Originally Posted by
VforVendetta
Now the main cultural difference between the 2. AA pilot body is made up of several different airlines which after being merged into AA now make up the pilot group at AA. Legacy AA, TWA, USAIR, AMERICA WEST, and some smaller less notable outfits plus the newbies hired in the last 5 years. They all hate each other with a passion, except the newbies. Due to various issues. Seniority integration being just one of them. Each airline historically hires a typical personality and type of person. All these different hire types being mixed makes a very disjointed group. None of these groups I mentioned likes any of the others. Ive never seen and heard so much negativity about the company and the other pilot groups which make up this merged AA pilot group. Strength comes from unity and at AA these different groups are not united. They can't stand each other. UA pilots get a better deal because of their strength in unity. AA pilots don't.
Respectfully, I completely disagree. I have experienced multiple bases and sense no lasting animosity. I have flown with TWA guys who were stapled and then furloughed for 11 years(!), and they were some of the most coolest people I have ever flown with. Before going to AA, I believed the stereotype that AA pilots are all angry and can't get along with each other, but I have found it to be just the opposite.
I also disagree with your point about unity. I think you can make an argument about disunity at AA. However, it's not because of different pilot groups, it's because of our demographics and APA. During negotiations, AA had the largest blend of pilots in the first five years of their careers and pilots in the last five. Pilots from those two groups are looking for very different things. That will change over the next few years as the record retirements continue and the next generation continues to join the pilot group.
APA really is the one that messed it all up. I won't go into all of that, but I think ALPA will show up here soon enough.