US Airways Dividend Miles - Who was this guy on my flight?

A couple of days ago I took a trip from my home, CHA, to Raleigh. Long layovers in CLT every time, but I do enjoy having a couple of drinks at the Fox bar in CLT then heading over to the rocking chairs to relax. Not a bad airport at all. :cool:

Anyway, CLT>CHA on the way back I had the aisle (4C) and the window seat was empty last I checked, about an hour before the flight. I was looking forward to actually having a bit of room on a CRJ-200 for once, then right before the door closed a guy in an airline uniform runs on and to my row and stands there pointing at me. After pointing a couple of times he said "I'm in that seat" and I got up to let him in. A few minutes after he sat down, while staring straight ahead, he loudly said "I'd prefer aisle". I completely ignored him and put on my headphones. I prefer the aisle as well, that's why I book it months in advance. (Asking politely works a lot better than just randomly shouting something out, btw. )

Anyway, I was wondering who was the guy? He was in a pilots uniform, minus the jacket. Is this what I see referred to as deadheading pilots? Or NR? Still trying to figure out some of the terms on here. (Do they stand there and point at people when they need a seat on a flight?)

..... Is this what I see referred to as deadheading pilots? .... yes likely --

updated with better answer from Salon's AskThePilot (http://www.salon.com/tech/col/smith/2007/05/11/askthepilot231/)

DEADHEADING

You'll frequently see uniformed crew members riding in the cabin, repositioning to pick up a flight or traveling back to their base. In airline-speak, they are "deadheading." This travel is part of the crew's assigned rotation, and he or she is on the clock for purposes of pay and duty-time limitation. Deadheading is not the same as commuting to or from work on your own time (a pilot who lives in one city, but is based in another) or being engaged in personal travel. The latter is called "non-revving," from the term "non-revenue passenger."

Doesn't sound like United. Maybe US Airways?

Your response was good. Like I care what this other pax prefers.

Ah, yes it was US Airways, not United. Sorry for wrong forum!


Thanks for the info though WineCountryUA.

Doesn't sound like a dead heading pilot...more like an offline (another carrier's) pilot that is just commuting. Dead heading pilots fly confirmed space to get them from/to an aircraft they are working that is not at their domicile. They usually board earlier than that.

This might have been US, but I had a similar experience on a CRJ on UA. I had 8A (booked the exit row window way in advance), and when I checked in the aisle seat next to me was empty. When I boarded, there was someone sitting in 8A, in what looked to be a pilot uniform. I pointed to the seat and said, "Is this 8A?" He nodded. I waited for a few seconds, while he turned away from me and ignored me. I then said, "I think that's my seat." He just sat there and stared at me, as if waiting for me to just take the aisle. I much rather prefer the window on CRJ's, so I just stood there and we had a staring contest for about half a minute. Finally, he stood up and got out to let me take my seat. Didn't say a word to me the rest of the flight. Is this typical pilot etiquette??

Going to CHA it definitely was not a US pilot deadheading - a quick look shows only Express in and out of CHA so no reason to deadhead a mainline pilot there.

It could have been a non-rev pilot form US, one of the Express carriers, or even from another airline going home. Alternatively, it could have been a pilot from one of the corporate jet charter outfits (like Netjets) - they're often moved around by commercial carrier and many become elites in one or another carrier's FF program due to that.

Jim

Fight rude with sarcasm. It just burns the offender up even more.

If he said "I prefer the aisle" to me, I would have very enthusiastically replied "Now how about that! Me Too!".

His boorish behaviour reminds me of the oft-quoted remark of Harry Steele, then CEO of Eastern Provincial Airways (PV), later Chairman of Canadian Airlines International (CP) -- "Pilots are overpaid, oversexed bus drivers in theatre usher uniforms".

Sounds like commuting. A couple of weeks ago on RNO-SFO I had a Cathay Pacific pilot in uniform sit next to me. He was going out to fly the evening CX flight to HKG.