Alaska Makes 87.3 million and is still the F word

[Mea25000]

Alaska's mainline operating revenue per available seat mile (ASM) increased 0.9 percent, and its operating cost per ASM excluding fuel and the special items mentioned above increased 2.9 percent. Alaska's total pretax income for the quarter was $87.3 million, compared to pretax income of $80.9 million in 2007. Excluding the mark-to- market fuel hedge adjustments and fleet transition charges, Alaska would have reported a pretax loss of $15.6 million for the quarter, compared to pretax income of $82.4 million in the second quarter of 2007.


Alaska Makes 87.3 million dollars which is a better ratio then even SWA and we are going to shrink capacity. I was told 150 letters to be sent out to our pilots september first. AAG management and their Alaska Spirit!

 

[ReverseSensing]

Alaska Makes 87.3 million dollars which is a better ratio then even SWA and we are going to shrink capacity. I was told 150 letters to be sent out to our pilots september first. AAG management and their Alaska Spirit!

The MBA geniuses at AAG are entering full-on hunker-down mode. F the employees. As long as the directors, senior management, and customers (I was gonna say shareholders - hah!) get a good reach-around then it's "Mission Accomplished".

 

[kingair1]

" I was told 150 letters to be sent out to our pilots september first "


What valid source did you hear this from ?

 

[AKMD80GUY]

With the loss of the last 7 MD-80's we will be fat on pilots but by only a few. The cost to furlough, then retrain will exceed the cost to keep them on the property. They just don't want to pay the MD pilots to sit from August until the last one is trained in February. I will have to call negotiation BS on this one but management has proved to all of us that they would rather lose money than do the right thing and save money.

 

[Old School 737]

With the loss of the last 7 MD-80's we will be fat on pilots but by only a few. The cost to furlough, then retrain will exceed the cost to keep them on the property. They just don't want to pay the MD pilots to sit from August until the last one is trained in February. I will have to call negotiation BS on this one but management has proved to all of us that they would rather lose money than do the right thing and save money.

I thought they moved up all training so as to have the MD guys done before the end of the year? Is this not true, do some guys still have training in Jan?

 

[mach none]

negotiations just got interesting

 

[Going2Baja]

negotiations just got interesting

I can hear it now...."Take the 15% pay plus loss of other language and we won't furlough......just yet."

Sh!tty T!mes....Baja.

 

[AKMD80GUY]

I thought they moved up all training so as to have the MD guys done before the end of the year? Is this not true, do some guys still have training in Jan?

As far as I know the training extends into next year. That was part of the company wanting us to give them round the clock sims and also sim training at Boeing. MEC told the company sure in exchange for X amount of dollars.

I've also heard a proposal that if there are furloughs that those of us that are still around donate to a fund to help the furloughed pilots. I'm all for that so long as we stay strong and get some money back. I honestly think this is straight out of the playbook though.

We also made $155.3M on hedging alone. After Bill and the boys get there bonuses, they will still have plenty of cash to spread around. They cant hide the money fast enough.

 

[Going2Baja]

As of this morning the VP of Flt Ops hadn't heard of this and as of noon the Lax base CP hasn't heard of any crew furloughs. He said there would be MANY steps before a single furlough was handed out. Some remember the "furlough" of 92' that never happened, but the Co did get the pay cut they wanted. I think Ayer said furlough to stir the pot but he really meant layoffs from the non-flying ranks.

Just my $0.02c

Baja.

 

[AKMD80GUY]

As of this morning the VP of Flt Ops hadn't heard of this and as of noon the Lax base CP hasn't heard of any crew furloughs. He said there would be MANY steps before a single furlough was handed out. Some remember the "furlough" of 92' that never happened, but the Co did get the pay cut they wanted. I think Ayer said furlough to stir the pot but he really meant layoffs from the non-flying ranks.

Agreed.

 

[becket]

As of this morning the VP of Flt Ops hadn't heard of this and as of noon the Lax base CP hasn't heard of any crew furloughs. He said there would be MANY steps before a single furlough was handed out. Some remember the "furlough" of 92' that never happened, but the Co did get the pay cut they wanted. I think Ayer said furlough to stir the pot but he really meant layoffs from the non-flying ranks.

Agreed.

If you're near the bottom, plan on getting furloughed. Much better to be surprised by it NOT happening than being surprised that they actually did. Save every dime you can right now.

