1. Navblue N-PBS
How is a Reserve Line Awarded?

2. Two Step Process
Although you as a bidder will never see it, awarding a Reserve line is actually a two step process. Step 1: Award Days On/Off Step 2: Award Reserve Availability Periods (RAPs)
12/19/2019

3. Step 1
In Step 1, a Reserve line holder is awarded days on and off. This is done using the pilot’s Negative and Positive bid preferences in his Reserve bid group, along with the Company’s required reserve coverage on each of the days in the bid month. In much the same manner as N-PBS looks ahead to determine whether a Coverage Award is necessary for a Regular line holder, the program will look to see if any Reserve days must be unstacked and assigned in order to meet the Company’s required coverage during the bid month. From that point, N-PBS will assign Reserve days using the bidder’s bid statements, as long as such requests do not result in coverage less than what is required by the Company.
12/19/2019

4. Step 2
Now that all Reserve line holders have been awarded days on and off, N-PBS will complete the process by assigning RAPs. Due to the computing power required to solve the complexity of our Reserve system and the number of possible RAPs (24 in total), this is a separate, independent process from awarding days on and off. Because the process is separate, your request for a given RAP on a Reserve Bid Group will not be considered until AFTER you become a Reserve line holder, and AFTER your bid statements for Days On and Off have been considered. This is true no matter where you place your RAP bid statement on your bid group.
12/19/2019
ALPA JPWG

5. As N-PBS begins the RAP award process, it starts with the senior Reserve line holder, and awards his requested RAP. The system will then proceed in seniority order, and consider each bidder’s RAP request. It will compare each bidder’s Days On with the Company’s requirements for RAPs on those days. In doing so, there is a very important distinction that must be understood:
- Each Reserve pilot will have their seniority honored when they are awarded Reserve days on and off.
- Each Reserve line holder will have their seniority considered when awarding RAPs.
So, why the difference?
12/19/2019
ALPA JPWG

6. When awarding Days On and Off, you will be awarded what your seniority can hold, so long as it meets Company requirements. If you are not senior enough to hold weekends off, no one junior to you will be awarded weekends off. When awarding RAPs, N-PBS sees what Days you are working, looks at your RAP requested in your bid group, and then looks to the Company’s requirements on those days. You are awarded your requested RAP only if that RAP is still needed on those days. So, it may be possible for a junior pilot to be awarded a RAP that was requested and not awarded by a more senior pilot.
12/19/2019
ALPA JPWG

7. How is that possible?
Let’s look at an example: A Reserve pilot bids for and is awarded a Reserve schedule with all weekends off. This is the last Reserve pilot with enough seniority to hold a weekends off schedule. This pilot has also requested a RAP of R03. The Reserve pilots senior to this pilot have also bid and been awarded R03 with weekends off. As such, there are no more available R03 RAPs on the weekdays, and the example bidder is denied his request for R03. The next Reserve pilot, in seniority order, has a Reserve schedule that works all weekends. This pilot has also bid for R03. He is awarded R03, as there are still available RAPs to be awarded on the days he is working- the weekends.
12/19/2019
ALPA JPWG

8. The end result: The senior bidder was awarded his Day Off requests in seniority order. The junior bidder was able to hold a RAP not awarded to a senior bidder, because the senior bidder was awarded Days On that the junior bidder could not hold. In this way, seniority is honored when awarding Days On and Off. In the subsequent RAP award process, seniority is considered but not always honored based upon the RAPs available on the Days On that were awarded.
12/19/2019
ALPA JPWG

9. Still Confused???
If you would like further clarification, or wish to discuss Reserve bidding strategies and concepts, please reach out to your PBS leadership at:
12/19/2019
ALPA JPWG