Division Director Provides Testimony to Congress on Proposed UAL-CAL Merger
In written testimony provided at the request of House Committee of Transportation and Infrastructure’s Subcommittee on Aviation, Airline Division Director David Bourne addressed concerns regarding the pending merger.
Noting that there are “many experts and pundits have offered their considered opinions regarding the legal, economic and consumer issues involved in a merger of the size and scope as the proposed United-Continental merger,” he went on to say that, “We will continue to review and analyze the proposed merger; at this time, however, we prefer to remain neutral with respect to the proposed transaction. In neither applauding nor opposing the merger, I wish to state for the record that our neutrality is only limited to the transaction itself.”
Speaking to the concerns of members, Bourne said in his testimony, “Job security continues to be an increasingly rare commodity in the airline industry. Once a strong and proud component of our nation’s economic engine, our members are now barraged with WARN Act and COBRA notices as managements seek to put American workers on the street, compromising the safety of the traveling public and flight crews as they seek ways to cut costs and increase their bottom line. Our members’ tools lay rusting and formerly state of the art maintenance facilities lie dormant as their jobs continue to be outsourced to companies that are not required to maintain the same standards as
In his testimony, Bourne also spoke to the membership’s concerns held over pensions, heath care and the safety and oversight of outsourced maintenance work. Reminding the committees of recent history, he said, “As your hearings continue, we are living the nightmare of what appears to be safety related shortcuts on an oil rig in the
During the week’s meetings, the group again reviewed, discussed and mutually passed proposals on Article 1 (Scope). The
Attorney Ed Gleason and Gene Kalwarski, an actuary and pensions expert with Cheiron, Inc., also spoke to the negotiating committee concerning options pertaining to CARP.
Week In Review News Items
Labor Developments
British Airways is back in the news today as the airline kicked off a recruitment drive for cabin crew and a union representing the current crew announced the potential for new strikes. Unite says its members will vote June 29 on launching a new wave of walkouts unless a bitter dispute with the airline's management is resolved by next Tuesday…British Airways said Tuesday that it has reached an agreement with pension trustees on a plan to close deficits, a deal designed to resolve a key issue in a proposed merger with Spanish airline Iberia…and one hundred-plus seat aircraft will be welcomed in the rest of the world, but the success of the class in the US will largely rely on the relaxation of scope clauses. While that may not be startling news, pilots are coming to the negotiating table wanting compensation rates to return to 2002 levels while management is coming to the table with a wish-list on work rules and scope.
Legislative, Regulatory & Safety
The first official statements were made about the cracks found near two B-767 engine of American Airlines last Monday. In the note sent by Tim Wagner of the carrier's Corporate Communications, joint inspection with FAA personnel reveal the problem found only on two airplanes of the fleet. This statement reduces worries of first announcements, where it was stated three 767s had this occurrence…European transport ministers must act to stop further disruption of air services by volcanic ash, the Association of European Airlines demanded.
Airline Industry Finances & Structure
Officials from the United States and European Union this week signed the second-stage Open Skies agreement, affirming and expanding 2007's landmark transatlantic bilateral as per terms the two sides agreed to in March this year…for an industry seemingly always in the grips of a crisis or on the verge of one, the Canadian airline sector is looking remarkably unruffled and upbeat. The boost for the sector is coming mostly from a recovery in the domestic and global economy, and is a sharp turnaround from last spring when Air Canada was on the brink of bankruptcy and WestJet was showing double-digit falls in profit…and as Virgin America launches its first international route Wednesday from Toronto, airline chairman Donald Carty is casting his gaze to Vancouver as the carrier’s next Canadian destination.
Passenger Service
Federal officials are looking into whether any rules were violated when passengers on a Virgin Atlantic Airways flight were stranded for hours aboard a sweltering plane at a
Miscellaneous
United Airlines spent $660,000 in the first quarter lobbying on high-profile aviation regulation issues like rules for dealing with stranded passengers, rest for airline pilots, and restrictions on using personal electronics in the cockpit…when it comes to Spirit Airlines, the media isn’t very smart. Spirit has long been known for having borderline tasteless to outright offensive ads, and the media somehow thinks it’s smart to blast them for it every time.