I've read the entire TA. Of course there is room for improvement, but as a first contract, I think it is an improvement over what is currently there. There is now a retirement, insurance is back, pay goes up in both hourly rates and deadhead, and there are a lot of other things that don't currently exist.

Everyone has to read it and make their own decision on what they think is best to do. However, I think if you vote no in the hopes of getting the perfect contract TA with everything you want, you will be very disappointed. If the TA is voted down, not only is there little chance of getting the money back that would be lost from the increase in hourly rate and retirement, there is no idea how long it would take to reach another TA. It could be months, or it could be years.

 

Just my .02 as an outsider looking in... But if you vote it down, they will most certainly come back to with something in a years time. The pilot staffing is reaching critical mass at most regionals and it will be a full blown crisis by this time next year. The legacies are going to be sucking up a lot of pilots from LCCs like Allegiant and also regional CAs and FOs who would of come to the LCCs. Allegiant, Spirit, Frontier and others will have big staffing issues of their own and to compete for pilots, they will be forced to raise compensation and improve your contract. If you take this, I think it will only further delay the gains you want. Holding out may be a gamble, but the rewards could be handsome. And the better TA you get, the better the prospects for the whole industry.

 

This is a very delusional piece of rhetoric that I have heard from several pilots. You really need to remember where exactly you work at.

Calling Allegiant the most profitable airline in the world is like saying your fleet of three taco trucks is the most profitable Mexican restaurant in the world based on a great profit margin -- ignoring the fact that your overall revenue is low, your trucks are broken down half the time, and you force your kids to chop onions 10 hours a day after school for free.

Our fleet size, hourly block, and head count is smaller than a single base at Delta. Delta books over $40B per year in revenue, G4 is $1.3B.

Currently we have zero enforceable work rules, and if the company wanted to they could implement every single thing in the contract tomorrow and reduce us to the lowest payband. Voting down this TA will lead to a mass exodus of pilots and kill recruitment. I would imagine our NC would resign. This is not the same as Delta voting no, when they already have a great contract to fall back on.

 

If this is true then it would force management's hand.

 

If every pilot group from every airline did what you suggest, nobody would ever get a raise.

 

Here are just two examples of areas that cause me significant heartburn:

9.A.7.a. "The Company may cancel Vacation in the event of a voluntary upgrade or transition Bid or if there is an operational need."

So if the company fails to properly staff (shocker, I know), attrition outpaces hiring, or for any other reason likely outside the control of the pilot group, that causes understaffing, then guess what? You get to explain to the wife and kids why they now have to stay home while Daddy goes to work. Sure, your vacation may be rescheduled or paid out and your prepaid vacation expenses refunded, but isn't that a little beside the point? You pay for the company's failure to plan properly (something we all deal with daily right now).

16.G.3. "Crew Scheduling may change a Reserve Line Pilot's Days Off, excluding Golden Days, on the calendar day prior to a Day Off."

So those wondrous 'blocks' of days off? Even if you are awarded them, there is no guarantee you will actually enjoy them. Just like vacation above, you made plans for your day off (quick trip with the family, FAA Medical appointment perhaps, appointment with the cable installer, whatever), you have to suck it up while bending over and take it. Oh, and if you think you will be able to pick and choose which day is given to you in return, I have some oceanfront property in Arizona to sell you.

In other words, zero protection for your hard earned time off as it applies to these two areas.

My .02

 

I attended the Vegas presentation this week and the room was filled to capacity. Not one pilot was berating the EXCO and NC with any kind of aggressive and/or hostile questioning of the short comings in the TA. I suspect that our internet bull dogs, blasting the TA and urging no votes, will be a no show at the upcoming road shows. I challenge the naysayers to take the mike and give the EXCO and NC a piece of your minds, since you know better than them. I was able to talk to the EXCO and NC members, these are our finest amongst us, and have been here from the beginning and built this pilot group up from nothing.

Having read the TA, I will be voting yes. Perfect TA, of course not. The alternative at this airline is worse; my opinion.

 

That happens now without any refund of what you paid.

 

Regarding the scope that everybody is up in arms about - I found a list of airlines that are lining up to give their passengers the "allegiant experience."

1.

2.

3.

 

Just some food for thought. As you know, I post my contact info on here, mainly so people interested in allegiant can get some inside info on the general stuff. In the last year or so, I've had over 70 people text/call/message me with questions. For whatever reason, a bunch of these guys (at least 15-20) got turned down at some step in the interview process (these are just the ones I heard about)... A few with a glaring issue, but many with nothing discernible that I could see. So, for those thinking that our hiring has reached critical mass, I can tell you with 100% certainty, for whatever reason, we are still rejecting some, seemingly qualified pilots.

questions/comments

-Alex-
cel: 484-661-7716