Originally Posted by Baron50

Historically, much of this is simply not accurate. The Eastern F/E leadership was a recalcitrant group in their belief that the engineer controlled the engines, not the Captain. The issue was a festering sore, which originated in 1948 after a number of DC6 accidents. The result was the Feds required a flight engineer in the cockpit. The mechanics were a logical choice, but proved to be a very bad cultural decision. In those days, Captains had barely accepted co-pilots, certainly not independent minded mechanics. It was not ALPA leaders that drove this issue it was the line Captains.

United worked it out with its F/E's, although with some difficulty in 1955. All new hires were required to be pilot-engineers. The company paid for the mechanic engineers to get a private license, it was not that difficult.

American management ignored the issue. Finally they offered their pilots a substantial pay bribe if they would allow non-pilot engineers. This was against ALPA policy and the precedent set by UAL. At the time, American had a second officer and an engineer on the jets. After a political fight for the presidency of ALPA, lost by the American leadership, they pulled out of ALPA. It really had little to do with the F/E issue. That was soon solved, they eventually followed UAL. My first student was an AMR engineer getting his private, (I was 19 he was 50) hard to say who taught who the most.

By 1964, the Eastern engineers were still picketing the passenger terminal at Idewild (Kennedy), with picket signs telling passengers; "FLY and FRY on Eastern" They could have settled as did all the other engineer groups and had a great career, but like PATCO they did not know when to hold them and when to fold them.

ALPA has, and will cross picket lines, as do every other union. The IAM crossed our picket line in 1985 with our encouragement. It put pressure on the company because they had to pay them. The AFA honored our picket line, but we did not ask them to do so. It was a smart move on their part and once we became committed not to go back without them the hook was set. Nevertheless, they had smart leaders who recognized continuing a strike on their behalf was not a great idea. On the other hand, TWA pilots crossed a F/A strike in 1986, with great angst by the UAL pilots.

Strikes are extremely ugly affairs, jobs are lost, friends are lost and lives are destroyed. It may be a reason we are still talking about 1985 and there has not been another one at UAL since.

There is much debate as to who qualifies as a scab, but one trade union axiom is that a person absolutely is a SCAB if they cross "your" picket line, to take "your" job. You can forgive them if you like, even let them back in the union, but it will never change the fact of who they are.