HAL pilot refuses BK trustee passage

[Sabercat]

http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2004/Jun/26/ln/ln01a.html

HAL bankruptcy trustee kicked off plane by pilot
[font=Trebuchet MS,Verdana]By [email="[email protected]"]Dan Nakaso[/email]
Advertiser Staff Writer[/font]



[font=Times New Roman,Times,serif]A Hawaiian Airlines pilot asked bankruptcy trustee Josh Gotbaum to get off a plane preparing for takeoff Thursday, saying he was angry about Gotbaum's policies and could not safely fly the Boeing 767-300 with the trustee aboard.[/font]

[font=Times New Roman,Times,serif][font=Trebuchet MS,Verdana][/font]Gotbaum agreed to leave rather than delay the takeoff, an airline spokesman said yesterday.[/font]

[font=Times New Roman,Times,serif]"The pilot told him he wasn't happy to have him on the flight," said Hawaiian spokesman Keoni Wagner. "Rather than delay the flight by discussing it at that point, he decided to take another flight."[/font]

[font=Times New Roman,Times,serif]The pilot, Capt. Craig Kobayashi, said yesterday: "So many employees are so emotional about him after all of the things Gotbaum has done, such as freezing our pension plan."[/font]

[font=Times New Roman,Times,serif]Hawaiian, which filed for bankruptcy in March 2003, is overdue in making $4.5 million worth of payments to the pilots' pension plan. Gotbaum has proposed several options for handling the plan, including terminating it, converting it to a defined-contribution plan or freezing it and protecting the earned benefits.[/font]

[font=Times New Roman,Times,serif]Thursday's incident is the only time that a Hawaiian pilot has asked Gotbaum to forgo a flight since he was appointed by the bankruptcy court last summer to run Hawai'i's largest airline.[/font]

[font=Times New Roman,Times,serif]Kobayashi said he was not trying to make a political or labor statement when he asked Gotbaum to leave Flight 12 from Honolulu to San Francisco.[/font]

[font=Times New Roman,Times,serif]"This was strictly a matter of safety," Kobayashi said. "It's not a vendetta. It's not anything else. I didn't feel that I could function properly."[/font]

[font=Times New Roman,Times,serif]Federal Aviation Administration officials yesterday said airline captains have the right to ask anyone to leave their planes.[/font]

[font=Times New Roman,Times,serif]"That's standard aviation protocol," FAA spokesman Donn Walker said. "A captain is in charge of his or her ship. It doesn't mean that the airline won't get mad at them for doing it. But it's the captain's place to decide who does or does not fly on his or her plane."[/font]

[font=Times New Roman,Times,serif]Kobayashi, 55, has been flying for Hawaiian for 25 years. He was preparing the plane for take-off when he learned that Gotbaum was settling into a first-class seat.[/font]

[font=Times New Roman,Times,serif]Kobayashi asked a flight attendant to bring Gotbaum to the cockpit, where he asked the trustee to leave the plane.[/font]

[font=Times New Roman,Times,serif]Kobayashi said Gotbaum "asked if he could give his side of the story and I said, 'That's fair.' He spoke about the good things he's trying to do and that his word is good. ... I told him, 'Actions speak louder than words. For now, I need to ask you to remove yourself from the flight,' which he did."[/font]

[font=Times New Roman,Times,serif]Jim Giddings, the head of the Hawaiian Airlines' pilots union, said, "All of our pilots are very professional, and they maintain a very high level of professional standards regardless of the circumstances. ... This is an isolated incident ... and we look forward to working through the bankruptcy issues going forward with Mr. Gotbaum for the benefit of Hawaiian Airlines."[/font]

[font=Times New Roman,Times,serif]Reach Dan Nakaso at [email protected] or at 525-8085.[/font]

 

[bafanguy]

The good captain did this in the interest of "safety" ? Hmmmm...

 

[Timebuilder]

The good captain did this in the interest of "safety" ? Hmmmm...

Considering how upsetting this guy's actions have been to the HAL pilots, I can see his presence, known to the crew, could constitute a distraction, one that didn't have to be there.

 

[rvsm410]

You Go Captain!!!

Sometime standing up to the staus quo means stepping out on a very thin limb, and even putting your job on the line....can you say "early Retirement"?

I have said it before, more employees need to stand up and be counted, make a statement, make the news, in a good way of course, but get the attention of management that the employees are not the problem....

 

[bafanguy]

Timebuilder & rvsm410,


I certainly agree with your sentiments. I can only wish this guy well at the Rug Dance. He may have a tough selling job ahead of him.

 

[Jim]

Timebuilder & rvsm410,


I certainly agree with your sentiments. I can only wish this guy well at the Rug Dance. He may have a tough selling job ahead of him.

Actually I think that the Captain will survive this okay. Notice the FAA spokesman in the article upheld the Captain's authority. The company says they will look at this incident "with an open mind" but have they warned that similiar incidents in the future result in "serious consequences".

HAL ALPA has supported the Captain's authority and right to determine his fitness to fly, but wishes the incident never happened. The majority of HAL pilots do not trust anything Gotbaun says or does. However the Union has advised the pilots that it does not want the terrible pilot-management relationship to further degrade and has asked Captains to refrain from these type of actions in the future.

Most of the HAL pilots seem to support this Captain. I personally think it was a ballsy move and made a huge statement (especially with the press coverage). But it should be a one-time statement/protest that is probably best not repeated. Although I do not trust Gotbaum either, I do not want any potential investors to shy away from the airline because they precieve that a hostile pilot's union exists.

