CAL Fleet Service Workers Discussions Continue
Houston, Texas was the location for the resumption of talks CAL management for the Fleet Service Workers. The parties reached tentative agreements on two additional sections; Reduction in Force (RIF) Recall / Filling of Vacancies and Leaves of Absence. Progress was also reported on the Articles covering Hours of Service, Uniforms, Training and Safety and Health. The Negotiating committee and Company will meet again in Houston, the week of November 1st, followed by meetings scheduled for the weeks of November 8th and November 15th, also in Houston.
Local 1224 Pilots Inaugurate Service to New Airport
Pilots of Atlas Air, members of Local 1224, recently operated the first scheduled freighter service into the new Dubai World Central (DWC)-Al Maktoum International Airport on behalf of the airlines long-standing ACMI customer, Panalpina Group.
The 747-400 freighter flight was the first of a new controlled airfreight service by Panalpina, which will include two weekly flights into Dubai as part of a round-the-world flight rotation connecting Luxembourg, Dubai, South Africa, Hong Kong, North America and Latin America.
A second Atlas Air 747-400 freighter inaugurated the freight forwarders new express service between Huntsville, Alabama, and Sao Paulo, Brazil, enhancing connections between Asia, North America and Latin America.
In Memoriam
Atlas Air crewmembers were shocked this past week to learn of the sudden loss of two well loved and respected fellow pilots. Captain Tim Larson and Captain Spero Theofilatos, both pilots, members of Local 1224, were lost in the crash of a personal aircraft owned by Captain Larson. The aircraft was reported overdue and after a search, was found near Lake Matthews, in Riverside, California.
Captain Theofilatos, who joined the company in April 1999, was a company Check Airman on the 747-400. A nationally-ranked Greco-Roman wrestler in the 1980s, he competed nationally at 62 kg/136.5 pound class and was a six-time national All-American in Greco-Roman. In recent years, he volunteered as a wrestling coach at Jupiter Christian High School in Florida.
Spero is survived by his wife Kyky and son, Nicholas. In lieu of flowers, the family has requested donations be sent to a college fund for Nicholas. The address is:
Nicolas Theofilatos UGMA
c/o Wachovia Bank, Jupiter West Shore
6735 West Indiantown Road
Jupiter, Florida 33458
Account Number: 1010302103924
Captain Larson, also a highly experienced pilot, joined Atlas Air in March 1999. A member of the unions Professional Standards and Hotel committees, he too was well respected by his fellow crewmembers and known for his love of life, great sense of humor, willingness to do anything for friends and most of all, his love for the New York Yankees.
Tim is survived by his mother Karen, sisters Tara, Tracy, Amy and girlfriend Janina.
The family has asked that in lieu of flowers, donations be sent in Tim’s memory to his favorite charity, www.fallenwarriors.org, which helps to provide for the families of our fallen heroes.
Week In Review News Items
Labor Developments
Flight attendants at Allegiant Air want to vote on joining TWU. The union said on Thursday that Allegiant flight attendants filed a petition with the National Mediation Board, which governs airline unions. The union says the board is supposed to set an election date within 45 days…British Airways has offered to restore basic travel concessions to cabin crew who went on strike earlier this year in a bid to end the long-running and costly dispute between the two parties. However, it says staff who took industrial action must show three years of good behavior before their seniority is restored, and in the meantime they must wait at the back of the line for free or discounted flights.
Wall Street is jumping up and down because airlines are making money again – big money. But how did airlines turn their fortunes around and what does it mean for passengers and employees who can both arguably be described as long-suffering victims of greed in the sky?…over the last decade, tens of thousands of employees lost their jobs or experienced deep cuts in wages, health benefits and pensions as carriers went in and out of bankruptcy and struggled with fuel costs and economic shocks. But with airlines making money for the first time in years, employees say it is now time to get back some of what they gave up.
Legislative, Safety & Regulatory
How did a two foot wide hole open up mid-air during an American Airlines flight from Miami to Boston? That's the question for FAA investigators this morning…Senate inquiry into airline flight crew training and standards in Australia has turned into a last ditch stand by ‘the old Qantas’ culture of lifetime highly experienced company pilots against ‘the new’ Jetstar culture of low experience short-term piloting ‘solutions’…and three-quarters of frequent business travelers say they're confused about which airline will be operating their flights as regional carriers take a growing role in transporting passengers, safety investigators were told at the start of a two-day NTSB hearing Tuesday. A survey of 212 travel managers by the Business Travel Coalition found widespread bewilderment over the complex arrangements between airlines and concern over safety at the smaller regional carriers that now fly more than half of all passenger flights.
Airline Industry Finances & Structure
British Airways expects to deliver further growth in 2011 after posting its first profit in two years, helped by cost cutting and improved demand for premium class travel in the first half. BA, whose merger with Spain's Iberia completes in January, on Friday reported a pretax profit of 158 million pounds for the six months to September 30 compared to a loss of 292 million pounds in the same period last year…air traffic's strong rebound from the economic crisis and cost-cutting efforts have also helped Lufthansa triple third-quarter earnings and raise its outlook. The carrier reported Thursday net earnings of €628 million ($866 million) for the July-September period, compared with €209 million a year earlier…and at home, Southwest’s pending acquisition of AirTran places the fierce price competitor firmly in Delta’s Atlanta turf, but Delta executives didn't seem too concerned about the potential threat the nation's largest "low-cost carrier" poses.
Miscellaneous
Several European officials questioned American requirements for airport security on Wednesday, a day after the chairman of British Airways criticized Britain for bowing too quickly to Washington’s demands…some travelers may get to the airport Monday and discover they can't get on their flight because they haven't provided the airline all the identification data required by the Transportation Security Administration. The TSA, which is implementing the next phase of its Secure Flight Program on Monday, will require that all passengers provide their full names as they appear on a current government photo ID, their date of birth and their gender.