How do character upgrades interact with Dispatcher's special ability?

Question

(This should be spoiler free, all of this info is available at the start of the season.)

In our game we upgraded the dispatcher with the Pilot upgrade to Direct Flight without discarding the card. Pilot seems especially powerful since the dispatcher can then move anyone to himself and then trade them that cities card.

Last night the question arose about could he Direct Flight another player's pawn without discarding the city card and without moving himself to that city, for example, moving the medic to a city with a cured disease to instantly treat it?

My instinct says that this is a legal use, as the Dispatcher ability says "Move another player's pawn as if it is your own" and his pawn has the ability to Direct Flight without discarding.

Answer 1

Yes, this is a legal move, and it is clarified in the rules (page 5) (emphasis mine):

When the Dispatcher moves a player’s pawn as if it were his own:

• use the Dispatcher’s scars and upgrades, not those belonging to the character he is moving,

• cards that need to be played or discarded (for Direct and Charter Flights or to enter a collapsing or fallen city) come from the Dispatcher’s hand. A card discarded for a Charter Flight must match the city the pawn is moving from.

The Pilot upgrade allows your character to take a Direct Flight without discarding the card. I don't see an upgrade that allows you to take a Charter Flight without discarding, however, so be sure you're using the correct action. Looking around on google, a Pilot Dispatcher is a very common combination, as it is very efficient to move players around that way.