 

[rvsm410]

No doubt, its a long battle ahead for all of us. I have said it in another post, that individuals can only control themselves and what they do, but if its with a goal, made public and more join in the same cause, they will eventually be heard. I for one will not work for sub standard pay any longer, though I love aviation, I have gone into other work for now, maybe for good.

Pilots, F/A's, dispatchers, all of us must stop the fresh supply of bodies willing to work for an airline at any cost, these companies must figure a way to make a profit and pay a reasonable pay as well.

 

[dispatchguy]

Reminds me of when Stephen Wolf, when he was at USAir, was discovered by the MX techs to be on a UAL B777 IADCDG flight - the Mechanics refused to sign off the ETOPS predeparture check, and did everything they could in their power to keep delaying the predeparture check until the crew timed out. This was during the UAL/USAir lovefest during summer, 2000.

The flight didnt go, even with 2 aircraft swaps

 

[NuGuy]

hmmmmm....

 

[Freight Dog]

Good on you, Capt. Kobayashi!!

 

[CatYaaak]

Reminds me of when Stephen Wolf, when he was at USAir, was discovered by the MX techs to be on a UAL B777 IADCDG flight - the Mechanics refused to sign off the ETOPS predeparture check, and did everything they could in their power to keep delaying the predeparture check until the crew timed out. This was during the UAL/USAir lovefest during summer, 2000.

The flight didnt go, even with 2 aircraft swaps

I'm sure this petty B.S. directed at one person by some power-tripping sh1twits really pleased the couple hundred paying customers on that same flight who missed connections, appointments, meetings, families waiting at CDG, and wound up paying for hotels, rental cars, etc. they reserved but couldn't cancel.

Another example of why UAL loyalty crumbled during that time. And these same people come begging for more taxpayer money to squander?...so they can keep paying idiots like this?

 

[Publishers]

reality

Please do not bring in any reality here. When the judge has to make the ultimate decisions, I am sure that his empathy for the employees will be a given.

As to UAL,, that was the perfect example of why the customers left in droves and left UAL so weak when things hit buildings.

 

[Grumpy]

This is just another example of someone using power just because he could. If the pilot was that upset over having the individual on board, what does that say about his ability to handle other types of stress?



His actions gained nothing [in the big picture] the majority of the other pilots “support” his decision. Now if he is disciplined, how much support will they give.



Can anyone see a work stoppage over this?



If the individual in question flew out on another flight, Why did not the Captain of that flight not refuse seating?

 

[Bill Mostellar]

[font=Times New Roman,Times,serif]The pilot, Capt. Craig Kobayashi, said yesterday: [/font]

Didn't he write a simulation for Starfleet Academy?

 

[NuGuy]

Didn't he write a simulation for Starfleet Academy?

Hehe, yup, "The Kobyashi Maru" and it was a no-win scenario. Wow, how's that for irony...that's what this guy is in right now.

Nu

 

[MW44]

I'm surprised so many of you have reacted negatively to this HAL Cap. I applaud him for having the balls to stand up to this guy. Notice that particular trustee had just proposed cutting the pilot pensions while simultaneously proposing a 3 milion dollar bonus for management!!!! That's a lot of money for such a small company. He is TAKING their money. Save 4.5 million in pilot pension payments and then give out 3 million in extra bonusses. I think it's amazing that his guy hasn't been removed from every flight he tries to get on. Our race to the bottom will continue as long as we as pilots continue to allow bankers and crooked managers to sh#t on us. They are playing hardball and taking us to the cleaners.
To quote a good movie "don't piss down my back and tell me it's raining."

 

[English]

I think I missed something. When did Gotbaum take a 3 million dollar bonus?

 

[MW44]

Here it is:

http://biz.yahoo.com/rc/040628/odd_pilot_1.html

"Gotbaum has also proposed cutting pilot pension payments, but last week came up with a $3 million dollar management bonus plan."

 

[Jim]

I'm surprised so many of you have reacted negatively to this HAL Cap. I applaud him for having the balls to stand up to this guy. Notice that particular trustee had just proposed cutting the pilot pensions while simultaneously proposing a 3 milion dollar bonus for management!!!! That's a lot of money for such a small company. He is TAKING their money. Save 4.5 million in pilot pension payments and then give out 3 million in extra bonusses. I think it's amazing that his guy hasn't been removed from every flight he tries to get on. Our race to the bottom will continue as long as we as pilots continue to allow bankers and crooked managers to sh#t on us. They are playing hardball and taking us to the cleaners.
To quote a good movie "don't piss down my back and tell me it's raining."

He is receiving rave reviews from all the HAL pilots I have spoken too. We all wish this could happen everytime Gutbomb tries to fly. But unfortunately it would send the wrong signal to any investor thinking of buying the company. Who wants a militant pilot group, especially when their contract is opening? Plus where does it stop? Do you throw the crew scheds guy off because you're stressed out over missing your kid's ball game due to being junior manned? It's a big can of worms.

As I said earlier, it made a strong statement especially with the press coverage, but it is probably best if this was a one-time thing. He will probably get by with this intact, but the next one won't - management has made that clear. I would hate to see anyone jepordize his job/career. Still, when I get recalled, I will seek this Captain out to thank him for having the balls to do this. A legend has definitely been born.

HAL ALPA is filing an objection to the $3 million management bonus proposal with the judge because of the missed retirement plan payments and other pilot compensation issues.