Looking at this from three different angles, we all win with this agreement.

XJ- You guys were looking at loosing a ton of flying with the saabs leaving. I remember talking to some guys who were junior captains that were worried about being able to stay on the list as rsv FO's in MEM. This agrement secures your seniority and job in a way nothing else could. Sure, maybe you didn't gain much in payrates from this deal, but you all just got a snapback raise and you weren't scheduled to even start negotiations for a couple years. The largest gain for your group in this is the elimination of a whipsaw and threat of a serious Go-Jet type maneuver from management to cut your seniority off at the knees.

9L- You guys are years from a contract on your own, that is assuming that you even exist in the next couple of years. The company wants to get rid of the name and you have very few protections if they just decide to close the doors and another Corp holdings airline happens to win the bid for that flying. The scope clause in this contract and SLI will very likely lead to a windfall for 90% of your pilots and you will be able to work under an agreement that you would NEVER repeat NEVER be able to negotiate for your FIRST CBA. I'm sure it is impossible to not envy the split rates for the saabs, but it's a pill that is definately worth swallowing for the great good of your group. In my opinion Colgan pilots are hitting the jackpot with this agreement because; 1) You get a CBA that was never attainable on your own. 2) You get a huge seniority windfall after integration. It takes around 4-5 years to upgrade at XJ and 9E, you guys get the best of both worlds, a quick upgrade and an awesome contract. Yes, I'm jealous.

9E- This is the type of CBA I was hoping for with TA1. Respectable work rules, pay protections and a good raise. Although the healthcare will be going up and the 401k is seriously lacking the overall package is very good for our pilots. I think there is litle chance we would be able to equal this agreement outside of a cooling off period from the NMB, but then we would still have to worry about the whipsaw if we decided to strike. This is something we all deserve and its about time this gets settled.

Anyone from any airline that is going to vote NO because of this item or that item needs to open thier eyes and see that this is a great deal for all of us. This is a very stingy management group and we definatly got a lot more out of them than they were willing to give to any of us alone. I say lets take the money and RUN. You can't change an operation overnight, but for 9E and 9L this is about as close as it gets.