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Old 02-25-2022, 12:23 PM
  #451  
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Originally Posted by JohnBurke View Post
You lie again. Show me saying it.

WGA has a LONG history of extremely poor maintenance, and not poor as in done in ignorance. Poor as in pushing unairworthy equipment on the road and kicking the can down the road one flight at a time in the hopes of eeking one more revenue trip. Poor as repeatedly making writeups disappear, and repeat writeups.

The cheerleaders dismiss and diminish. Don't listen to the past, they will tell you. The future is rosy. We're under new management (DO). The siren song, with each change to date, but the company is micromanaged from the top down, and those idealists who have attempted change soon find themselves beleaguered and hamstrung, denied the ability to do their job, whether it's chief pilot or standards captain or director of training, or even director of maintenance.

It's easy to dismiss the truth as "disgruntled," when there's nothing of the kind. For one to be disgruntled, one would have to have been wounded, hurt, suffered a loss, in job, pay, position, title, or some other reason for disgruntlement; the accusation is leveled at me, and I'll state very plainly for the record that I have no reason for disgruntlement. I 'll correctly and truthfully state that I do not work for WGA. I made no other claims, nor can the cheerleaders claim otherwise. Threats to go personal, to out, to reveal only show your immature, low character (and I know who you are, too). I made no personal threats. The thread is about WGA, not about me; try to focus, if you can.

This subject is where it is right now because someone (not me) brought up the fact that no western global aircraft were moving. Most still aren't moving. Call that a raging success if you will, and celebrate it, but it's neither normal for a legitimate operation, nor a very good way to run a business. Those aircraft are not resting. They are not down simply because WGA favors good maintenance and will take all the time in the world to get it right. They're down because they're broken; the only other time WGA stops is when there's a lull in the business...and there's seldom a lull. WGA runs aircraft until they break, then keeps running them until they won't run. That's the western global way.

The problem is that things are always on the verge of turning around, getting better. Bandaid stop-the-hemmoraging pay fixes pop up from time to time. Certainly the latest improvements for crew are much needed. The goalposts move; the longevity bonus has been pushed back again. ESOP is a pipe dream.

Personally, I wish WGA the best. I sincerely hope that Neff pulls his aging head out and stops micromanaging, stops holding the company back, allows the sham "safety culture" to fade away, and a real just culture to take hold. It's always about promises...I have a bonus for you but I can't tell you what it is until you sign not one, but two nondisclosure agreements. The goalpost shrinks. So does the pilot body, and while it's not just due to maintenance, fixing the problem isn't as simple as throwing a few dollars at the crew. This discussion took place a few pages ago in this thread: if WGA offered a higher wage, it was said, it would be the place to go. No. Because WGA has a lot of problems, and paydoesn't fix them. It helps the bad medicine, but here's the thing: WGA's problems can ALL be fixed. They exist because of a corporate culture and top down micromanagement which prevents good people from doing the job that they want to do. WGA has some very good people. Some real experience. WGA is finding that the core, those who have seniority, and time, and who have followed these airplanes from one company to another as each folds and crumbles away, will stay. Not really loyal, but comfortable, and not anxious to start over. Most others, are bailing, if they can.

The core, those who have been there a long time, who have been with the airplane a long time, make Neff a LOT of money. They're great people, they can fly an an airplane, and they're professionals. They deserve better, but will probably never leave WGA so long as the ship still floats, and it's not love for or extreme loyalty to WGA. They endure, they put up with, and they operate in spite of, not for or because.

All those parked airplanes right now aren't parked altruistically. Think about it. Think really hard about it.

