Once signed off the F/E becomes a line holding crew member. I have described the duties of the F/E fully so here I will describe the life of a F/E.

Every month a bid is put out for flying. He must bid for a schedule. Of course the more senior crewmembers get first choice of what trips they fly. The lower the seniority the worse the circumstance of the trip.

Bad trips of course could mean anything: Winter trips to the East Coast, Short Layover, Multiple Leg trips, onerous Captains no one else wants to fly with, bad days off.

Once awarded a line the F/E now knows when to report and where to report for duty. Failure to do so cold and sometimes means termination.

As the person responsible for the pre-flight of the aircraft, the F/E must be out to the aircraft at least one hour prior to departure. This way any mechanical problems can be addressed with a mechanic or fueler. It truly is minimal time to have the aircraft ready for a new F/E.

When operating a flight the F/E works harder than the other two crewmembers (who are more responsible for the legalities and paperwork) and more than the other crewmember can make the flight easy or hard.

A motivated F/E can really set the tone of the cockpit by being sharp and knowing how to tackle pre-flight issues without guidance---but informs everyone of exactly what he is doing while a sloven F/E mucks up everyone.

Once landed the F/E goes to crew rest and is free to do anything he wishes as long as he reports back in for the next leg on time fresh and ready to perform.

The smart F/E watches the front end crews and stays in the loop with flying the aircraft and uses them as a template to mold himself after in preparation for upgrade. He has the best observation seat in the house.

Overall the F/E is a mental test and a great place to learn the procedure of a company.