 

[Wally]

I was told 150 letters to be sent out to our pilots september first.

Seriously? The only purpose you serve by posting such garbage is that of management's. If what you are reporting has ANY merit, please list a source. Otherwise keep it to yourself.

If you're near the bottom, plan on getting furloughed. Much better to be surprised by it NOT happening than being surprised that they actually did. Save every dime you can right now.

Very well said! Don't be intimidated by rumor, gossip and fear mongering, but don't be stupid either. Plan for the worst, hope for the best.

Wally

 

[Going2Baja]

Very well said! Don't be intimidated by rumor, gossip and fear mongering, but don't be stupid either. Plan for the worst, hope for the best.

Exactly - Done!

Baja.

 

[Z_Pilot]

If you're near the bottom, plan on getting furloughed. Much better to be surprised by it NOT happening than being surprised that they actually did. Save every dime you can right now.

Kind of hard to do on $32/hr

*sigh*

 

[relief tube]

unfortunately having an operating profit yet still loosing a lot of money, is still loosing a lot of money.

good luck to all.

 

[Sioux115]

I love how the Horizon press release states nothing about the increased revenue and leads with a 6 month loss of 50.6 million. Even though release is just about the second quarter. I understand these are terrible times but they (dipsh#ts...err...management) are trying really hard to make it sound even worse. NEGATIVE NEGATIVE propaganda! The Sky is falling AHHHH!

 

[Fubijaakr]

Its amazing how the Company can report a $61m PROFIT then spin it to the employees as a $14m LOSS.

They really think we're stupid. That's the reason they'll use for furloughing 100 guys. The real reason is they ditched the MDs early and can't do the 737 training.

And, of course, the contract negotiations scare tactic. Wanna bet they repeat their '92 performance and send the actual letters on Xmas eve?

 

[alaskaplt]

Its amazing how the Company can report a $61m PROFIT then spin it to the employees as a $14m LOSS.

They really think we're stupid. That's the reason they'll use for furloughing 100 guys. The real reason is they ditched the MDs early and can't do the 737 training.

And, of course, the contract negotiations scare tactic. Wanna bet they repeat their '92 performance and send the actual letters on Xmas eve?

This won't save them from having to train all the md guys over to the 737. There aren't any pilots on the md in the bottom 100 or so. Any furloughees would come from the 737.

 

[Going2Baja]

As of this morning the VP of Flt Ops hadn't heard of this and as of noon the Lax base CP hasn't heard of any crew furloughs. He said there would be MANY steps before a single furlough was handed out. Some remember the "furlough" of 92' that never happened, but the Co did get the pay cut they wanted. I think Ayer said furlough to stir the pot but he really meant layoffs from the non-flying ranks.

Just my $0.02c

Baja.

From VP as of today:

"Now for the things we can't control. Fuel prices, while having retreated to $124/bbl in recent days from a high of $147/bbl on July 11th, are creating an incredible drag on the airline. Coupled with weak economic conditions, we are facing a combination of factors that may well make this the most difficult period in commercial aviation history. You have, no doubt, already heard of our decision to trim the schedule by 5% in the fourth quarter and by 5-10% for all of 2009. These capacity cuts will likely be across our entire west coast network as flights are trimmed from high-frequency city pairs in an attempt to achieve the pricing power needed to return to profitability. Rest assured we'll keep the pressure on Virgin America and we have no plans to cede market share to them in our backyard! Some of this draw down of capacity will be redeployed to new markets as we cast our net further afield to bring new revenue into our network, but some will simply have to be parked. As a result we expect there to be furloughs among pilots, flight attendants, CSAs and other operational areas this fall, the details of which will be available as the winter schedule is finalized in early September. We will work with our various unions to explore voluntary programs such as unpaid leaves of absence and early out programs to minimize the number of furloughs. A 5% reduction in management will take effect September 1st."

How things change in just a day.....Off to Humpy's to find a cold one...two...three...Never mind.

Baja.

 

[Baze]

Baja,

Good luck to us all. At least you have something to fall back on.

I think I'll go stand in front of Home Depot.
I'm quite skilled with a shovel.

Baze

From VP as of today:

How things change in just a day.....Off to Humpy's to find a cold one...two...three...Never mind.

Baja.

 

[SRMairlines]

Baze...

quit worrying. Planning is talking 40-50 furloughs read the contract and you will see there are several steps to further minimize a furlough. A 10% reduction could actually equal ZERO furlough.

