I will probably never be a big fan of Prater or the way him and ALPA leadership did not fight the age 65 implementation but in some other issues including his testimony in front of congress I am glad there appears to be some chances of progress, especially regarding scheduling and fatigue. Get things to where a pilot can not end a trip totally feeling trashed, reduce overall hours flying/away from home and get the pay up and this career might be worth something again.
At Capt. Prater’s request, this BOD update is being sent to all ALPA pilots.
This is John Prater with the BOD Update on July 2, 2009.
This weekend, as we gather together to celebrate Independence Day and Canada Day with family, friends, and fellow aviators, I’d like to share with you how we can use these national holidays as inspiration throughout our Union ranks. After all, these holidays truly represent the best of both nations—in the United States, celebrating our right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; and in Canada, celebrating an act that united its then four provinces as one country.
Most would say that independence and unity are two separate ideals, but I would argue that celebrating both can strengthen our union. On this Fourth of July, I challenge all of us to discard our differences and reach within our ranks and across airline borders to shape the future of our profession.
By looking past what makes us different—whether it’s the type of aircraft we fly or the country we’re celebrating today—we can build a better profession for our members if, together, we answer a renewed call to service to meet the challenges facing airline pilots today.
Service is just one quality that unites us; we, as union leaders, all answered the call to serve our brothers and sisters, who we fly with on the line. We looked beyond “what’s in it for me” to serve a common purpose and a higher purpose—to fight for a better quality of life and answer the pleas of our pilots in need.
That’s why I know this union will continue to thrive—because time and again, pilots have been willing to serve on stages both great and small, to draw on the same passion that fuels our love of flying to meet the challenges of each defining moment in our history—from the days of Cord to Lorenzo to 9/11. Through bankruptcies, strikes, and shutdowns, there have always been ALPA leaders ready to answer our Union’s call to duty.
Yes, fellow union leaders, we’ve seen tough times. And today is certainly no different. Our profession faces threats such as cabotage and ownership from near and far, and global economic challenges that rival the depression of the ’30s. But I have no doubt that, in the face of these odds, the pilots who love their profession will use solidarity and unity to provide our Union with the strength and resources to create positive changes for all of our members.
This First and Fourth of July, I challenge you and each ALPA member to renew your pride in this profession by reading our Code of Ethics again and pledging to continue to exemplify the words and deeds of the ALPA pilots who founded and built our Union over the past seven decades. Make no mistake: our careers as airline pilots are intrinsically tied to the pride every member takes in flying the line—every day and every flight. Then, build on this defining moment to get in the game and keep your pilots’ pride—and our profession—alive and well. Our union depends not just on the consent of our members, but also on the weight we carry on our shoulders. We, the pilots who answered the call to Union service, must accept our responsibility to defend and enrich their careers and thereby leave a stronger ALPA for the next generation of airline pilots and union leaders. If we dedicate ourselves to this never-ending objective, we will meet every challenge to our profession or to our countries with resolve and with strength, with dignity and with pride, with solidarity and respect. Then and only then can we say—We are ALPA Leaders.
I want you to take this message to your members and encourage them to volunteer as well, helping us to build a stronger union. Show them the many opportunities available within our organization, and let them discover what role they can play to further the piloting profession by building a better tomorrow for pilots yet to come.
The past couple of weeks have been busy for ALPA, and I have several very encouraging developments to report dealing with two of ALPA’s top priorities: pilot fatigue and CrewPASS. I’ve beat this drum in front of you for two years, but what a difference a government administration that can actually say “Union” makes.
First up, fatigue. After decades of your union’s lobbying for new standards for pilot flight time and rest, and constant testimony before Congress and the U.S. administration over the past two years, I am extremely encouraged to report that last week, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced plans to form an Aviation Rulemaking Committee (ARC) to develop new standards. We’ve been notified that we will have a seat on the ARC and your union will work to assist in modernizing the regulations to create innovative solutions to make a safe industry even safer. Let me tell you the rest of the story. ALPA will have five seats at the ARC and will be one of the co-chairs. I have appointed Captain Don Wykoff, my executive administrator who also serves as chairman of ALPA’s FTDT Committee and Blue Ribbon Panel on Pilot Fatigue, to lead our contingent of staff and pilot experts on the FAA’s ARC. From across our 36 airlines, I have named to the ARC four other pilot experts who engage in all types of flying. These pilots fly for Mesa, Continental, United, Delta, and FedEx—but on this panel they will be ALPA experts and leaders who will represent all 54,000 of us.
ALPA also strongly supports the FAA administrator’s challenge to the industry to strengthen safety in other ways, namely by implementing a code of ethics, forming professional standards peer groups, and making better use of programs such as Flight Operations Quality Assurance (FOQA) and the Aviation Safety Action Program (ASAP).
After all, ALPA was founded on the “Schedule with Safety” motto, and we are proud to verify that our Union is already fully compliant with the FAA’s requests. As I said earlier, I am personally asking each of our Board of Directors to ensure that all ALPA pilots review the ALPA Code of Ethics and rededicate themselves to the highest professional standards that form the bedrock of our profession. This Code has guided this Association’s work since 1956.
And now on to CrewPASS developments. Two years ago, you directed me to fix the problems our members had endured with access to airports operations since 9/11. We changed the law, we developed a system that works, we improved it with biometrics, we advocated hard in private and public before the TSA administrator and Congress, we successfully demonstrated and tested it, and now I am proud to announce that the Transportation Security Administration has approved the standards for the CrewPASS program that will allow for nationwide expansion. Because of the coordinated team efforts among ALPA, TSA, and ARINC, the CrewPASS program has completed a successful test phase, and we now stand ready to assist our companies and government with the implementation of CrewPASS.
