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http://www.flightglobal.com/Articles/2006/05/16/Navigation/177/206574/Drawing+the+line.html
16/05/06
Flight International
Drawing the line
Mary Kirby / Philadelphia
For now, 100-seaters like Embraer’s E-190 will continue to be operated by mainline carriers rather than feeders.
New pilot accords at US mainline carriers are paving the way for more 70-plus-seat flying by their regional affiliates but have effectively quashed management’s hopes of breaking through scope-clause restrictions that prevent the outsourcing of 100-seat aircraft. With limited exception, a new boundary has been set at the 76-seat level, ensconcing the Bombardier CRJ700/900 and Embraer 170/175 in the US regional fleet, but forcing management to begrudgingly accept that the Embraer 190/195 must be operated in-house.
Speculation was rife last year that scope relief trends – led by the spectre of Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection – would continue in earnest, allowing regional feeders to fly 90- and potentially even 100-seat aircraft for their major partners. But as regional players prepare to gather for the annual Regional Airline Association convention in Dallas, Texas from 22-25 May, those heady expectations have already been tempered with a firm dose of reality. And a clearer picture has started to emerge of how the industry will be reshaped over the multi-year duration of the latest pilot contracts.
Major airlines have now firmly broken through the 50-seat barrier that once consigned their regional affiliates to operate small, less economical aircraft. Even the 70-seat benchmark in place at American Airlines and United Airlines has been eclipsed. Indeed, it has inched up to the 76-seat level in the latest deals reached by the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) with Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines. The latter agreement, ratified earlier this month, represents a significant departure for Northwest, which had maintained a pilot contract preventing feeders from expanding past 50 seats. An exception was made for Northwest Airlink affiliate Mesaba to fly Avro RJ85s, but these are now being culled from the regional’s fleet.
Such gains in scope relief represent “an incremental improvement” over the 70-seat level, “which ultimately will squeeze in perhaps one or two more types” into the regional fleet, says Velocity Group partner Doug Abbey. But, he adds, it appears the proverbial line has been drawn in the sand, as each major carrier is “mindful of its labour, its pilots, the concessions that they have given, and [management’s] guarantees to keep pilots employed”.
Only one US major has, for now, surpassed 76 seats. Essentially, the carrier’s feeders can fly “anything below the E-190”, says Scott Kirby, US Airways executive vice-president for sales and marketing. This is stipulated in the transition agreement brokered by ALPA with America West Airlines and US Airways prior to the two carriers’ merger in September and US Airways’ exit from bankruptcy protection. The pact, now guiding the collective bargaining process at the merged carrier, divides scope protection among multiple classifications of regional jets. It allows “what we would describe as 93 90-seaters”, says Kirby, of which 38 86-seat CRJ900s are already operated by Mesa Air Group under its long-standing contract with America West. This means that 55 more aircraft in that category can be added to US Airways Express, says the airline.
Mesa has also expressed interest in expanding its CRJ900 operations for the merged carrier. Separately, Republic Airlines flies 72-seat E-170s for US Airways after parent Republic Airways Holdings acquired 28 of the type from the US major. The deal included airport slots and resulted in the dissolution of the major’s MidAtlantic Airways division, which will perform its last scheduled flight on 27 May. Republic is in talks with US Airways to boost seating capacity on the E-170s to 76 seats.
Scope to expand
Air Wisconsin, which flies 50-seat regional jets for US Airways, may also benefit from scope relief. The air service accord between the two – part of a $125 million investment by the regional in the America West/US Airways merger – stipulates that the two firms “may agree that Air Wisconsin will add CRJ900 regional jets to the fleet of aircraft used by it in the provision of service” and that this could occur either in addition to or as “replacements for” certain CRJ200s flown by the carrier as US Airways Express.
But union officials may yet demand scope language be further tightened at US Airways before a final merged contract is agreed. An allowance for more large-sized regional jets is “not totally palatable”, but was “what we were able to negotiate in bankruptcy”, says master executive council (MEC) president Jack Stephan. “As we prepare the scope section of our contract, we have every intention of not giving an inch, but shoring it up and making it more prohibitive to exercise those rights.”
There is apparently one battle that US Airways, and other US majors, are no longer willing to fight – the operation of E-190s outside the mainline fleets. US Airways last summer issued a request for proposal to Air Wisconsin, Mesa and Republic Airways for the operation of up to 25 of the type. But the proposal quickly met opposition from ALPA units at America West and US Airways even though a clause in the US Airways pilot contract then allowed for up to 25 E-190s to be flown by affiliates under certain provisions.
Ultimately, while management failed to steer E-190s to regional affiliates, it did secure pay rates that are competitive with US low-cost carrier JetBlue Airways, prompting the US major to convert 57 undelivered E-170 orders into 25 of the larger variant. Reaching this concession from pilots was crucial, and set the precedent for other carriers to follow suit. “What JetBlue is doing with the E-190 is looking for a sweet spot that the majors can’t touch. The majors are going to have to respond to that,” notes Abbey.
