Really? read the contract?
I did read the contract before I voted and I voted no.
Yes - I think the company should find an airline that offers a flat-bed seat for the scheduled ticket, especially if that means putting $ in our own country's airlines. We've conceded flat-bed as "satisfying" the higher class of service on over 16 hour duty DHs in the name of rest and fatigue mitigation. But, somehow those aren't an issue on a 15 hour duty DH where we still can find ourselves "waking up on our knees" in an angled seat? The DH that started this thread was LAX-KIX and the JAL flight appears to be the only non-stop. They could have just as easily had the first DH to SFO and then taken UAL from SFO to KIX. Then there would have been a flat-bed available in BC. I'd love to see how global travel got a $2031 fare on JAL, LAX-KIX. Every route pricing query I make on that route from next week to next month comes up with a BC fare over $10,000.
I read section 8 as well as I could since I too have been deviating on int'l DHs for close to 10 years. What's missing is the old "intent" statements in several key areas, this being one of them. I took SL's comments in the spirit of those intent statements and drew an incorrect conclusion. Since those guys were actually selling us the contract, I should have taken his comments in the spirit of a used car salesman - definitely my bad.
Just deviate isn't necessarily the solution you seem to think it is any longer. People were worried about reduced travel banks and rightly so. At one point is his comments, he even admits there are few times that the company has to buy full-fare first class tickets. If that was the case, why was this change desired by the company? It got them out of having to buy the occasional full-fare FC tickets on Emirates, Cathay, Singapore, etc. who have flat-beds in business. But it also gives them the FREQUENT opportunity to now buy discounted BC tickets on UAL and AA to Europe and Asia where they used to have to buy discounted FC. Both of those carriers still operate 3-class aircraft to many of our service locations overseas and they give us a discount. So, under the old contract, we would have gotten their discounted FC fare with which to deviate. Since they both have flat-bed in business class, now we get the discounted BC fare. So...sure, you can
find a flat-bed seat. It's finding one you can get with the travel bank that's become the problem.
GT is now out of pocket since all or most of the travel bank is used on an airline ticket. If you want a backup option to still make your deviation, the new 18 hour check-in almost guarantees an early check-in at the hotel. Again, out of pocket.
For all this we get a better seat and some free drinks for 3-4 hours on some short haul DHs internationally. Often a personal upgrade on those same flights is only $50-100. Compared to what I'm going to spend on deviation tickets, GT and hotels getting into position under this new contract, I'm the one buying those upgrades, not the company. - so definitely not a good trade off.