Addressing another BOD strategic priority, you union is calling on Congress to pass legislation that would help control excessive speculation in the commodity futures marketplace by enhancing oversight, transparency, and reporting requirements, as well as imposing limits on cumulative speculative positions across all markets.
At Capt. Prater’s request, this BOD update is being sent to all ALPA pilots.
This is John Prater with the BOD Update on July 2, 2009.
This weekend, as we gather together to celebrate Independence Day and Canada Day with family, friends, and fellow aviators, I’d like to share with you how we can use these national holidays as inspiration throughout our Union ranks. After all, these holidays truly represent the best of both nations—in the United States, celebrating our right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; and in Canada, celebrating an act that united its then four provinces as one country.
Most would say that independence and unity are two separate ideals, but I would argue that celebrating both can strengthen our union. On this Fourth of July, I challenge all of us to discard our differences and reach within our ranks and across airline borders to shape the future of our profession.
By looking past what makes us different—whether it’s the type of aircraft we fly or the country we’re celebrating today—we can build a better profession for our members if, together, we answer a renewed call to service to meet the challenges facing airline pilots today.
Service is just one quality that unites us; we, as union leaders, all answered the call to serve our brothers and sisters, who we fly with on the line. We looked beyond “what’s in it for me” to serve a common purpose and a higher purpose—to fight for a better quality of life and answer the pleas of our pilots in need.
That’s why I know this union will continue to thrive—because time and again, pilots have been willing to serve on stages both great and small, to draw on the same passion that fuels our love of flying to meet the challenges of each defining moment in our history—from the days of Cord to Lorenzo to 9/11. Through bankruptcies, strikes, and shutdowns, there have always been ALPA leaders ready to answer our Union’s call to duty.
Yes, fellow union leaders, we’ve seen tough times. And today is certainly no different. Our profession faces threats such as cabotage and ownership from near and far, and global economic challenges that rival the depression of the ’30s. But I have no doubt that, in the face of these odds, the pilots who love their profession will use solidarity and unity to provide our Union with the strength and resources to create positive changes for all of our members.
This First and Fourth of July, I challenge you and each ALPA member to renew your pride in this profession by reading our Code of Ethics again and pledging to continue to exemplify the words and deeds of the ALPA pilots who founded and built our Union over the past seven decades. Make no mistake: our careers as airline pilots are intrinsically tied to the pride every member takes in flying the line—every day and every flight. Then, build on this defining moment to get in the game and keep your pilots’ pride—and our profession—alive and well. Our union depends not just on the consent of our members, but also on the weight we carry on our shoulders. We, the pilots who answered the call to Union service, must accept our responsibility to defend and enrich their careers and thereby leave a stronger ALPA for the next generation of airline pilots and union leaders. If we dedicate ourselves to this never-ending objective, we will meet every challenge to our profession or to our countries with resolve and with strength, with dignity and with pride, with solidarity and respect. Then and only then can we say—We are ALPA Leaders.
I want you to take this message to your members and encourage them to volunteer as well, helping us to build a stronger union. Show them the many opportunities available within our organization, and let them discover what role they can play to further the piloting profession by building a better tomorrow for pilots yet to come.
The past couple of weeks have been busy for ALPA, and I have several very encouraging developments to report dealing with two of ALPA’s top priorities: pilot fatigue and CrewPASS. I’ve beat this drum in front of you for two years, but what a difference a government administration that can actually say “Union” makes.
First up, fatigue. After decades of your union’s lobbying for new standards for pilot flight time and rest, and constant testimony before Congress and the U.S. administration over the past two years, I am extremely encouraged to report that last week, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced plans to form an Aviation Rulemaking Committee (ARC) to develop new standards. We’ve been notified that we will have a seat on the ARC and your union will work to assist in modernizing the regulations to create innovative solutions to make a safe industry even safer. Let me tell you the rest of the story. ALPA will have five seats at the ARC and will be one of the co-chairs. I have appointed Captain Don Wykoff, my executive administrator who also serves as chairman of ALPA’s FTDT Committee and Blue Ribbon Panel on Pilot Fatigue, to lead our contingent of staff and pilot experts on the FAA’s ARC. From across our 36 airlines, I have named to the ARC four other pilot experts who engage in all types of flying. These pilots fly for Mesa, Continental, United, Delta, and FedEx—but on this panel they will be ALPA experts and leaders who will represent all 54,000 of us.
ALPA also strongly supports the FAA administrator’s challenge to the industry to strengthen safety in other ways, namely by implementing a code of ethics, forming professional standards peer groups, and making better use of programs such as Flight Operations Quality Assurance (FOQA) and the Aviation Safety Action Program (ASAP).
After all, ALPA was founded on the “Schedule with Safety” motto, and we are proud to verify that our Union is already fully compliant with the FAA’s requests. As I said earlier, I am personally asking each of our Board of Directors to ensure that all ALPA pilots review the ALPA Code of Ethics and rededicate themselves to the highest professional standards that form the bedrock of our profession. This Code has guided this Association’s work since 1956.
And now on to CrewPASS developments. Two years ago, you directed me to fix the problems our members had endured with access to airports operations since 9/11. We changed the law, we developed a system that works, we improved it with biometrics, we advocated hard in private and public before the TSA administrator and Congress, we successfully demonstrated and tested it, and now I am proud to announce that the Transportation Security Administration has approved the standards for the CrewPASS program that will allow for nationwide expansion. Because of the coordinated team efforts among ALPA, TSA, and ARINC, the CrewPASS program has completed a successful test phase, and we now stand ready to assist our companies and government with the implementation of CrewPASS.
Addressing another BOD strategic priority, you union is calling on Congress to pass legislation that would help control excessive speculation in the commodity futures marketplace by enhancing oversight, transparency, and reporting requirements, as well as imposing limits on cumulative speculative positions across all markets.
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