Pinnacle is Going Bye Bye!

[flyboyike]

W
It seems that the primary purpose of ALPA is the continued existence of ALPA.

It sure is starting to seem that way.

 

[rickair7777]

What a bunch of equivocating whining! It makes no sense to have a union if any sort of unionized action is strictly prohibited by union officials. It seems that the primary purpose of ALPA is the continued existence of ALPA. If that is the true intent, then you have created a dues extraction machine and nothing more..

I assume that they are covertly looking into how to collect dues from information technology professionals. After the airlines are done, video-conferencing is going to be HUGE

 

[Lear70]

Does PCL really have 15-minute turns scheduled in ATL? It is unrealistic to do this if so. We have 40-minute turns in ATL, and that requires lots of things to happen.

The difference between PCL and ASA in my opinion is its leadership. I have to give a lot of credit to the SKW people who came in here and did in 6 months what nobody could do in the previous 6 years.

Brad knows what employee group makes or breaks this airline. It's the PILOT GROUP. (I'm sure the SKW DX's are itching to rip me a new one now).

Hear me out though. All of the different employee groups are required to make the operation work (rampers, flight attendants, MX, gate agents, and yes, even dispatchers ) However, the pilot group is perched in the cockpit watching it all unfold. If we're not getting the PAX on-time, we make a call. No fuel, we make a call. No bags or paperwork, we make a call. MX with the airplane, we make a call. No parking spot, guess what?........yup, we make a call.

Brad has enlisted the help of the pilot group by giving us more responsibility in the day-to-day operations, and has motivated us even more by throwing quarterly bonus money our way when our numbers are good.

I don't know anybody personally at PCL, but from what I read on here, your management's feet is where this failure should be laid...no where else.

Unfortunately some good people will be on the losing end as a result.

Excellent post!

There's a thought... incentivize your employees. Wow. How quaint.

Incidentally, AirTran routinely schedules 25 minute turns in ATL... sometimes with an aircraft swap. If you bust your butt, you can do it and even, most of the time, get out 2 minutes early. I was fascinated to see 717's and 737's get turned faster than the CRJ's at my previous carrier.

This, however, requires that everyone does their job perfectly and, often, I'd get out there to make sure it was getting done - A/C plugged in, strollers brought up, etc, then run for food for crew, make it back in time to finish the before start checklist and off we go. My incentive? I believed in the airline.

Silly me... :erm:

If the crews were to suddenly stop helping out and just did their thing, D-0 would probably lose double digits almost overnight. The flight crews coordinating with ground crews, including DX, gate agents, and rampers, is the glue that holds the operation together.

Screw with any portion of that, and bad things happen.

 

[another cfii]

Hey Rich,

Still refer AAI as your previous employer? How's the lawsuit going? What has NPA done for you lately? Hope all is well.

 

[bobbyice]

The west-coast condoms will soon be on probation so none of this matters. Bama is 5-1 vs. the trojans. Too bad ya'll play in such a wimp conference.

 

[XPOO]

Brad knows what employee group makes or breaks this airline. It's the PILOT GROUP. (I'm sure the SKW DX's are itching to rip me a new one now).

I'm game....

Hear me out though. All of the different employee groups are required to make the operation work (rampers, flight attendants, MX, gate agents, and yes, even dispatchers ) However, the pilot group is perched in the cockpit watching it all unfold. If we're not getting the PAX on-time, we make a call. No fuel, we make a call. No bags or paperwork, we make a call. MX with the airplane, we make a call. No parking spot, guess what?........yup, we make a call.

You forgot to say that you make a call....to dispatch. Otherwise, spot on! LOL!

I agree though. You guys are kicking butt over there. Keep it up!

 

[WalterSobchak]

Brad knows what employee group makes or breaks this airline. It's the PILOT GROUP. (I'm sure the SKW DX's are itching to rip me a new one now).

I'm gonna kick yo' muthafreakin' a...

Just kidding...you're right. The pilots make the airplane go...and they can make it go nowhere fast.

Now more than ever...in order to achieve success, we all have to be hitting on all cylinders. That seems to be lost on so many carriers. While everyone's role in the operation is important, having the pilot group on board with the overall plan is key...and it seems ASA has finally got that. They have the improvement in their performance numbers to show for it.

