The Charity
Aviation
Maritime
I feel like I’ve been coerced into operating today. My report was 1300z, but the flight was delayed.
Crewing said they left me a voicemail at 1100Z, but I didn’t receive this. I later found out that my phone network was having nationwide issues (I’ve screenshotted the tweet as I don’t think crewing believed me). Crewing told me that they have made reasonable attempts to inform me of the delay so it’s on my shoulders.
I rang them just after my report time to tell them I had just picked up Wi-Fi and been made aware of the delay, they then changed my report time to one hour later to protect my duty hours. I emailed them and had my original report time reinstated. When the rest of the crew arrived, the captain told me I would not be legal to fly home. Crewing told him that if I “refuse the duty”, and they await a standby, the flight would be further delayed and it was “on his head” (mine). I felt coerced into operating and deeply upset.
On the return sector, the pilot told me he’d use the rest of the crew’s report time for my hours and I am no longer in discretion, disregarding my original report time which I arrived for.
Captain told me I ought to be contactable 24 hours a day and crewing said they don’t need me to acknowledge a delay for them to have “done their bit”.
Further to this, my roster app which ‘pings’ a delay had signed me out without my knowledge, so this line of communication didn’t happen either. The captain said I should have been contactable and I ought to ring crewing before every duty to ascertain if the flight is on time.
I don’t feel I should be calling crewing on my rest time to check if flights are on time.
It is disappointing that this reporter felt ‘coerced’ into operating and some of the comments made by their colleagues made are incorrect and inappropriate, generally cabin crew are not required to be ‘contactable 24 hours a day’.
ORO.FTL.105 Definitions (23) ‘single day free of duty’ means, for the purpose of complying with the provisions of Council Directive 2000/79/EC, a time free of all duties and standby consisting of one day and two local nights, which is notified in advance. A rest period may be included as part of the single day free of duty;
CS FTL.1.205 Flight duty period
(d) Unforeseen circumstances in flight operations — delayed reporting
When a crew member does not receive the notification and is therefore not in ‘his/her suitable accommodation when the delayed reporting procedure is activated’ then the report time used should be the original report time.
Reporting concerns internally is crucial so that any issues may be fully investigated and addressed within the Safety Management System (SMS) and prevented from happening again.