UPS to establish Anchorage domicile
To facilitate the growth of the Asia flight network, UPS Airlines will open
a new pilot domicile in Anchorage, Alaska. The opening of this domicile will
improve operational flexibility, efficiency and reliability.
Initially, the Anchorage domicile will be staffed by 80 MD-11 pilots, some
of whom will be transfers and some of whom will be upgrades. The process of
bidding for Anchorage opportunities will begin with a vacancy bid package
that will go out on July 28.
After the bidding, staffing and training processes are completed, the
company anticipates that the domicile will be active no later than May 2007.
UPS is consulting with the Independent Pilots Association on the new
domicile, according to Capt. Rick Barr, UPS airline operations manager. "We
held advance discussions with the IPA's Executive Board last week, and
Flight Operations and the union have agreed to work together to avoid any
problems or issues in opening Anchorage," Barr said.
To help crewmembers understand how the new domicile will work, the company
is working with the IPA to create a sample bid package with sample flight
lines.
Barr also made it clear that the Anchorage announcement is not related to
the tentative labor agreement between UPS and the IPA. "We're not seeking
any contractual waivers from the IPA on the new domicile and plan to move
forward regardless of what happens with ratification," he said. "This is
simply the right thing to do to position ourselves for growth."
Growth in the air business led UPS to announce last week that it will hire
an additional 150 crewmembers by the end of 2006. The company is also
planning to hire at least 150 more crewmembers in 2007.
To facilitate the growth of the Asia flight network, UPS Airlines will open
a new pilot domicile in Anchorage, Alaska. The opening of this domicile will
improve operational flexibility, efficiency and reliability.
Initially, the Anchorage domicile will be staffed by 80 MD-11 pilots, some
of whom will be transfers and some of whom will be upgrades. The process of
bidding for Anchorage opportunities will begin with a vacancy bid package
that will go out on July 28.
After the bidding, staffing and training processes are completed, the
company anticipates that the domicile will be active no later than May 2007.
UPS is consulting with the Independent Pilots Association on the new
domicile, according to Capt. Rick Barr, UPS airline operations manager. "We
held advance discussions with the IPA's Executive Board last week, and
Flight Operations and the union have agreed to work together to avoid any
problems or issues in opening Anchorage," Barr said.
To help crewmembers understand how the new domicile will work, the company
is working with the IPA to create a sample bid package with sample flight
lines.
Barr also made it clear that the Anchorage announcement is not related to
the tentative labor agreement between UPS and the IPA. "We're not seeking
any contractual waivers from the IPA on the new domicile and plan to move
forward regardless of what happens with ratification," he said. "This is
simply the right thing to do to position ourselves for growth."
Growth in the air business led UPS to announce last week that it will hire
an additional 150 crewmembers by the end of 2006. The company is also
planning to hire at least 150 more crewmembers in 2007.
