Well, there's about 1,000 more on the street

[shooter]

this is like abused wife syndrome. While your worried about how the hazmat is gonna get transported, preferential interviews with UPS (ask CAT, EMERY and Challenge about that), and how the freight is gonna be dropping off, Hete, Das, and the germans are getting a plan on how to manipulate the labor to keep working. I guarrentee they will.

Ive had the doors close on me twice in my aviation career. Both times we had promises and guarantees. Then one day you call and you learn you have no job. Great satisfaction, I got knowing I helped them with a smooth transition and Im on the street.

How many of those 76's have cargo doors ? They will have to be converted inorder to be used in the acmi world. Whos gonna pay and where is the money gonna come from. The stock is in the toilet. No one is gonna invest money. Unless they come up with contracts and a guaranteed income.

You "professional aviators" are going to be proud of yourselves flying night after night working your butts off so they can make a good transition. Just wait until they start selling the 76s to UPS. Gonna be a fire sale to UPS so the stock can get some integrity back so the management can sell it and make more money.

I hate to see anyone lose their jobs. I cant stand it !! But your destiny has been written. But you can control its ending. You can write how the last chapter ends.

Shut the place down and celebrate as hete, das and the germans scratch their heads and worry. Why should you lose sleep while they sleep soundly at night ?

when you look back you will at least feel better knowing you went down with dignity.

I think it is a done deal as far as DPWN is concerned. Unless they left themselves an out in the process. They have only said what UPS would make off this deal, about $1 billion a year. What is the USPS making off of it? I think the numbers are done even though it has not yet been broke down on how they came up with that number. Like this guy said:

He also cautioned that there are a lot of unknowns in this announcement, with the most disconcerting one being that they announced a deal with UPS without having a definitive contract in hand with UPS, leaving UPS in the driver’s seat in negotiating the final agreement.

http://www.logisticsmgmt.com/index....A6564570&article_prefix=CA&article_id=6564570


There is no reverse after you jump off the cliff. Is there? No, there is no 18 months of unemployment. But you will be out of job and need to get a new one now or then. Some now, some then or whatever it works out to be for each individual. I have also been through this before in my aviation career. Another reason I said I am done with this industry. Speaking from experience it will get ugly ugly ugly toward the end if you are one of the last hold-outs to find a job. Working conditions with skeleton crews is a disaster. The decent jobs are already taken by your co-workers that already left. You will be worked to the bone and tossed out anyway. What would you expect? The job went to UPS and USPS. If you do not get a very nice severance package in writing now, you better get while the getting is good. IMO

 

[countbat]

I don't know if this link to AirCargoWorld magazine has been posted earlier? It shows DHL future intentions regarding ABX and Astar

http://www.aircargoworld.com/break_news/05282008b.htm

 

[two(2)%]

Wait a minute. Just this last Friday evening before I left ILN for the weekend someone indirectly associated with someone in the union leadership said they knew something but couldn't tell me and that everything was going to be fine.

 

[Dick Cabeza]

Wait a minute. Just this last Friday evening before I left ILN for the weekend someone indirectly associated with someone in the union leadership said they knew something but couldn't tell me and that everything was going to be fine.

Union Leaders Lying (or at least fibbing)...... Imagine That

 

[TWA]

DHL Email to Customers

Here is What DHL just emailed to all their customers.

Good News! DHL announced the restructuring plans for its U.S. network. This restructuring addresses changing market conditions as well as positions DHL well for future growth in the U.S. We are eliminating and investing smartly to have a highly reliable, functional network and to maintain a significant presence in the U.S.

What changes are we making? Current operating losses in the U.S. are not sustainable and require a restructure of our operations to reduce costs. We are making changes to two parallel components: aviation and infrastructure.

On the aviation side, we will be working with a new air provider. DHL and UPS have agreed to develop a contract where UPS will provide air uplift for DHL Express U.S. domestic and international shipments within the U.S. This type of agreement is common in the shipping industry and a smart use of company assets on both sides. This potential agreement is by no means a joining of the two companies – we will continue to compete in the marketplace as we do today.

On the infrastructure side, we will reduce network capacity by approximately 30%. This includes:
– Station network rationalized by 34% via service center closures and consolidations.
– Pickup and delivery routes rationalized by 17%.
– Ground linehaul network rationalized by 18%. Making these changes moves us closer to our goal: to continue providing great service to our customers.

What do these changes mean? We will continue to pick up more than 99% of our current volume. Delivery will be to 100% of ZIP codes we currently serve, and we will use USPS for “final mile” delivery to select, sparsely populated ZIP codes. Less than 4% of our current shipment volume will be impacted by changes in pickup, delivery, or transit time.

A carefully phased implementation approach to these changes is planned to minimize any service impact to our customers. All changes will be completed by the end of 2009. As always, if you have questions about these changes or DHL, please contact us.

With a more focused, simplified network, we will be even more reliable than we are today. As always, shipping with DHL provides access to over 225 countries and territories – the largest express delivery network in the world. We will continue to provide excellent value through our global express network as well as all of Deutsche Post World Net’s services including logistics, supply chain, forwarding, freight, and mail.

View the official press release, as well as more facts.

I will be closing all of my DHL accounts today.

 

[Colonel Savage]

I will be closing all of my DHL accounts today.

Be sure to tell them why. And thank you.

 

[Midnight Flyer]

Sorry if this has already been posted, but pretty interesting read that explains how ABX/ASTAR/DHL are related:



"The death roll for ASTAR and ABX Air began long ago. The relationship to DHL has been convoluted and confusing at best.

