AirTran MEC Chair message.

[scoreboardII]

Being a professional pilot you should be smarter enough to figure it out without asking. I cannot believe you guys believe everything on this site.

I guess I'm not smarter enough then, so be it.

We don't believe in everything, and now that you are busted, no one believes anything you or your imaginary poster friend says.

 

[Cometman]

I guess I'm not smarter enough then, so be it.

We don't believe in everything, and now that you are busted, no one believes anything you or your imaginary poster friend says.

Thats OK because I never post any facts because I do not have any. I just read what some quote as facts and then question it. It helps put another twist to the question.

 

[Lear70]

The possibility of the 717 going away was discussed with SWAPA in the room. The conversation was nothing like you relate.

That must have been a different conversation, possibly with just the Merger Committee present, because I have it in my notes, when it was, where we were, and who was in the room.

It was one of our final conversations just before we signed off on the deal at the end of the week. I pointed out to our group that we were pretty much hanging everything on one airplane... all the seniority, all the protections, everything, and what happened if the airplane went away early, so Jack posed the question to Russ, and that's the answer we got.

I asked if we could get it in writing, and the Merger Committee didn't want to ask, said we had already gotten our answer, said it would cost too much for them to go away, the leases weren't that long, it would be fine, etc, etc. Guess it didn't work out that way.

If that had not been our understanding, we wouldn't have built pretty much THE ENTIRE ROAD SHOW around the 717 protections, which is how we mainly sold the deal to the pilot group.

But if you, SWAPA, had another understanding of the fate of the 717, then you were given information we were not. It's just that simple.

 

[scoreboardII]

Because you are an admitted liar, welcome to the ignore list:

This message is hidden because Cometman is on your ignore list.

 

[EngineThunder]

The Merger Committee didn't want to get it in writing about the 717s. Wow. Isn't it always advised to get it in writing? The Airtran folks should be livid about the money/seniority their inept MEC cost them during this acquisition. It wasn't even a fair fight with SWA mgt.

 

[Lear70]

I wouldn't say they didn't "want" to get it in writing, they didn't think they'd be able to (they might even have asked, I didn't ask them if they had already asked or not), and didn't want to focus on something they didn't think was likely.

Like a lot of us, they believed what we were told. Problem is, plans change, especially in business, and if you didn't get it in writing, you're left holding the bag.

 

[EngineThunder]

Thanks Lear.

 

[redflyer65]

The Merger Committee didn't want to get it in writing about the 717s. Wow. Isn't it always advised to get it in writing? The Airtran folks should be livid about the money/seniority their inept MEC cost them during this acquisition. It wasn't even a fair fight with SWA mgt.

The first deal was going to be the best. It was said on here many, many times. The AAI MEC thought they knew better. It's tough when your on the wrong side of the table when it comes to SW management. They always play hardball for the best deal for them.

More than a few times I said that the AAI NC/MEC wasn't just negotiating with SWAPA, they were negotiating with SW itself as well as the thousands of shareholders. Many of which are SW employees.

 

[redflyer65]

I agree with the last statement. I get the royal stink eye on the ATL parking bus almost every time I am on it. However, there is usually someone on there who is the complete opposite. They have a great attitude despite the circumstances and they renew my faith that we will be OK.

We need more of that and less stink eye. Is that similiar to swamp ass?

 

[waveflyer]

And see, that's the problem. You were negotiating from a personal perspective of "it won't get any worse for me, and can only get better".

Many of us won't be that lucky. I will go from whatever weekends and holidays I want off, 18 days a month off, to back on reserve at a decent base (unless I choose a 5 hour commute to OAK or LAS which isn't going to happen).
.

One great thing about swa is that it's the first airline I've been a part of where life is pretty good for the junior. The parity between junior to senior schedules is much more equal- most other places it's all about the haves and have nots. Which seems to be the case at AT by the two schedule examples above. Most= awful vs great, swa= good vs better. Of course it is better being senior, but the bottom is good too. If you can't hold a base- well that's just life in the airlines and I won't argue again the merits of the SLI bc I got f^cked by the deal you b^tch about.