Good for you hating WGA. All of the aircraft are parked because WGA isn't a billion dollar company that can buy parts or have a parts inventory that is worthy of FedEx or UPS standards. In fact UPS bought all of Lufthansa's MD11 parts after they stopped the use of their MDs. WGA has a parts problem that is micro managed by Neff who sucks at paying bills. He has to loan many parts and it's at the point where certain companies cut him off. So aircraft sit and wait. Also as you mentioned many people are jumping ship. WGA lost close to 50 mechanics in 2021. Neff screwed them over countless times along with upper management abuse. FedEx farmed many of those top mechanics and even created an AOG team strictly out of former WGA mechanics due to their experience working with garbage. All WGA can be is a stepping stone to go elsewhere. For the long timers maybe its comfort and maybe they enjoy living in FL. I dunno. I know that there are people here wanting to get into wide bodies. WGA will get you some experience for that if you can put up with the BS.
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Old 02-25-2022, 05:13 PM
  #452  
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Originally Posted by Ihatepilots2 View Post
Good for you hating WGA.
I don't hate WGA. I've made that clear. You are incorrect.

Originally Posted by Ihatepilots2 View Post
All of the aircraft are parked because WGA isn't a billion dollar company that can buy parts or have a parts inventory that is worthy of FedEx or UPS standards.
All of WGA aircraft are not parked.

N411SN: On the ground Shreveport (mx base), been there since Oct 15 (4 months)
N412SN: On ground Anchorage, (3 days)
N415JN: On the ground Chicago, arrived today
N512JN: On the ground Incheon, arrived today
N513SN: On the ground Taipei (heavy check), been there since Jan 03 (1.5 months)
N542KD: In flight, enroute to Incheon
N543JN: On the ground Shreveport (mx base), been there since Feb 13 (2 weeks)
N545JN: On the ground Anchorage, (2 days)
N546JN: On the ground Shreveport (mx base), been there since Dec 31 (2 months)
N581JN: On the ground Los Angeles, arrived today
N781SN: In flight, enroute to Anchorage
N799JN: On the ground, RSW, been there since Feb 03 (3 weeks)

Of the MD-11's, 7 aren't moving, including heavy checks and other apparent extended maintenance. That may equate to broken airplanes, or airplanes parked due to lack of work, lack of crew, or whatever the case may be. See flightradar24.

WGA liked to make a point of telling it's own employees that it had a very large parts inventory, it's own engine shop and performed its own overhauls, and a large supply of engines; new hire classes were told that WGA owned Lufthansa's airplanes, engines, and parts, and leased them back to Lufthansa. Not true. WGA liked to brag internally that it was the most profitable airline in the world and the fastest growing. The fastest growing was always a ridiculous assertion, but so far as profitability, what Neff was hauling in during Covid was mind boggling for a company with owned aircraft. WGA's problem is that frequently they've not had a tire available; a single tire, claiming that none were available, while Fedex managed to have rows of them on the ramp. I'm aware of a particular case in which WGA borrowed a tire in Honolulu, from Fedex, and the airplane had barely come to a rest in Memphis before FedEx removed the tire and took it back. FedEx has learned about loaning parts. One of WGA's airplanes has been flying for quite some time with a UPS radome, still in UPS brown, which was a loaner, and never got returned. Perhaps WGA bought it.It looks silly. WGA claimed to have bought Lufthansa's MD-11's and parts; I believe UPS got most of them at the end.

Originally Posted by Ihatepilots2 View Post
WGA lost close to 50 mechanics in 2021.
FedEx poached quite a few mechanics right off the ramp while they were working for WGA, at Memphis. Who could blame them? WGA was actually bringing mechanics on board fresh out of A&P school, with no experience. I spent some time with one of them. He had no idea which way was up, and before he'd even seen a familiarization course, he was being told to sign things off. WGA was also using contract mx, with varying degrees of success.

Originally Posted by Ihatepilots2 View Post
All WGA can be is a stepping stone to go elsewhere. For the long timers maybe its comfort and maybe they enjoy living in FL. I dunno. I know that there are people here wanting to get into wide bodies. WGA will get you some experience for that if you can put up with the BS.
When you say there are people "here wanting to get into wide bodies," do you mean this web board, or at WGA? Everything at WGA is widebody. WGA has been known to take some very low experience pilots. WGA has also experienced an unusually high failure rate for upgrades, for some of those inexperienced pilots attempting their first captain experience. They have been known to offer the chance...not everyone who jumps at it has been ready.

WGA is home-based, and many of their crew do not live in Florida.

