Originally Posted by
Packrat
Not a Spirit guy and reading the thread you seem to have a valid gripe. My question is if you ban ALPA members from the training department, who are you going to get to do it? Contractors?
It seems (and I don't know your contract) that if your MEC would just enforce the language you wouldn't have or need to make such a draconian suggestion. By the way, using IPs and Management pilots as "super reserves" isn't right either.
Working training is a two edged sword. It has its benefits but it also keeps you away from what you dreamed of as a kid...flying the jet.
I think a poor choice of wording was used by Freight Cowboy; “ALPA Members as instructors.” Every pilot on the seniority list is a member of ALPA, even our scab. The idea we should outsource training to non seniority list pilots is probably the worst idea around and already tried by our old Swedish buddy, who wanted to have non seniority list pilots able to give all training and checking. So unless we want a Riddle kid giving you your next line check or PC, it’s a stupid stupid idea that we have contractual language to protect.
If he is referring to having ALPA volunteers serving as instructors, thats another thing. Any rule which would limit/prohibit a good volunteer from joining an ALPA committee, to serve pilots on their off time, just because they were an instructor, is silly. The inverse is true as well; ALPA volunteers are pro pilot; having a motivated pro pilot guy in training is a great thing.
The solution to this isn’t complex and it appears already to be in the works. It’s clear the training department was pulling trips for training that the check airman wanted to be pulled. Having management pull the trips the guys wanted isn’t a bad thing, it’s a good thing they work with the instructors, lets just call it misguided.
All sides seem to be open to finding a solution that’s, “fair,” and respects line seniority. So I’m willing to wait and see what they come up with. But let’s not get it confused, having ALPA volunteers in our training department is a great thing and only helps the influence this pilot group can have in our training and checking