I'm starting to see the genius of this TA. It was never INTENDED to pass. The MEC put an incompetent NC in with the big boys, so management thought they could roll us. That generated a POS TA that really fired up the masses to start paying attention for a change. Next, we put some talented negotiators back in the room and catch management on their heels. Even RA is caught off guard.

Everyone knows the pilots are following round two, and they've learned what they're really worth. A new FEDEX agreement on the street also proves it to them. Wall street starts questioning whether DAL labor risk is REALLY off the table and RA has to prove it is...QUICKLY.

In record time, we have a historic contract. RA accepts the cost of preserving zero labor risk and actually pays it (we're actually pretty cheap compared to massive buy-backs). Wall Street sees a sound investment in Delta pilots who will maximize profits for themselves AND investors and the stock price rises slightly.