SWA vs UAL... FIGHT

Inverted said:
Well, this is a fun one. Newish hire 777 UAL FO in the JS on a SWA flight coming into San Diego. The scuttlebutt is that the SWA crew got loaded up and let the airplane slow to 180kts clean. They landed, and she notified them that she would be contacting the FAA regarding the flight. This post basically started a chain of events that is rumored to have led to SWA denying the JS to some UAL folks. SWAPA has acknowledged the event and says it is working on it.

View attachment 77802

This kinda stuff always brings up an interesting duality. What do you really say from the JS? On the one hand, you're lucky to be there. On the other, you are a crewmember and have an obligation to speak up regarding safety. I remember the thread from years ago about calling a go around from the JS and that was a big debate.
Click to expand...
Yikes! But no surprise.

Dirty (approach) config ground Vitesse* in a heavy SWABird on a somewhat thermally-afflicted yet Zero-Wind final the other day dropped to 122kts. Then, it increased to 152kts. I was sitting in my assigned exit seat. So, yeah, I heard the engines vacillating, too.

Mainline Carriers! SWIFTly becoming regional quality.

Silly me! I thought SWA was the one place they still hired real pilots who aren't scared out of their eppaulettes to just. fly. the. planes. ... Oh, well.

(*via a certain GPS-based flight app.)
 
Last edited:
1715742278172.png
 
form810 said:
Yikes! But no surprise.

Dirty (approach) config ground Vitesse* in a heavy SWABird on a somewhat thermally-afflicted yet Zero-Wind final the other day dropped to 122kts. Then, it increased to 152kts. I was sitting in my assigned exit seat. So, yeah, I heard the engines vacillating, too.

Mainline Carriers! SWIFTly becoming regional quality.

Silly me! I thought SWA was the one place they still hired real pilots who aren't scared out of their eppaulettes to just. fly. the. planes. ... Oh, well.

(*via a certain GPS-based flight app.)
Click to expand...

Too large of pilot groups to stereotype. You'll find all kinds at every airline.
 
BEEF SUPREME said:
Too large of pilot groups to stereotype. You'll find all kinds at every airline.
Click to expand...
Ah... wait just moment. That's exactly my point. It IS a large group! And a large group that still contains some really terrific aviators who know deeply and intuitively exactly what to do in any situation to keep the airplane flying and never scare anyone.

I'm not railing against good aviators. I'm railing against the Hummn Resuckitation Dept given Mc'Pilot "standards" that constrain the great aviatiors to be no better or worse than the slightly below-good average of the pilot roster.
 
form810 said:
Ah... wait just moment. That's exactly my point. It IS a large group! And a large group that still contains some really terrific aviators who know deeply and intuitively exactly what to do in any situation to keep the airplane flying and never scare anyone.

I'm not railing against good aviators. I'm railing against the Hummn Resuckitation Dept given Mc'Pilot "standards" that constrain the great aviatiors to be no better or worse than the slightly below-good average of the pilot roster.
Click to expand...

Meh. You'll find all kinds but I feel like eat humble pie every time I fly through SE Alaska. Lots of challenges and hand flying. It's not the same at every airline. We are encouraged to hand fly as much as we want. We probably over do it TBH. Yet as an FO I only flew with one captain who was upset I hand flew the entire arrival and approach in 5 years.
 
BEEF SUPREME said:
Meh. You'll find all kinds but I feel like eat humble pie every time I fly through SE Alaska. Lots of challenges and hand flying. It's not the same at every airline. We are encouraged to hand fly as much as we want. We probably over do it TBH. Yet as an FO I only flew with one captain who was upset I hand flew the entire arrival and approach in 5 years.
Click to expand...
That's great! Keep it up. Don't let the GOM/SOP get you down. ALWAYS. FLY. THE. PLANE... at least all the times they let you without writing you up.
 
form810 said:
That's great! Keep it up. Don't let the GOM/SOP get you down. ALWAYS. FLY. THE. PLANE... at least all the times they let you without writing you up.
Click to expand...

At my shop we can hand fly the entire flight. 6 minutes to Wrangel or 6 hours to Boston. It would be kind of silly but no one is getting written up.
 
BEEF SUPREME said:
Meh. You'll find all kinds but I feel like eat humble pie every time I fly through SE Alaska. Lots of challenges and hand flying. It's not the same at every airline. We are encouraged to hand fly as much as we want. We probably over do it TBH. Yet as an FO I only flew with one captain who was upset I hand flew the entire arrival and approach in 5 years.
Click to expand...
I want to hand fly more but it’s so hard to be motivated to on the kind of trips Junior trash gets. Click it off at 18 on the tail end of a redeye transcon? Ehhh I’ll pass.
 
Lastnight in my upgrade MV (34X in SouthernJets parlance), my FO was setting up his ‘non-ILS’ approach and I was the PF at the time. Slowed to 210kts, and asked my FO what he thought about Flaps 2, then we went to Flaps 2.

The APD chuckled, and in the debrief asked why I used Flaps 2. “Because Alaska can’t”…he let out a big laugh and responded “Oh, usually it’s only the psychopaths that use Flaps 2, but I like your reasoning” :D
 
mikecweb said:
Autopilot is required for RVSM airspace. Although there are some interpretations on whether it actually needs to be on in RVSM, our FOM requires it to be engaged prior to entering RVSM airspace. If both autopilots are deferred the flight plan will be filed below RVSM.
Click to expand...
this comes up every few years, anyone know where it specifically states in the FAR's that the required AP has to be ON?

I know a lot of company FOM's require it to be ON>
 
mikecweb said:
Autopilot is required for RVSM airspace. Although there are some interpretations on whether it actually needs to be on in RVSM, our FOM requires it to be engaged prior to entering RVSM airspace. If both autopilots are deferred the flight plan will be filed below RVSM.
Click to expand...
RVSM airspace starts at Class A airspace (FL180), correct?
 
Maximilian_Jenius said:
RVSM airspace starts at Class A airspace (FL180), correct?
Click to expand...

FL280-FL410 is RVSM, ATC will traffic permitting allow a non-RVSM airplane to transition the airspace. Back in the day Bankair didn't RVSM their Learjet's and they would either be at 280 and below or 430 and above, but that was very rare to hear them up that high.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top