Given the recent pay raises, the jump forward is substantial; with the previous 10% pay raise, it equated to a three-year jump in pay. Add a 20% pay raise on top. of that (25% for F/O, I hear), and it's a significant change from where it was.

A unique aspect of WGA's maintenance has been the use of foreign mechanics. The best of their maintenance is done by those outside the US, and those mechanics have been denied the benefits and considerations that US mechanics may have been accorded. It was a very poor way to be cheap, on Neff's part, but he's long attempted to run a global airline with one scheduler on duty, and a skeleton staff. With the freakishly poor level of maintenance that's come out of Shreveport, the foreign mechanics (who live all over the world and were Europe-based, now it seems more in Incheon and other spots) may have been the most critical talent that Neff has working for him, and also one of the most abused. He'd have done well to invest more in those mechanics long ago.

WGA could absolutely be a good place to go: the issues that have been discussed here and that are well known among those who do work there, are fixable. All of them. Some of them, such as wages, are seeing an improvement, probably a shot in the dark to stop the hemorrhaging of crew to other carriers, and perhaps a preemptive effort in advance of negotiations. Who knows? As I stated before, I hope WGA is able to correct the issues which have plagued them. Many of these issues are not accidental; every maintenance discrepancy in the fleet is discussed daily; every can that gets kicked down the road is a conscious decision, not an oversight. If WGA parked airplanes for lack of parts until the necessary parts were available to operate, that might be a plus, but WGA pushes airplanes to keep moving anyway; they don't stop until they can't move.

Neff has 777's coming. In my opinion, which counts for nothing, Neff would be wise to bring on more 747-400's. If either one is maintained the same as the MD-11, they don't have a bright future. If the maintenance picks up and things get fixed and preventative maintenance gets done proactively, airplanes will keep moving, and they won't have to try to operate with 70% or more of the fleet parked at any given time. Grounded airplanes don't make money. It's false economy to keep pushing airplanes, instead of keeping them maintained and working. Neff doesn't seem to get that concept, and it's not simply a lack of parts. The parts are out there. I had a discussion on a ramp with a WGA mechanic regarding a missing hartwell latch. The mechanic told me the company wouldn't order any more, because they were too expensive. He said they were 400 dollars each. That is entirely untrue, but it's what he'd been told. That kind of thinking is what holds them back. It's the old adage of being too busy sawing to take time to sharpen the saw. Sharpen it, keep it sharp, productivity increases, profits go up. It takes money to make money, as we all know, and Neff is going to have to pry open the purse strings to keep the airplanes maintained, to keep them moving.

They're not all grounded. But a lot are. It doesn't need to be that way.
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Old 02-25-2022, 06:51 PM
  #453  
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Originally Posted by JohnBurke View Post
I don't hate WGA. I've made that clear. You are incorrect.



All of WGA aircraft are not parked.

N411SN: On the ground Shreveport (mx base), been there since Oct 15 (4 months)
N412SN: On ground Anchorage, (3 days)
N415JN: On the ground Chicago, arrived today
N512JN: On the ground Incheon, arrived today
N513SN: On the ground Taipei (heavy check), been there since Jan 03 (1.5 months)
N542KD: In flight, enroute to Incheon
N543JN: On the ground Shreveport (mx base), been there since Feb 13 (2 weeks)
N545JN: On the ground Anchorage, (2 days)
N546JN: On the ground Shreveport (mx base), been there since Dec 31 (2 months)
N581JN: On the ground Los Angeles, arrived today
N781SN: In flight, enroute to Anchorage
N799JN: On the ground, RSW, been there since Feb 03 (3 weeks)

Of the MD-11's, 7 aren't moving, including heavy checks and other apparent extended maintenance. That may equate to broken airplanes, or airplanes parked due to lack of work, lack of crew, or whatever the case may be. See flightradar24.

