Bidding tips for low seniority, how I got international trips in year two
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#1 Every US new hire asks how to beat the seniority wall. What worked for me:
1. Bid what's realistic, fantasy bids fall back to leftovers.
2. Find the trips seniors avoid (red-eyes, holiday weekends, certain layovers) and want those.
3. Learn the PBS software properly in month one; most crew never do and lose trips to those who did.
4. Trade with crew whose preferences invert yours, night-flyers are a day-flyer's best friend.
5. Pick up trips seniors drop at the last minute.Year two, Houston base, I held Latin America internationals by bidding the departure times nobody wanted.
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#2 Point 3 is the one. Delta's system has features half the base doesn't know exist. The crew who master it get measurably better months at the same seniority.
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#3 Fourteen years in: still true. And point 5, the trip-trade board at 22:00 the night before is where the good stuff appears.