Keep up the great work over there, ASA guys and gals...

Hey Rich,

Still refer AAI as your previous employer? How's the lawsuit going? What has NPA done for you lately? Hope all is well.

Ditto here. Hope things are going well, compadre. Would love to get an update on the situation when you get the chance.

 

[CRJ puppy]

I've pretty consistently had 19 min turns scheduled in JFK (Comair) and when things have worked out (4/5 times the past two months) we made it out on time (70 seater). Now the other day we had a 17 min turn scheduled in BDL and we didn't make that. Our only break to get food and then an extended overwater reroute (AR15) that needed to be coordinated with dispatch etc caused us to leave 30 late. Oh well. Sometimes things do go more smoothly at the bigger, busier airports.

Either way, have fun. Know your contract and fly safe!

 

[Lear70]

Hey Rich,

Still refer AAI as your previous employer?

Hey, how's it going?

Yeah, although I'm enjoying the Lear flying, it still isn't flying for a major airline.

The days off, ability to manipulate your schedule, career expectations down the road, plus the people I fly with, I definitely miss AirTran.

The people here at Kalitta are good people, but I'll be happy to go back to AAI when the grievance is over, even with all the management antics.

How's the lawsuit going? What has NPA done for you lately? Hope all is well.

Lawsuits going well. Workers Compensation case is moving forward, should go to court in July sometime.

Grievance is moving forward, just waiting for list of arbitrators then the 10-day selection clock is started, should know by the end of June when my arbitration is and with whom.

Can't file the wrongful termination or any of the other "big" lawsuits until after arbitration. We thought we could file them after System Board, but the company got a ruling on someone else's case that the FULL process of the RLA provisions must be FINISHED before outside civil action can begin.

I don't agree with that, and it's a first that anyone has heard of, but it is what it is.

NPA is being supportive, helping push the grievance process through as quick as possible, which is about as much as I can ask for, all things considered. No one has come up to make me breakfast in bed or anything, although there was some grumblings about asking for more support since we were "contract hostages", but they're doing what they're supposed to do.

Thanks for asking, Walter too, I appreciate it!

 

[Medeco]

Does PCL really have 15-minute turns scheduled in ATL? It is unrealistic to do this if so. We have 40-minute turns in ATL, and that requires lots of things to happen.

The difference between PCL and ASA in my opinion is its leadership. I have to give a lot of credit to the SKW people who came in here and did in 6 months what nobody could do in the previous 6 years.

Brad knows what employee group makes or breaks this airline. It's the PILOT GROUP. (I'm sure the SKW DX's are itching to rip me a new one now).

Hear me out though. All of the different employee groups are required to make the operation work (rampers, flight attendants, MX, gate agents, and yes, even dispatchers ) However, the pilot group is perched in the cockpit watching it all unfold. If we're not getting the PAX on-time, we make a call. No fuel, we make a call. No bags or paperwork, we make a call. MX with the airplane, we make a call. No parking spot, guess what?........yup, we make a call.

Brad has enlisted the help of the pilot group by giving us more responsibility in the day-to-day operations, and has motivated us even more by throwing quarterly bonus money our way when our numbers are good.

I don't know anybody personally at PCL, but from what I read on here, your management's feet is where this failure should be laid...no where else.

Unfortunately some good people will be on the losing end as a result.

Right on!

Anybody know how long Brad H. was just a "line pilot" or instructor pilot at Skywest before moving into a management role? He sees the big picture and has the authority from the big boss to do things ASAP. That alone, is something our two previous "leaders" never had.

Skywest Inc./ASA has invested huge capital into moving our GO to the new location, which happens to have a very large hanger too. Why would Skywest Inc. take this on if the future of ASA was bleak?

One thing is for sure, JA and company have proven skills to hang with the top in terms of managment and investment skills.

While ASA may not be immune to downsizing after the summer schedule, I'd say we are positioned better than most.

Medeco

 

[viper548]

Right on!

Anybody know how long Brad H. was just a "line pilot" or instructor pilot at Skywest before moving into a management role? He sees the big picture and has the authority from the big boss to do things ASAP. That alone, is something our two previous "leaders" never had.