US Airways’ ALPA unit stresses it was “very important” for the pilot group to secure E-190 flying. “That aircraft is a mainline aircraft...there is nothing regional about that aircraft,” says Stephan. “That’s a [99-seat] airplane. We used to fly Fokker 100s that seated just 10 more. He says the regional term sometimes used by managers to describe the E-190 “is so deceiving” because “you are flying these things from Washington to Houston...what’s regional about that?”
Indeed, the 100-seat level “has important implications for manufacturers and labour” because it represents a psychological or symbolic limit, says Richard Aboulafia, an aviation analyst for Virginia-based Teal Group. That Bombardier’s large regional jets are based on the manufacturer’s 50-seat CRJ200 while Embraer’s E-170/190s are new-technology aircraft is also impacting how mainline pilots perceive the types.
It appears, for instance, that Bombardier’s largest variant, the CRJ900, is considered a regional aircraft in the eyes of mainline pilots, says Bombardier vice-president marketing and communications Trung Ngo. At the same time the aircraft “is able to satisfy the needs of the airline to increase the seating capacity that they would like to have in their regional fleet”. He says mainline pilots have drawn the line “both in terms of certificated maximum capacity and also in maximum takeoff weight” and to that extent, the CRJ900 “is probably a very good fit for what the agreements have spelled out in terms of allowances for operating regional jets”.
However, it has not stopped Bombardier from working on introducing a larger CRJ derivative, the CRJ900X, which would have up to 100 seats. For now, “in so far as satisfying the needs of regional carriers, the CRJ900 is probably one of the ideal platforms for them to use,” says Ngo.
Embraer, meanwhile, is confident its E-175 fits nicely within the boundaries created by the 76-seat cap and the latest maximum take-off weight limits. If a major wants to have the same brand as its mainline fleet, especially when connecting to international services, the E-175 “can be configured with two classes and meet the 76-seat limit”, says Embraer director of market intelligence for commercial aviation Luiz Sergio Chiessi.
He believes the Embraer 190 “is not comparable with the CRJ900” because the E-190 in a one-class configuration is a 100-seater that offers 32in (81.3cm) pitch, while the CRJ900 is an 86-seater at 31in pitch. Chiessi says the CRJ900 should really be compared to the Embraer 175, which can “accommodate the same number of passengers” as the CRJ900, or in two classes with the CRJ705 (essentially CRJ900s with 75 seats).
16/05/06
Flight International
Drawing the line
Mary Kirby / Philadelphia
For now, 100-seaters like Embraer’s E-190 will continue to be operated by mainline carriers rather than feeders.
New pilot accords at US mainline carriers are paving the way for more 70-plus-seat flying by their regional affiliates but have effectively quashed management’s hopes of breaking through scope-clause restrictions that prevent the outsourcing of 100-seat aircraft. With limited exception, a new boundary has been set at the 76-seat level, ensconcing the Bombardier CRJ700/900 and Embraer 170/175 in the US regional fleet, but forcing management to begrudgingly accept that the Embraer 190/195 must be operated in-house.
Speculation was rife last year that scope relief trends – led by the spectre of Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection – would continue in earnest, allowing regional feeders to fly 90- and potentially even 100-seat aircraft for their major partners. But as regional players prepare to gather for the annual Regional Airline Association convention in Dallas, Texas from 22-25 May, those heady expectations have already been tempered with a firm dose of reality. And a clearer picture has started to emerge of how the industry will be reshaped over the multi-year duration of the latest pilot contracts.
Major airlines have now firmly broken through the 50-seat barrier that once consigned their regional affiliates to operate small, less economical aircraft. Even the 70-seat benchmark in place at American Airlines and United Airlines has been eclipsed. Indeed, it has inched up to the 76-seat level in the latest deals reached by the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) with Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines. The latter agreement, ratified earlier this month, represents a significant departure for Northwest, which had maintained a pilot contract preventing feeders from expanding past 50 seats. An exception was made for Northwest Airlink affiliate Mesaba to fly Avro RJ85s, but these are now being culled from the regional’s fleet.
Such gains in scope relief represent “an incremental improvement” over the 70-seat level, “which ultimately will squeeze in perhaps one or two more types” into the regional fleet, says Velocity Group partner Doug Abbey. But, he adds, it appears the proverbial line has been drawn in the sand, as each major carrier is “mindful of its labour, its pilots, the concessions that they have given, and [management’s] guarantees to keep pilots employed”.
