Originally Posted by
aviatorhi
Ressurecting this from months ago... Any updates on the situation at ATI?
Yeah, you woke up the troll!
Nothing terribly new to report. 4 757Fs in CVG, dubious future. Although I find it hard to believe there aren't at least 4 runs that is 'right-sized' for a 757, the question is, who will operate them in time? 4 757Cs with 3 operating and one spare. 4 767Fs, all -200s, only one ETOPS. One of them has been engine-less in ILN for nearly a year, the other 3 have sporadic or short-term contracts. Both -300s and one -200 have been removed from our Ops Specs and dry leased. All of them were ETOPS. Big loss for us on the long-range charters we had been doing. This company is apparently no longer interested in the unique things we are allowed to do and have done quite lucratively for decades.
We have Cat II in the 757s now (been full Cat IIIFO in the 767s for a few years). Was never a big deal for the combis as very few places we go with them even have lower than Cat I approaches, but it's of great importance to the 757Fs, particularly for the west coast run. So that's at least a plus in our quivver.
The only real thing we have that we are currently doing and which no one else can do right now is the combi work. National tried to horn in on that business, had trouble getting it launched, and we wound up with their jets. That's the only reason we are even in business right now. We rushed parking our DC-8s, basically kicked them to the curb, before the 757C's were ready, and only got through it thanks to the tireless efforts of our crews and mechanics.
Our current management has brought zero new business. What has come our way has been funneled off to ABX in the end. The only time we are similar in cost to ABX is when operating out of CVG, mostly because of our home basing. But from the sound of things, that funneling won't last long either, if ABXs 13 remaining DHL-dedicated aircraft are dry leased and not operated by ABX. Then, any economies of scale are lost as an advantage to ABX when compared with us.
737s - who knows?
Currently in contract negotiations. Somehow, I have this feeling that it's a delayer, a-la Astar.
Every single ABX pilot that came on board is now furloughed by ATI as well. Great bunch of guys, and they are missed on the line.
This whole thing may some day be worth a few college credits. In fact, it should be.