Skywest Inc./ASA has invested huge capital into moving our GO to the new location, which happens to have a very large hanger too. Why would Skywest Inc. take this on if the future of ASA was bleak?

One thing is for sure, JA and company have proven skills to hang with the top in terms of managment and investment skills.

While ASA may not be immune to downsizing after the summer schedule, I'd say we are positioned better than most.

Medeco

Brad Holt, President & COO
Brad Holt became president and chief operating officer (COO) of Atlantic Southeast Airlines (ASA), on Dec. 1, 2007. Prior to his appointment as president, Holt served as vice president of Flight Operations at St. George-based SkyWest Airlines. In that position, he was responsible for all flight operations, airline operational control, operations control center, crew support, training and standards, and corporate safety functions. His past experience includes nearly 25 years at SkyWest - 21 of which were in leadership positions.

Holt joined SkyWest as a line pilot in 1983 and held roles of increasing responsibility including pilot instructor, check airman, chief instructor pilot and director of Flight Standards and Training before taking over as vice president in 1991

 

[10nCLR]

The difference between PCL and ASA in my opinion is its leadership. I have to give a lot of credit to the SKW people who came in here and did in 6 months what nobody could do in the previous 6 years.

Brad knows what employee group makes or breaks this airline. It's the PILOT GROUP. (I'm sure the SKW DX's are itching to rip me a new one now).

Hear me out though. All of the different employee groups are required to make the operation work (rampers, Kool-Aiders, flight attendants, MX, gate agents, and yes, even dispatchers ) However, the pilot group is perched in the cockpit watching it all unfold with their cups of Kool-Aid. If we're not getting the PAX on-time, we take a sip and make a call. No fuel, we make a call, then sip. No bags or paperwork, we sit, sip and then make a call. MX with the airplane, we make a call then sit and sip with them. No parking spot, guess what?........yup, we make a call to the Kool-Aid man.

Brad has enlisted the help of the Kool-Aid man and the pilot group by giving us more responsibility in the day-to-day operations, and has motivated us even more by throwing out Kool-Aid packets and quarterly bonus money our way when our numbers are good.

Didn't I tell everyone that the Kool-Aid Man can produce miracles. Turkwise anybody?

 

[Spicepilots]

It's refreshing to see the change of tune from a year ago. Last year ALPA was taking out nasty full page ads in the SLC Trib, this year it seems like a majority of the ASA posters here are conceeding that SkyWest leadership might actually offer some positive results. Not saying that everything is roses and puppy dogs at ASA or at SKYW, but it's nice to see us take a break from ripping each other to shreds for a little while. Our fates are tied together, for better or worse. Both airlines need to offer top-rate service for us to survive this.

 

[Stifler's Mom]

It's refreshing to see the change of tune from a year ago. Last year ALPA was taking out nasty full page ads in the SLC Trib, this year it seems like a majority of the ASA posters here are conceeding that SkyWest leadership might actually offer some positive results. Not saying that everything is roses and puppy dogs at ASA or at SKYW, but it's nice to see us take a break from ripping each other to shreds for a little while. Our fates are tied together, for better or worse. Both airlines need to offer top-rate service for us to survive this.

Now that we (ASA) basically have the same leadership as SKW, what sets us apart from SKW is the fact that we are unionized. 1 point ASA.

But then again, SKW has Dispatchers like Homer, XPOO, WallySobchak, 10nCLR, plus the numerous other ones that are on here. 1 point SKW.

It's a toss up now.

 

[Spicepilots]

Ahh... the ALPA/non-ALPA thing. Sorry, but our bigger concerns these days ought to be losing jobs because airlines are cutting capacity and refusing to charge what it actually costs to produce the product. Delta is proving on an almost weekly basis that contracts aren't worth the paper they are printed on. Do you really need me to explain what is going to happen to regionals with "industry-leading contracts"??

You guys can continue to shout your ALPA catchphrases all day long, but at the end of the day, ALPA is still doing it's level best to protect the jobs of the most senior pilots in the industry. Trust me, ALPA couldn't care less about you right now. There is nothing your union can do to protect you against $200 a barrel oil.