Fucking with SWA...

[HAL Pilot]

This morning in LAS I'm #6 behind 5 SWAs for takeoff at 26R. Towers says "Sorry guys, we have to turn it around. You're all going to 01R. Contact Ground for instructions".

Since I'm the fat kid and blocking all the SWAs, I get to turn around first. I quickly realize I have a golden opportunity, especially since I see another 4 or 5 SWAs on the ramp waiting to join the taxiway conga line.

I taxied at about 15 knots..... Pretty soon, a SWA goes "Tower, can you ask Hawaiian to pick it up?". Tower replies "Not my place to determine taxi speed, that's pilot stuff".

I slowed it down to 10.

By the time I got to 01R I had 9 or 10 pissed off SWAs (nd 1 chuckling United) slowly taxing behind me. Probably the first time in history they weren't doing 30 or 40. When he switched me to tower, the ground controller said "Hawaiian contact tower and thanks for the entertainment. I enjoyed that!"

It's the little things in life.

 

[HokiePilot]

I'm out of the loop. I guess SWA taxis slow?

 

[Deleted member 24525]

I'm out of the loop. I guess SWA taxis slow?

Yeah-@V1...they usefull nose down trim in the Taxi To avoid accidentally rotating

 

[AllYourBass]

This story just shifted a lot of pebbles into a jar that will determine (based on ultimate pebble weight) whether I want to shift back someday into fixed-wing for a shot at a flying office.

 

[xj220]

I love stories like this because while everyone thinks of the “magic of flight,” we’re hust really kids playing with really expensive toys.

 

[Purdue]

I'm out of the loop. I guess SWA taxis slow?

Most airlines pilots are paid by the minute, from brake release at the gate, to door opening at the arrival gate. Southwest pays their pilots by the flight.

So, your typical airline pilot taxis as safely as he sees fit, since he's getting paid anyway... even if there's a taxi delay.

Southwest pilots taxi pretty damn quick, for one of two reasons:

1. They're hoping if they land early they'll be able to squeeze in an extra leg for the day and get paid more money.
2. They want to finish and get out of the office as quick as possible, since they are paid by the task and not the time.

 

[Treetop Flyer]

SWA has scheduled trips just like every other airline. Nobody is going to "squeeze in an extra trip" by landing early.

 

[jmcquate]

SWA has scheduled trips just like every other airline. Nobody is going to "squeeze in an extra trip" by landing early.

.............and waiting for a gate to open up.

 

[HAL Pilot]

Most airlines pilots are paid by the minute, from brake release at the gate, to door opening at the arrival gate. Southwest pays their pilots by the flight.

So, your typical airline pilot taxis as safely as he sees fit, since he's getting paid anyway... even if there's a taxi delay.

Southwest pilots taxi pretty damn quick, for one of two reasons:

1. They're hoping if they land early they'll be able to squeeze in an extra leg for the day and get paid more money.
2. They want to finish and get out of the office as quick as possible, since they are paid by the task and not the time.

This is just so wrong.

1. Airlines fly to schedules. Your next flight isn't leaving an hour early because you got there an hour early. You're also not taking the next guys flight because you got there before he did.
2. That would be true only on the last leg because of #1. But we all have this incentive is being done early too yet we don't play Mario Carts.

The rest of us are paid "block or better". Every flight has a block time. If you fly under block you are paid the block time. If you fly over block, you get the actual time. Usually this is determined by things like winds aloft not aircraft speed. On a short flight, the difference between .78 and .82 is a few minutes at most. Between Hawaii and the mainland, you're talking maybe 15 minutes. Further the block time for a leg is tracked by the FAA as that is what is used to determine if a flight is legal under FAR 117 flight & duty time limits. It is an average of historical actual flight times for a given period of the year. So usually no matter how fast or slow you fly you're getting paid block.

 

[xj220]

Reminds me of this old clip:

 

[Deleted member 24525]

Most airlines pilots are paid by the minute, from brake release at the gate, to door opening at the arrival gate. Southwest pays their pilots by the flight.

So, your typical airline pilot taxis as safely as he sees fit, since he's getting paid anyway... even if there's a taxi delay.

Southwest pilots taxi pretty damn quick, for one of two reasons:

1. They're hoping if they land early they'll be able to squeeze in an extra leg for the day and get paid more money.
2. They want to finish and get out of the office as quick as possible, since they are paid by the task and not the time.

You’re wrong. Southwest gets Hourly just like everyone else...they just call it”TFP”...trips for pay and is about 1.2 hours or so (I still don’t know the math)
It’s basically the same thing as an hourly rate. They land early, they get paid what they were scheduled for, fly over and you get paid what you fly.

The fast taxiing has nothing to do with pay, and everything to do with the culture of “making it happen” because the survival of the airline depended on it. Now it’s just dumb.

I recommend you delete your post because it is not even close to being correct.

 

[Purdue]

This is just so wrong.

1. Airlines fly to schedules. Your next flight isn't leaving an hour early because you got there an hour early. You're also not taking the next guys flight because you got there before he did.
2. That would be true only on the last leg because of #1. But we all have this incentive is being done early too yet we don't play Mario Carts.

Other then the difference in pay structure, HAL... I'm curious why SWA pilots taxi so much faster than the rest of us. I had always assumed it was because of my two points: Someone hoping to pick up an extra line to bump their pay for the day, or someone trying to get out of their uniform quickly. Since I and others have noted that SWA pilots tend to taxi a lot quicker than other, what is your reasoning for the quick pace?

I'll rescind my comments... but the edit/delete button is gone from my previous post.

I only expressed views I've heard around the bar and in crew rooms, including talks with SWA FOs.

 

[Deleted member 24525]

Other then the difference in pay structure, HAL... I'm curious why SWA pilots taxi so much faster than the rest of us. I had always assumed it was because of my two points: Someone hoping to pick up an extra line to bump their pay for the day, or someone trying to get out of their uniform quickly. Since I and others have noted that SWA pilots tend to taxi a lot quicker than other, what is your reasoning for the quick pace?

I'll rescind my comments... but the edit/delete button is gone from my previous post.

I only expressed views I've heard around the bar and in crew rooms, including talks with SWA FOs.

Read above...culture, plain and simple (well, that and profit sharing for saving 8¢ a flight on fuel costs) and same for cutting taxiways off and trying to land opposite direction if it means a shorter taxi.

 

[SynixMan]

Don’t they single engine taxi to save gas too?

 

[Deleted member 24525]

Don’t they single engine taxi to save gas too?

Pretty much everyone does. That come from the AirTran side after the merger.