Only one US major has, for now, surpassed 76 seats. Essentially, the carrier’s feeders can fly “anything below the E-190”, says Scott Kirby, US Airways executive vice-president for sales and marketing. This is stipulated in the transition agreement brokered by ALPA with America West Airlines and US Airways prior to the two carriers’ merger in September and US Airways’ exit from bankruptcy protection. The pact, now guiding the collective bargaining process at the merged carrier, divides scope protection among multiple classifications of regional jets. It allows “what we would describe as 93 90-seaters”, says Kirby, of which 38 86-seat CRJ900s are already operated by Mesa Air Group under its long-standing contract with America West. This means that 55 more aircraft in that category can be added to US Airways Express, says the airline.
Mesa has also expressed interest in expanding its CRJ900 operations for the merged carrier. Separately, Republic Airlines flies 72-seat E-170s for US Airways after parent Republic Airways Holdings acquired 28 of the type from the US major. The deal included airport slots and resulted in the dissolution of the major’s MidAtlantic Airways division, which will perform its last scheduled flight on 27 May. Republic is in talks with US Airways to boost seating capacity on the E-170s to 76 seats.
Scope to expand
Air Wisconsin, which flies 50-seat regional jets for US Airways, may also benefit from scope relief. The air service accord between the two – part of a $125 million investment by the regional in the America West/US Airways merger – stipulates that the two firms “may agree that Air Wisconsin will add CRJ900 regional jets to the fleet of aircraft used by it in the provision of service” and that this could occur either in addition to or as “replacements for” certain CRJ200s flown by the carrier as US Airways Express.
But union officials may yet demand scope language be further tightened at US Airways before a final merged contract is agreed. An allowance for more large-sized regional jets is “not totally palatable”, but was “what we were able to negotiate in bankruptcy”, says master executive council (MEC) president Jack Stephan. “As we prepare the scope section of our contract, we have every intention of not giving an inch, but shoring it up and making it more prohibitive to exercise those rights.”
There is apparently one battle that US Airways, and other US majors, are no longer willing to fight – the operation of E-190s outside the mainline fleets. US Airways last summer issued a request for proposal to Air Wisconsin, Mesa and Republic Airways for the operation of up to 25 of the type. But the proposal quickly met opposition from ALPA units at America West and US Airways even though a clause in the US Airways pilot contract then allowed for up to 25 E-190s to be flown by affiliates under certain provisions.
Ultimately, while management failed to steer E-190s to regional affiliates, it did secure pay rates that are competitive with US low-cost carrier JetBlue Airways, prompting the US major to convert 57 undelivered E-170 orders into 25 of the larger variant. Reaching this concession from pilots was crucial, and set the precedent for other carriers to follow suit. “What JetBlue is doing with the E-190 is looking for a sweet spot that the majors can’t touch. The majors are going to have to respond to that,” notes Abbey.
US Airways’ ALPA unit stresses it was “very important” for the pilot group to secure E-190 flying. “That aircraft is a mainline aircraft...there is nothing regional about that aircraft,” says Stephan. “That’s a [99-seat] airplane. We used to fly Fokker 100s that seated just 10 more. He says the regional term sometimes used by managers to describe the E-190 “is so deceiving” because “you are flying these things from Washington to Houston...what’s regional about that?”
Indeed, the 100-seat level “has important implications for manufacturers and labour” because it represents a psychological or symbolic limit, says Richard Aboulafia, an aviation analyst for Virginia-based Teal Group. That Bombardier’s large regional jets are based on the manufacturer’s 50-seat CRJ200 while Embraer’s E-170/190s are new-technology aircraft is also impacting how mainline pilots perceive the types.
It appears, for instance, that Bombardier’s largest variant, the CRJ900, is considered a regional aircraft in the eyes of mainline pilots, says Bombardier vice-president marketing and communications Trung Ngo. At the same time the aircraft “is able to satisfy the needs of the airline to increase the seating capacity that they would like to have in their regional fleet”. He says mainline pilots have drawn the line “both in terms of certificated maximum capacity and also in maximum takeoff weight” and to that extent, the CRJ900 “is probably a very good fit for what the agreements have spelled out in terms of allowances for operating regional jets”.
However, it has not stopped Bombardier from working on introducing a larger CRJ derivative, the CRJ900X, which would have up to 100 seats. For now, “in so far as satisfying the needs of regional carriers, the CRJ900 is probably one of the ideal platforms for them to use,” says Ngo.
Embraer, meanwhile, is confident its E-175 fits nicely within the boundaries created by the 76-seat cap and the latest maximum take-off weight limits. If a major wants to have the same brand as its mainline fleet, especially when connecting to international services, the E-175 “can be configured with two classes and meet the 76-seat limit”, says Embraer director of market intelligence for commercial aviation Luiz Sergio Chiessi.
He believes the Embraer 190 “is not comparable with the CRJ900” because the E-190 in a one-class configuration is a 100-seater that offers 32in (81.3cm) pitch, while the CRJ900 is an 86-seater at 31in pitch. Chiessi says the CRJ900 should really be compared to the Embraer 175, which can “accommodate the same number of passengers” as the CRJ900, or in two classes with the CRJ705 (essentially CRJ900s with 75 seats).