 

[Fubijaakr]

This won't save them from having to train all the md guys over to the 737. There aren't any pilots on the md in the bottom 100 or so. Any furloughees would come from the 737.

You know that and I know that. But, Angle Lake don't know that.

 

[mach none]

Many steps to take via the CBA and I would look for LOA and VSI. Monthly max reductions are in order too.

We should absolutely demand no VSA while our pilots are furloughed!

 

[kingair1]

"We should absolutely demand no VSA while our pilots are furloughed! "


This would be a must !! Completely agree !

 

[BLUE BAYOU]

July 24, 2008 Alaska Air Group, parent of Alaska Airlines, swung to a quarterly loss on Thursday on higher fuel costs and said it plans to cut mainline capacity later this year and again in 2009.
Among the changes, management personnel at the mainline carrier will be reduced by 5 percent, effective September 1. The company plans to have "more information" on how capacity cuts will impact other workers at that time.
Alaska Air Group's regional unit, Horizon Air, reduced its management work force by 13 percent earlier this year and will further reduce operational and management positions in connection with capacity cuts.
"We are keenly aware of the impact on our employees and regret having to take these actions," said Bill Ayer, Alaska Air Group's chairman and chief executive.
"Current fuel prices -- which are devastating for airlines and consumers alike -- require these measures to ensure the viability of our company," Ayer said.
Excluding special items that include charges for the transition to an all Boeing 737 fleet, the Alaska Air Group reported a loss of USD$14.1 million. That compared to 2007 net income of USD$47.2 million.
Alaska's mainline operating revenue per available seat mile increased 0.9 percent, and its operating cost per available seat mile, excluding fuel and the special items, increased 2.9 percent.
Alaska Air Group ended the quarter with USD$1 billion in cash and short-term investments.
Ayer announced that Alaska's fourth-quarter mainline capacity will decline by 5 percent from 2007 levels, and mainline capacity for 2009 will decrease by 5 percent to 10 percent, compared with 2008.

(Reuters)

Sooo, did AAG make money or not??? According to Reuters, a 14 million loss...

 

[ReverseSensing]

Sooo, did AAG make money or not??? According to Reuters, a 14 million loss...

GAAP (including special items like fuel hedges and fleet transition costs): yes, $63 million.

Net operating: not, $14 million loss.

For comparison's sake, Southwest made $321 million (GAAP) and $121 million (net operating).

Hope that makes sense.

 

[Hamburger]

"We should absolutely demand no VSA while our pilots are furloughed! "


This would be a must !! Completely agree !

How about demand it NOW and keep them from being furloughed in the first place?
Volunteering for extra flying while the company is even threatening furloughs is a dirtbag move.

If the management pilots are timing out every month trying to cover the schedule, they'll be too tired to cut loose line guys.

 

[Baze]

Agreed 100%.

Nobody should be doing VSA... and people should
bail out of the bank program too.

That is, if the some of the more senior people
actually care about the junior pilots on the list.
I'm pretty sure a good 10-15% don't give a crap
and they are going to do what's good for them.

How about demand it NOW and keep them from being furloughed in the first place?
Volunteering for extra flying while the company is even threatening furloughs is a dirtbag move.

If the management pilots are timing out every month trying to cover the schedule, they'll be too tired to cut loose line guys.

 

[Deadalus]

Agreed 100%.

Nobody should be doing VSA... and people should
bail out of the bank program too.

That is, if the some of the more senior people
actually care about the junior pilots on the list.
I'm pretty sure a good 10-15% don't give a crap
and they are going to do what's good for them.

Sounds familiar. 10-15% must be an industry average. I remember flying with a captain who was picking up all the flying he could. Bottom line, the air whore was making $180k/yr+ while we had guys on the street.

 

[mach none]

How about demand it NOW and keep them from being furloughed in the first place?
Volunteering for extra flying while the company is even threatening furloughs is a dirt bag move.

If the management pilots are timing out every month trying to cover the schedule, they'll be too tired to cut loose line guys.

Before furloughs can take place, the company and the association have to work up a plan to mitigate the number of pilots that will be furloughed.

The interesting part is we are not parking any jets. In fact, one of the latest 8k shows a net gain of one a/c in 2009. This leads me to believe it is more negotiations 101 than an operational need.