Line holder
US crew who hold a monthly roster of assigned trips rather than reserve days, and can trade, drop and pick up flying.
Definition
A line holder is a crew member whose monthly roster consists of specific pairings awarded through bidding, as opposed to a reserve line of on-call days. The line is theirs to manage: within contract rules they can trade trips with colleagues, drop trips they do not want, and pick up open-time flying for extra pay. The term is North American; European crew simply talk about holding a roster.
What it means for you
Holding a line is the moment the job becomes yours to shape, and at US majors it takes anything from months to four years depending on base. Line holders earn more — through premium pick-ups and better trips — and sleep better, because they know their month. The trip-trade marketplace is where senior crew turn a mediocre award into a good one.
In practice
Delta line holders drop, swap and trade trips aggressively through the internal marketplace; a new hire in the same base watches from reserve until their seniority number clears the line-holding threshold.
Related terms
4 terms- ReserveRoster & schedulingThe US term for a roster of on-call days rather than assigned trips: you fly whatever crew scheduling gives you, at short notice.
- BiddingRoster & schedulingRequesting the trips, days off or patterns you want for the coming month, with awards decided by seniority or a points system.
- Open timeRoster & schedulingUnassigned trips left over after rosters are built, which line holders can pick up voluntarily — often at premium pay when crew are short.
- Roster swapRoster & schedulingExchanging a rostered duty with a colleague, subject to legality checks and crewing approval; how crew shape a company-built roster.