how long it takes to get ground power in, say, Delhi. We might run out of fuel.

99% of the time we fire up the APU taxiing in, unless it's one of few gateways that ACARS us with "Ground power available." More times than not, there'll be a mechanic at the gate standing next to a GPU that's not turned on. By the time they get it going, the APU is already started.

I personally don't like sitting at the stand with the left engine running. The ground workers are great for the most part, but I have seen a select few who are walking around on their phones not paying attention. Stories over beers.

 

[Screaming_Emu]

Nothing has changed since you retired.

99% of the time we fire up the APU taxiing in, unless it's one of few gateways that ACARS us with "Ground power available." More times than not, there'll be a mechanic at the gate standing next to a GPU that's not turned on. By the time they get it going, the APU is already started.

I personally don't like sitting at the stand with the left engine running. The ground workers are great for the most part, but I have seen a select few who are walking around on their phones not paying attention. Stories over beers.

Not UPS, but a somewhat related story.

A month or two ago we were leaving one of our big cargo hubs on a plane with no APU. Get everything ready to go and they advise me that we’re clear to start. We see no duct pressure and communicate that. A few rounds of “standby….how bout now” and the guy on the headset goes to find a mechanic.

Guy walks over from an IDG change at the parking spot next door. Gets on headset “these morons were trying to air start you with a cart that wasn’t even running cause it’s out of gas.”

We were kind of curious as to why we weren’t hearing it from the cockpit like we normally can.

 

[EIR]

We were kind of curious as to why we weren’t hearing it from the cockpit like we normally can.

 

[DE727UPS]

Ramp 9. Stories over beers aplenty....

 

[derg]

I can’t believe this is still a discussion.
I operate aircraft systems, to the best of my ability, based on conditions.
If conditions warrant, I activate systems, as long as they’re needed.
when they are not needed, I deactivate systems.
I don’t accept aircraft that lack required systems.
If leaders don’t like the way I operate systems, they need to provide adequate alternate systems, or find a new operator.
Duh

Something feels fishy.

Like on 'the other discussion on a more... official-ish venue in the sky' there was something said about an agent saying if they got off the jet, they might not be able to get back on.

After I stopped laughing at the agent, I would have used captain's authority and did it anyway.

NOT saying that was the story, it's just what being alluded to.

 

[EIR]

Ramp 9. Stories over beers aplenty....

Ha. Yep, ramp 9.

 

[Toobdrvr]

Something feels fishy.

Like on 'the other discussion on a more... official-ish venue in the sky' there was something said about an agent saying if they got off the jet, they might not be able to get back on.

After I stopped laughing at the agent, I would have used captain's authority and did it anyway.

NOT saying that was the story, it's just what being alluded to.

Yeah. I wasn’t really adressing the LAS incident as there’s obviously a lot more to the story, but obviously, when a flight (or a taxi) ends with pax and crew being wheeled off on gurneys, “mistakes were made”. We shall see…

I was mostly commenting on the endless discussion of “to APU or not”, “APU Sherrifs”, memos, etc.

 

[Seggy]

Something feels fishy.

Like on 'the other discussion on a more... official-ish venue in the sky' there was something said about an agent saying if they got off the jet, they might not be able to get back on.

After I stopped laughing at the agent, I would have used captain's authority and did it anyway.

NOT saying that was the story, it's just what being alluded to.

Was it a newer captain on the flight?

 

[Cherokee_Cruiser]

Those are good icons to represent the pax on that hot Delta flight.

 

[Autothrust Blue]

I personally don't like sitting at the stand with the left engine running.

One little ingestion and everyone gets super excited.

(But also, whatever savings just happened went out the door for a wrongful death suit and an engine that'll need overhauled.)

 

[Richman]

One little ingestion and everyone gets super excited.

(But also, whatever savings just happened went out the door for a wrongful death suit and an engine that'll need overhauled.)

Ahhhh, too soon, bro.

 

[Skåning]

Ahhhh, too soon, bro.

It’ll crumple like a sub full of billionaires

 

[Richman]

Le sigh….

 

[NovemberEcho]

It’ll crumple like a sub full of billionaires

This is not how you crush the competition

 

[Skåning]

This is not how you crush the competition

Well it is a high pressure situation

 

[CFI A&P]

Well it is a high pressure situation

Given the current environment, it is a very fluid situation.

 

[BEEF SUPREME]

Funny enough that I should have 4 legs with no APU today.

The start cart can crank the AC. I spent a lot of time on the ramp today…


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Skåning]

Given the current environment, it is a very fluid situation.

Let’s agree it was a split decision

 

[juxtapilot]

Something feels fishy.

Like on 'the other discussion on a more... official-ish venue in the sky' there was something said about an agent saying if they got off the jet, they might not be able to get back on.

After I stopped laughing at the agent, I would have used captain's authority and did it anyway.

NOT saying that was the story, it's just what being alluded to.

Honestly, it doesn’t sound that fishy. The gate agent’s mission in life is to get the planes off the gate.. If they let people deplane, that could inconvenience them and keep the plane on their gate longer..

It seems like the Captain relinquished command to the gate agent, instead of running the show himself. Knowing the Delta operation in LAX and LAS there always was a push to go, go, go, but even as an RJ Captain I never felt uneasy about using my authority to do what had to be done.

 

[trafficinsight]

Something feels fishy.

Like on 'the other discussion on a more... official-ish venue in the sky' there was something said about an agent saying if they got off the jet, they might not be able to get back on.

After I stopped laughing at the agent, I would have used captain's authority and did it anyway.

NOT saying that was the story, it's just what being alluded to.

I had a captain throw a gate agent off the airplane once. It was an instructive moment.

We had a last minute tail change due to a mx issue and we got over to the new airplane and boarded but it had zero catering on board, like not even water for a DFW turn from SFO. They had to bring the catering over from the other airplane on account of the 1st class meals and such and we were in the queue for it but it was going to take a bit. Captain makes PA to that affect and we chat about life the universe and everything in a relaxed manner while we wait.

Gate agent comes on board and is like "why haven't you left yet." Captain explains and the gate guy just goes off on him "these people don't care about that, just go."

All of a sudden the gate guy picks up the PA phone and starts taking a poll "these pilots want to wait for catering, show of hands who wants to just go without it?"

The captain takes the phone away and pulls the gate agent into the flight deck and says "we'll leave when I say we leave, this isn't a democracy, get the * off my airplane I don't want to see you again."