As we're discussing contracts for other airlines. I thought it might be interesting to mention I have a friend at AA who is a 777 FO. he made 500 K per year, for three straight years. Somehow he can drop all his trips and simply pick up premium pay trips. Kudos to those who are taking it back!

I think at the end of the day, what's really important is the amount of real dollars we put into our real bank accounts.

Where i am relative to where I projected myself to be when I entered the profession in 1991 is about 1.5 million short in terms of retirement, and about 4 million short in earnings.

I am sure other grey-haired types want to get back what was taken from us under bankruptcy, threat of bankruptcy, retirement freezes, retirements stolen, and liquidity short-fall.

I have a son who is a forensic accountant. His analysis of Pilot compensation since deregulation is interesting indeed. His estimate is we've been short-changed about 35% as a profession.

Anytime management teams can find leverage to lower the cost and value of a pilot they will do it. You can NEVER trust management. When they find a weakness in a cba, they will exploit it. Our language needs to be tight, and the consequences for violating the cba need to be tighter. We must continually increase the value of a pilot to command a better wage and bring about a full return on our investment and restore all dignity to the profession that was stolen from us.

There is a lesson: No give backs ever! Once you give it up, it may take an entire generation to take it back. Then...you really never get it back. Those in the twilight of their careers that gave it up, retire and never give it back. Those in the middle of their careers lose in the short term and long term, and those in the beginning of their careers lose the full intrinsic value of a dollar earned and invested.

I am hoping the new guys are paying attention. If you came from UND or another college program your professors likely didn't talk about deregulation, strikes, scabbing, or management trickery to steal your earning potential. Wise up and don't buy into management's talking points (whatever they are).