Reply #13: Crew rest rules are another one of the industry's dirty little secrets

[mn9driver]

At the bigger carriers, the domestic pilots are usually restricted to a 14 hour day followed by a 9 hour break, but the Federal Aviation Regulations allow up to 16 hours on duty followed by "reduced rest", which can be a lot less than 9 hours. Many of the smaller carriers with poorly represented pilot groups use the FAR rules.

The best part of the deal is that pilots don't get paid for being at work. They only get paid for the actual time that the aircraft is moving, so a 16 hour work day with 7 or 8 flights can end up netting only 8 hours of pay, or in the case of a bad pilot contract, a lot less than that. For some unlucky pilots, 5 long days of work can be worth as little as 15 hours of pay.