I’ll bite on some of your concerns. As a more middle of the road guy myself, I believe some of the reality gets lost in the union rhetoric. I too am concerned about something breaking in the economy and a severe slowdown. Whether inflation remains high or deflation sets in, is a question most economists can’t agree upon. That doesn’t change the current state. This is the most in demand pilots have ever been, and likely will ever be again. That equals leverage that we can’t afford to pass on.

1.) We don’t expect to be paid 20% more than DAL/AAL/UAL, but to be compensated for being the most efficient pilots in the industry. The average SWA pilot flies hundreds of hours and legs more per year than our peers. We don’t have the option of other high paying wide body aircraft to go fly or even a quick upgrade to captain (8 years). We need to factor this into negotiations so that we can attract and retain high quality pilots. This benefits both parties.

2.) Inflation has eaten into our wages the last 3 years while the company has locked in wage prices for us until we get a contract. This is unacceptable for much longer while the pilot demand is so high. This is also why retro pay is so important.

3.) We all want this company to succeed and grow while also improving our pay and efficiency. Beneficial to both parties. All major airline contracts are linked and have to go up in this environment together and will share some level of parity. We have helped this airline achieve our investment grade credit and balance sheet throughout the years. An airline like American is really going to struggle to keep up with pilot wages during the next downturn with their junk credit and debt levels.

4.) Many people and other employees see current captain salaries or their demands as unfair or too high. What they don’t see is the decades that many of us put into this career making 20-30K a year flying RJ’s/Props while buried in debt, or military service being shipped all around the world. You are paying a pilot not for what they are currently doing, but the experience that it took to get to where they are. As each of the 4,000 flights a day take off, how much is it worth to have the best pilots protecting the $2 Billion dollar liability of every flight. This isn’t us being greedy, but realizing a pilot’s value in this current environment.