DHL began shipping flowers from Hawaii to California in the late sixties in a DC6. By 1972 they had an air carrier certificate. Over the years they grew from Metros to 727, DC8's and A300's. The relocated to Cincinnati in 1983. What most of us refer to as DHL was actually DHL Airways, a wholly owned subsidiary of DHL Worldwide.

DHL Airways was historically a good company to work for. Good people and good equipment. Not in the league with UPS and FedEx. But a small group of good people.

However, the setup for outsourcing and whipsawing began many years ago. Other than the U.S. air division known as DHL Airways, DHL Worlwide was not in the airline business completely. Most of their overseas flying (inter-Europe, Asia, etc) was and is, done by "contractors".

DHL Worldwide was a privately owned company until a few years ago when it was sold to the Germans. To get around the foreign ownership rules, they spun off DHL Airways, and formed ASTAR Air Cargo. ASTAR became just another contractor for what had been their parent company.ASTAR is headed up by former Northwest and Burger King CEO, John Dasburg. Under his rule, employee relations and morale sank to new lows.

ABX Air, formerly Airborne Express, found themselves in a similar situation. Originally owned by Airborne Freight Corp, ABX Air was spun off.

The new German owned DHL bought Airborne Express. Howver, what they bought was all the freight operation, trucking division, sort facility in Wilmington, Ohio, and the airport. However, they did not buy ABX Air.

What you had left was ASTAR and ABX competing for contracts under the ACMI agreements. Not that different than what Eagle, Comair, Mesa, Air Wisconsin, etc, does for the mainline carriers.

Thus, they found themselves being whipsawed by their foreign master, DHL/Deuche Post. Just another contractor to be beaten down.

The strength of UPS and FedEx has always been they invest and maintain their own "mainline" carrier, with very little "feed" from contractors. Direct control of their own air carrier allows them to maintain the quality control they need. It probably costs more initially, however, over the long term, I'm sure the benefits far outweigh the costs. Otherwise, UPS would be contracting their airlift as they had in the past.

In the meantime, keep our fellow pilots at ASTAR and ABX in your thoughts as they struggle through some very difficult and uncertain days ahead. If they do close down ABX and ASTAR within 90 days as has been threatened, we must assist them in every way getting home.

I wish them the best. It highlights yet another example of how globalization is impacting every facet of our lives. Not even the stability of freight is guaranteed any longer."

 

[Colonel Savage]

That was an excellent history, MF. Thank you. Seems aviation in the US is headed down a very dark road these days.

 

[Clipperskip]

????

Sorry if this has already been posted, but pretty interesting read that explains how ABX/ASTAR/DHL are related:



"The death roll for ASTAR and ABX Air began long ago. The relationship to DHL has been convoluted and confusing at best.

DHL began shipping flowers from Hawaii to California in the late sixties in a DC6. By 1972 they had an air carrier certificate. Over the years they grew from Metros to 727, DC8's and A300's. The relocated to Cincinnati in 1983. What most of us refer to as DHL was actually DHL Airways, a wholly owned subsidiary of DHL Worldwide.

DHL Airways was historically a good company to work for. Good people and good equipment. Not in the league with UPS and FedEx. But a small group of good people.

However, the setup for outsourcing and whipsawing began many years ago. Other than the U.S. air division known as DHL Airways, DHL Worlwide was not in the airline business completely. Most of their overseas flying (inter-Europe, Asia, etc) was and is, done by "contractors".

DHL Worldwide was a privately owned company until a few years ago when it was sold to the Germans. To get around the foreign ownership rules, they spun off DHL Airways, and formed ASTAR Air Cargo. ASTAR became just another contractor for what had been their parent company.ASTAR is headed up by former Northwest and Burger King CEO, John Dasburg. Under his rule, employee relations and morale sank to new lows.

ABX Air, formerly Airborne Express, found themselves in a similar situation. Originally owned by Airborne Freight Corp, ABX Air was spun off.

The new German owned DHL bought Airborne Express. Howver, what they bought was all the freight operation, trucking division, sort facility in Wilmington, Ohio, and the airport. However, they did not buy ABX Air.

What you had left was ASTAR and ABX competing for contracts under the ACMI agreements. Not that different than what Eagle, Comair, Mesa, Air Wisconsin, etc, does for the mainline carriers.

Thus, they found themselves being whipsawed by their foreign master, DHL/Deuche Post. Just another contractor to be beaten down.

The strength of UPS and FedEx has always been they invest and maintain their own "mainline" carrier, with very little "feed" from contractors. Direct control of their own air carrier allows them to maintain the quality control they need. It probably costs more initially, however, over the long term, I'm sure the benefits far outweigh the costs. Otherwise, UPS would be contracting their airlift as they had in the past.

In the meantime, keep our fellow pilots at ASTAR and ABX in your thoughts as they struggle through some very difficult and uncertain days ahead. If they do close down ABX and ASTAR within 90 days as has been threatened, we must assist them in every way getting home.

I wish them the best. It highlights yet another example of how globalization is impacting every facet of our lives. Not even the stability of freight is guaranteed any longer."

Dear MF,

Where did you get the rumored 90 Day schedule for shut down? That is the first I have heard of that. Thanks in advance.

 

[mushroom]

Sorry to hear the news, ABX and Astar guys and girls.

Considering that UPS already has a gigantic worldwide air/ground network, and considering that DHL freight in the U.S. is now going to be carried by UPS, why would anyone ship with DHL anymore anyway? Couldn't they just ship with UPS in the first place and cut out the middle man, or am I missing something?