8.04.22 – APFA MIA Base Brief – September 2022 Staffing and Allocations

Thursday, August 4, 2022

September 2022 Staffing and Allocations

All,

September flying has been pulled down 4.3% from last month. August will continue a full schedule all the way through Labor Day. Flying year over year has increased 17.9 % systemwide, and 25.8% in Miami. The system continues to grow as we rebound from COVID.

There has been a sizable increase in the number of vacation hours for September which is driving up the line averages. I asked the Company to offer vacation buyback to reduce the line average, but they were not willing to agree to that suggestion.

The Reserve percentage is forecasted at 20.9% with 613 required heads. This is a 6.4% increase from last September. This percentage once again is not being formulated on historical data. All the variables such as hurricanes and Labor Day are challenges that exist every year at this time. They should not be used as an excuse to inflate the percentages beyond was data suggests. Since the flying in Miami has increased 17.9% (YoY), the reserve percentage should have been forecasted to increase proportionally, not sizably. I’m disappointed once again and shared my concerns on the call.

Hiring will continue through the fall. The plan is to hire 900 more flight attendants with the first class reporting late September. We have cleared the transfer list each month, and if that continues we can expect to receive new hires out of training in the coming months.

There will be a major schedule change on September 7th, which is the first Wednesday after Labor Day. This will result in less frequency on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays. This disrupts the flow of pure sequences, and we will see significant increases in the amount of one time only sequences. Charter activity will increase substantially which will include both NFL and College Football charters. Additionally there will be added nonstop sections to certain games throughout the month.

JFK will operate a daily 1/1 on the 777-200. PHL will operate a daily 1/1 on the 787-8. LHR will only operate one daily departure after September 6th, and is planned to resume two daily departures later this year. LAX will operate a daily turn on the 787-8.

We can expect to see added IPD flying as we approach the winter months. RES has updated the added flights, but they are subject to change beyond what has been posted in September. I will update the base when CDG, MVD, and the second daily to LHR and GRU are confirmed. TLV is also in the plan to operate daily. Additionally, next year we will have a bigger IPD presence as we take delivery of the 787s from Boeing.

Both September and October will look similar with block hours and frequencies about the same. There will not be the opportunity to build any IPD Rockets until we get additional Deep South flying with departure times that will allow enough buffer time to reduce the layovers. I will continue to monitor and attempt to achieve a balance of flying.

We have received frequent calls from non-Purser qualified FAs having been awarded an IPD Purser position in the UBL run and subsequent removal into a non-Purser position on the same trip if there is a Purser qualified FA on board. The intent of this procedure is to ensure there is a Purser qualified FA in that position on every IPD flight. If your are not Purser-qualified and do not wish to run the risk of being swapped out of the Purser position for another position which will not be your choice, do NOT ballot for the Purser position. Additionally, when this happens you are not entitled to a pay claim.

There have been a lot of problems with the confirmation of Reserve assignments on CCI, and Missed Trips (TMs) issued as a result. Frequently, FAs are telling us they KNOW they confirmed the assignment but CCI does not reflect that when reviewed by management. We suggest you take a screen shot of your notification confirmation for each assignment so there is proof if it is called into question. You also have the option to call Crew schedule to confirm the assignment.

Please check your HI10M at least once a month to check for any discrepancies. Late sign-ins do occur as a result of last minute seat swaps or when Crew Schedule waives your sign-in and forgets to send a message to your Attendance manager. After two months the history is purged, and it becomes very difficult to research anything that would support removing any attendance discrepancies.

Daily ODANs for September:

• MSY, JAX, BNA, MCO, TPA, RDU, ORF, MEM, ATL

IPD flying for September:

• LHR daily (777-300)
• GRU daily (777-300)
• TLV Wed, Fri, Sun (777-200)
• BCN daily (777-200)
• MAD daily (787-9)
• GIG daily (777-200)
• EZE daily (787-8)

Narrow-body daily NIPD turns:

• SKB, CUR, MEX, PAP, GND, SXM, SJO, UVF, PUJ, LIR, SJU, SDQ, GYE, MDE, CTG, BAQ, PBM

Domestic Daily turns:

• DCA, LGA, ATL, AUS, YYZ, IAH, JAX, RDU, DEN

Block hours and trip compositions:

• Total block hours for August 2022: 175,510
• MIA: 162,946
• FLL: 5,145
• PBI: 3,009
• MCO: 2,461
• ATL: 1,949

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In Solidarity,

Randy Trautman
APFA MIA Base President
[email protected]

Heidi Morgan
APFA MIA Base Vice President
[email protected]