Quote:
Originally Posted by gargamel
^There has been a change in the way that arrival times are calculated over the last few years, though, right? I'm not talking about Westjet specifically, but I know the expected flight times for specific routes that I fly often are slightly longer now than they were a few years ago, and I don't remember nearly as many pilots saying "we got a late start but we should be able to make that time up in the air" until recently. Either way, I'm not complaining, but I am curious.
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I'm not sure what you're referring to. There are different metrics, such as A0 (arrival 0 minutes late) or A15 (within 15 mins of schedule). Typically A15 is the industry norm, but I don't recall a specific change. But you might be right, and maybe it was a US change that didn't really affect Canadian airlines.
As far as 'making up time', usually it refers to the fact that with some stronger than average tailwind (or less than average headwind), or maybe a short taxi, that we can try to still get in close to schedule even if we left a bit late.
The idea of 'stepping on the gas' doesn't usually happen. First of all, there isn't a huge amount of variance in speed we can fly at cruising altitude. But even if we go from say Mach .77 to Mach .79, it makes maybe a few minutes difference but costs significantly more fuel.