Smisek on the jumpseat

[Yuppyguppy]

Smigel wants his "precious" from you. Your SCOPE. And he'll lie, cheat, or steal or do anything else he has to, to get it.

LOL...you are correct along with Lorenzo, Icahn, Tilton, Crandle, Ferris etc etch

 

[paulsalem]

Who is Smisek?

Answer.

 

[EMBpilot]

He was on my jumpseat also once. Summary of 3 hour conversation:
1. Pilots are stupid. Because they think that if an airline makes a profit for one quarter - it will make profit for a year and they will get profit sharing.

2. Fuel is hurting us and economy overall in tough shape i.e. dont ask for anything.

3. Competition with other airlines is outrages. We have to work hard, harder than we ever worked. We really have to count every single dollar, but you do work for the best airline in the World.

He also touched my shoulder a lot.

 

[jonjuan]

He was on my jumpseat also once. Summary of 3 hour conversation:
1. Pilots are stupid. Because they think that if an airline makes a profit for one quarter - it will make profit for a year and they will get profit sharing.

2. Fuel is hurting us and economy overall in tough shape i.e. dont ask for anything.

3. Competition with other airlines is outrages.

See # 1.

 

[Draginass]

He also touched my shoulder a lot.

Did you enjoy it?

 

[jenks]

No questions about when they may recall the furloughed pilots and staff the airline correctly? I wouldn't have believed his answer, but I sure would have been interested in what his answer might have been!

 

[IAHERJ]

EWR FO -- Last I checked it's his airline not yours. He's the boss, like it our not, we aren't. If he wants to come up to the flight deck, it's his perogative, how you handle it is yours. I don't know of any industry where the boss is prohibited from checking on his employees...bs or not, but saying he is NEVER welcome on the flight deck is a missed opportunity to filter the BS. Are you scared that he might convince you or us of something? Come on....

I completely agree. When the CEO is at the airport or on your flight, you act like a professional and show some respect. You may not like what he has to say or where he is taking the airline, but you lose all credibility when you play stupid games. If it had been my flight, I would have politely said "Mr. Smisek, I appreciate that the company made an offer to our pilot group in such short order; but I have to be honest with you, that offer is just not going to cut it. There are a number of reasons why I feel that way, scope being one of the largest. I, along with most of the pilots I know have expressed our feelings in detail to the negotiating committee. I'm sure those representing us(the pilots) and the company will find a way to reach an agreement that is fair to all involved."

If he wanted to hear specifics, I'd be cordial and respectful but be direct in stating that issues like scope are non starters with myself and every pilot I've spoken to. I'd then shut the conversation down by stating that I'd really rather not discuss if farther as it is an unhealthy distraction from pre-flight duties. I'd change the subject and let him do the talking from that point forward.

 

[Stukadriver]

Smigel wants his "precious" from you. Your SCOPE. And he'll lie, cheat, or steal or do anything else he has to, to get it.

HA! I thought I was the only one who called him that.

 

[Skyflyin]

No questions about when they may recall the furloughed pilots and staff the airline correctly? I wouldn't have believed his answer, but I sure would have been interested in what his answer might have been!

jenks,

That was on my list of questions I didn't get to ask, as well as how much more/less staffing would the Delta contract require. Sorry, maybe the next guy can ask if they don't kick him out of the jumpseat.

 

[GogglesPisano]

EWR FO -- Last I checked it's his airline not yours.

How is it his airline? Does he own it? He may own more stock than your average pilot but I'd say your average pilot has a great deal more invested in an airline -- in real terms -- than any migrant manager.

He's the boss, like it our not, we aren't. If he wants to come up to the flight deck, it's his perogative, ..

Actually, it's the PIC's perogative. As someone else posted, if your CEO wants to talk with you, how about you stop by his office unannounced someday.

 

[jenks]

jenks,

That was on my list of questions I didn't get to ask, as well as how much more/less staffing would the Delta contract require. Sorry, maybe the next guy can ask if they don't kick him out of the jumpseat.

No problem. You asked some really good questions, I just would have liked to see what he might have said. Thanks for your post.

 

[tmac3333]

How is it his airline? Does he own it? He may own more stock than your average pilot but I'd say your average pilot has a great deal more invested in an airline -- in real terms -- than any migrant manager.



Actually, it's the PIC's perogative. As someone else posted, if your CEO wants to talk with you, how about you stop by his office unannounced someday.

Goggles...you act like this would work in any other industry. If the boss wants to come into your workstation, unannounced even, it's a non-starter, he or she's going to do it. He's not doing it in-flight, and if it's interrupting your "PIC" duties then as said earlier politely tell him so. Any other worker in any other industry has just as much "invested...in real terms" as we do in our airline, whether that's Continental, Delta, Ford, or IBM, it doesn't give us the right to keep him out of our workstation, in this case the cockpit, especially if he's doing it at an appropriate time. Would you rather he be on your flight and not ask your opinion about how to make the company better, regardless of whether or not you think he'll actually listen to you? What would you do if you were in charge?

 

[Ex737Driver]

Goggles...you act like this would work in any other industry. If the boss wants to come into your workstation, unannounced even, it's a non-starter, he or she's going to do it. He's not doing it in-flight, and if it's interrupting your "PIC" duties then as said earlier politely tell him so. Any other worker in any other industry has just as much "invested...in real terms" as we do in our airline, whether that's Continental, Delta, Ford, or IBM, it doesn't give us the right to keep him out of our workstation, in this case the cockpit, especially if he's doing it at an appropriate time. Would you rather he be on your flight and not ask your opinion about how to make the company better, regardless of whether or not you think he'll actually listen to you? What would you do if you were in charge?

Actually our FOM does allow for it but it takes a seat behind safety and professionalism. The union has even put out a memo, "the magenta line" that asks if Jeff wants to come to the cockpit to talk, politely remind him that safety comes first and that him being in the cockpit is a distraction. He has a first class seat for a reason. My MEC speaks for me.

 

[GogglesPisano]

What would you do if you were in charge?

Manage the expectations of labor. Spread fear. Undermine collective bargaining. That would be my job.

 

[Draginass]

Smigel should know that his presence in the cockpit WILL be a major distraction. If he knows, he's deliberately violating his own company safety policy (not that management actually think that rules apply to them), and if he doesn't, well, I guess that speaks for itself.

If Smigel wants to talk to crews he ought to spend some time in the crew ops. But then again, that would require him to actually interact with his employees when they aren't subject to the additional stress of trying to be respectful of him and trying to make sure the preflight is done correctly and safely. By walking into the cockpit when the crew is busy, he knows he can do most of the talking, then have an excuse to leave quickly when his BS gets challenged.