From Now On All USAir Flights Will Be in Good Weather

At least, you better hope so:

WASHINGTON — The pilots union for U.S. Airways said Wednesday the airline is pressuring pilots to use less fuel than they feel is safe in order to save money.

U.S. Airways Captain James Ray, a spokesman for the U.S. Airline Pilots Association, which represents the airline's 5,200 pilots, said eight senior pilots and the union have filed complaints with the Federal Aviation Administration.

The union also paid for a full-page ad in Wednesday's USA Today addressed to "our valued passengers." The ad accuses the airline of "a program of intimidation to pressure your captain to reduce fuel loads."

Ray said soaring jet fuel prices have sent all the airlines scrambling to find ways to cut the weight of airliners because the heavier the plane, the more fuel the plane burns. U.S. Airways, based in Tempe, Ariz., has recently removed movie players, redesigned its meal carts and replaced glassware with plastic to cut weight.

Jet fuel has surpassed labor as the airline industry's greatest expense.

But U.S. Airways recently crossed the line when it ordered eight pilots who requested "an extra 10 to 15 minutes worth of fuel" to attend training sessions, or "check rides," that could put their pilot licenses in jeopardy, Ray said. The pilots were supposed to report for their training sessions Wednesday, he said.

"We feel they're trying to set an example," Ray said. "Captains shouldn't be intimidated into thinking, 'If I say I need this fuel, they may send me for a check ride.' ... Cutting peanuts off the plane, that's one thing. But cutting a captain's fuel level below his comfort, that's another thing."

Aviation fuel weighs about 6 pounds per gallon (as opposed to water which weighs 8 pounds per gallon) and I forget the minimum requirement, but I believe they have to be able to fly to their destination, hold for awhile, have enough fuel to divert to an alternate and still have 45 minutes of reserve remaining. That's a lot of fuel, but those things burn it at a pretty quick rate. If bad weather is covering a large area, their primary alternate may not be available and they'll want all the gas they can get.

Maybe they should take less water for the toilets since it weighs a lot more. (Just kidding.)

I remember a flight I took some years ago from Orange County to Chicago. As we approached the Windy City the entire area was blanketed in severe thunderstorms (they had a tornado over the airport later that afternoon). We tried to penetrate the mess, but the turbulence was pretty bad and the pilot thought better of it (thankfully). We were put in a holding pattern for about 30 minutes, and then the pilot announced that we were diverting....to Memphis, TN. Our primary alternate had been St. Louis, but the crosswinds there were now exceeding the maximum allowed for our 757 aircraft. The secondary alternate was Memphis. We flew another 90 minutes to get down there.

With less fuel that diversion might have become much more tricky. The pilot might have had to try that landing in St. Louis, or go somewhere where they didn't have facilities for this type of aircraft. Fuel in the wing tank is better than fuel sitting in a airport truck somewhere.

You can't really scrimp on fuel, but nothing says they have to fly with fat people. Maybe they should just start flying with fewer fat people.