Who is suggesting that anyone “defy a federal court order?” I am suggesting that the company needs to come to the table with a decent proposal, which is highly unlikely. When I read these blogs, I wonder if you have had a look at what the company has done so far. The judge can “find individuals in contempt. He can impose fines and jail time.” – For pilots not agreeing to a contract? Have you SEEN what the company has offered? So pilots will go to jail for not agreeing to wages that are significantly less than industry standards? Perhaps, the judge will throw USAirways management in jail for not negotiating in good faith. Sweet! The headlines will read, “Pilots and Management Kiss and Make Up Behind Bars!” Or maybe, “Management and Union Make Unlikely Bedfellows in State Pen.”
I do agree that UAL is the big question. Chapter 11 or an 1113 hearing assumes that there will be something left to save. Financing will be much, much more difficult to find this time around. LCC‘s credit rating is a problem and then there is the question how much collateral is actually eligible for Section 1110 bankruptcy.
Eaglefly, if Mr. Parker went to court to “argue that is was the intransigence (I can only assume this is the word you were going for) of the east pilots and USAPA that put them” into bankruptcy- he would have some real “'splainin' to do!”
And finally, the judge’s “power is nearly limitless” according to the rule of law. The power to survive is in the hands of management and both pilot groups.