If/When Spirit Strikes

[AirCobra]

You're right. You deal in substandard wages, flying, equipment, and treatment of your employees.
With 8000+ posts, it's no wonder your company is such a piece of ********************! Instead of making usajet a better place to work, you sit and write about what could have been...............................

I am all for better wages and better schedules for everyone but there is an element of reality too. When you go to a Red Roof Inn do you complain its not a Hilton? When you pay $39 a night does it surprise you when your shower is full of pubes and you can't get a room service steak sandwich at midnight? Well no offense guys but Spirit is a Red Roof Inn. What about "Ultra Low Cost Airline" makes you think "Ultra High Pay" or even industry standard pay for that matter. Seriously I wish you guys all the best but I am not optimistic that if Spirit strikes you will have a job to return to once the strike is over. It's so competitve now, and Spirit is not that well known anyway. If your ticket prices inch any closer to the Delta's and American's or people who would have bought a ticket on Spirit now won't because of strike talk, you may lose those precious few passengers you have. Don't become like United, the best contract in the industry.... for the guys that weren't furloughed after the contract was implemented.

 

[Mike man]

I am all for better wages and better schedules for everyone but there is an element of reality too. When you go to a Red Roof Inn do you complain its not a Hilton? When you pay $39 a night does it surprise you when your shower is full of pubes and you can't get a room service steak sandwich at midnight? Well no offense guys but Spirit is a Red Roof Inn. What about "Ultra Low Cost Airline" makes you think "Ultra High Pay" or even industry standard pay for that matter. Seriously I wish you guys all the best but I am not optimistic that if Spirit strikes you will have a job to return to once the strike is over. It's so competitve now, and Spirit is not that well known anyway. If your ticket prices inch any closer to the Delta's and American's or people who would have bought a ticket on Spirit now won't because of strike talk, you may lose those precious few passengers you have. Don't become like United, the best contract in the industry.... for the guys that weren't furloughed after the contract was implemented.

What is the difference between Spirit, JetBlue, SWA, Allegiant, AirTran and so on?

When did SWA, JetBlue, Allegiant, AirTran cross the line from fly-by-night low cost airline to world class airline?

I DO NOT MEAN TO OFFEND ANYONE AT SWA, JetBlue, Allegiant, AirTran

I'm just trying to make a point with Mr. Poop on Spirit or AirCobra as his screen name might suggest.

 

[pilotyip]

yea what Aircobra talking about

What i..............Spirit or AirCobra as his screen name might suggest.

Aircobra has no idea what he is talking about none of that stuff could ever happen to Spirit; except of course if it happens. Isn't that reality.

 

[CopilotDoug]

Do you plan to to leave work and walk the picket line with them? I mean really, not on your day off or a vactaion day, thats easy and makes no real statement, but on a scheduled workday, leave to show solidarity with your Spirit brothers.

Rez and PCL will be there in...spirit (no pun intended!)

Rest assured Spirit pilots, you will have the emotional support of your fellow ALPA pilots.

 

[freightdogfred]

young wipper snappers think they know everything, as per above never was a 54 T-bird

Well mebbe not, but at least we know how to spell whippersnapper...

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/whippersnapper

 

[AirCobra]

What is the difference between Spirit, JetBlue, SWA, Allegiant, AirTran and so on?

When did SWA, JetBlue, Allegiant, AirTran cross the line from fly-by-night low cost airline to world class airline?

I DO NOT MEAN TO OFFEND ANYONE AT SWA, JetBlue, Allegiant, AirTran

I'm just trying to make a point with Mr. Poop on Spirit or AirCobra as his screen name might suggest.

Their is nothing wrong wath any of those airlines, its just like hotels or department stores, there are Red Roof Inns and there are Hilton's, there are Dollar Stores and there is Macy's.

Take Southwest, they are not "World Class", they don't even fly to Mexico or Canada. The reason Southwest pays on par with world class airlines is because they have made a profit over the last few decades. Take that profit away and within minutes Southwest will be trying to get concessions from its labor groups.

I look at Spirit and although all the ALPA material says they are making money hand over fist and taking hiding from the poor pilots, there rather slow growth over the past few years makes it seem they are on pretty shaky financial ground.

Spirit has always occupied that niche along with Allegiant, National, Kiwi, Skybus, Western Pacific or Sun Country, a niche somewhere between a major and a regional. These type of airlines are always the most volatile and most of the airlines on that list I just gave are gone. Seems if you took a job at Spirit it was a little bit of a gamble from the get go given the nature of the company you keep. Spirit's business model dictates it can only exist if it keeps its overhead at an absolute minimum, that's why you have the crappy pay and crappy schedule in the first place. You guys want to test that business model by dramatically increasing overhead and saying you are worth much higher pay without the proven track record of a Southwest or AirTran, well I hope you succeed, but in reality if you do succeed you will be the first.

My two cents, and it probably not even worth that, is that Spirit's labor groups should be going into save the company mode. Work with management to get the company pointed in the right direction and growing, instead of contracting or stagnating. When things improve and Spirit has a more established track record of success, then go for the pay increases and better schedules. I think a strike now will only put you on the street because given where air travel is headed in this economy there may be no Spirit to return to.

 

[pilotyip]

oh no notthe speeling plocie

Well mebbe not, but at least we know how to spell whippersnapper...

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/whippersnapper

i cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg.
The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at
Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it dseno't mtaetr in waht oerdr the ltteres in a
wrod are, the olny iproamtnt tihng is taht the frsit and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it whotuit a pboerlm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Azanmig huh? yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt! If you can raed tihs forwrad it.

 

[Ty Webb]

You guys want to test that business model by dramatically increasing overhead and saying you are worth much higher pay without the proven track record of a Southwest or AirTran, well I hope you succeed, but in reality if you do succeed you will be the first.

Actually, they are qwell on their way to being the third, since AirTran and SWA did exactly that. I think you can also plan on Allegiant being the fourth.

My two cents, and it probably not even worth that, is that Spirit's labor groups should be going into save the company mode. Work with management to get the company pointed in the right direction and growing, instead of contracting or stagnating.

I understand what you're saying, having been through it at AirTran, but that only works if the Company accepts you as a partner, and Spirit's management team doesn't have a copy of that playbook. AirTran used to have that playbook, but lost it.

When things improve and Spirit has a more established track record of success, then go for the pay increases and better schedules. I think a strike now will only put you on the street because given where air travel is headed in this economy there may be no Spirit to return to.

Spirit won't take it to the mat. Greedy management types have nowhere else to go right now, either. I say get what you can, or shut it down, but I don't work there, so talk is cheap.

Spirit pilots, we are all watching what you're going through, and we support you 100%, or at least as much as we can under the train wreck that is the RLA.

 

[Mike man]

...and crappy schedule in the first place...

In all honesty our schedules are no worse than any other airline schedule...and we have the one diamond in our expired contract the 4 days off between trips.

I guess what I am wondering mostly is why would we agree to that steaming pile of a contract that management is offering? I would certainly be much more happy with no changes to the current contract and keep the 4 days off then get a huge raise and go to 2 days off between trips...my .02.

By your logic above AirCobra SWA is not world class because they don't fly to Canada or Mexico; then Spirit must be a world class operation because we fly to Mexico, South and Central America and most of the Caribbean plus a handful of CONUS cities.

What does it take to have a proven track record?

 

[Mamma]

What does it take to have a proven track record?

A lot of gay FAs in khaki shorts for one buddy!