WGA liked to make a point of telling it's own employees that it had a very large parts inventory, it's own engine shop and performed its own overhauls, and a large supply of engines; new hire classes were told that WGA owned Lufthansa's airplanes, engines, and parts, and leased them back to Lufthansa. Not true. WGA liked to brag internally that it was the most profitable airline in the world and the fastest growing. The fastest growing was always a ridiculous assertion, but so far as profitability, what Neff was hauling in during Covid was mind boggling for a company with owned aircraft. WGA's problem is that frequently they've not had a tire available; a single tire, claiming that none were available, while Fedex managed to have rows of them on the ramp. I'm aware of a particular case in which WGA borrowed a tire in Honolulu, from Fedex, and the airplane had barely come to a rest in Memphis before FedEx removed the tire and took it back. FedEx has learned about loaning parts. One of WGA's airplanes has been flying for quite some time with a UPS radome, still in UPS brown, which was a loaner, and never got returned. Perhaps WGA bought it.It looks silly. WGA claimed to have bought Lufthansa's MD-11's and parts; I believe UPS got most of them at the end.


FedEx poached quite a few mechanics right off the ramp while they were working for WGA, at Memphis. Who could blame them? WGA was actually bringing mechanics on board fresh out of A&P school, with no experience. I spent some time with one of them. He had no idea which way was up, and before he'd even seen a familiarization course, he was being told to sign things off. WGA was also using contract mx, with varying degrees of success.



When you say there are people "here wanting to get into wide bodies," do you mean this web board, or at WGA? Everything at WGA is widebody. WGA has been known to take some very low experience pilots. WGA has also experienced an unusually high failure rate for upgrades, for some of those inexperienced pilots attempting their first captain experience. They have been known to offer the chance...not everyone who jumps at it has been ready.

WGA is home-based, and many of their crew do not live in Florida.

Given the recent pay raises, the jump forward is substantial; with the previous 10% pay raise, it equated to a three-year jump in pay. Add a 20% pay raise on top. of that (25% for F/O, I hear), and it's a significant change from where it was.

A unique aspect of WGA's maintenance has been the use of foreign mechanics. The best of their maintenance is done by those outside the US, and those mechanics have been denied the benefits and considerations that US mechanics may have been accorded. It was a very poor way to be cheap, on Neff's part, but he's long attempted to run a global airline with one scheduler on duty, and a skeleton staff. With the freakishly poor level of maintenance that's come out of Shreveport, the foreign mechanics (who live all over the world and were Europe-based, now it seems more in Incheon and other spots) may have been the most critical talent that Neff has working for him, and also one of the most abused. He'd have done well to invest more in those mechanics long ago.

WGA could absolutely be a good place to go: the issues that have been discussed here and that are well known among those who do work there, are fixable. All of them. Some of them, such as wages, are seeing an improvement, probably a shot in the dark to stop the hemorrhaging of crew to other carriers, and perhaps a preemptive effort in advance of negotiations. Who knows? As I stated before, I hope WGA is able to correct the issues which have plagued them. Many of these issues are not accidental; every maintenance discrepancy in the fleet is discussed daily; every can that gets kicked down the road is a conscious decision, not an oversight. If WGA parked airplanes for lack of parts until the necessary parts were available to operate, that might be a plus, but WGA pushes airplanes to keep moving anyway; they don't stop until they can't move.

Neff has 777's coming. In my opinion, which counts for nothing, Neff would be wise to bring on more 747-400's. If either one is maintained the same as the MD-11, they don't have a bright future. If the maintenance picks up and things get fixed and preventative maintenance gets done proactively, airplanes will keep moving, and they won't have to try to operate with 70% or more of the fleet parked at any given time. Grounded airplanes don't make money. It's false economy to keep pushing airplanes, instead of keeping them maintained and working. Neff doesn't seem to get that concept, and it's not simply a lack of parts. The parts are out there. I had a discussion on a ramp with a WGA mechanic regarding a missing hartwell latch. The mechanic told me the company wouldn't order any more, because they were too expensive. He said they were 400 dollars each. That is entirely untrue, but it's what he'd been told. That kind of thinking is what holds them back. It's the old adage of being too busy sawing to take time to sharpen the saw. Sharpen it, keep it sharp, productivity increases, profits go up. It takes money to make money, as we all know, and Neff is going to have to pry open the purse strings to keep the airplanes maintained, to keep them moving.

They're not all grounded. But a lot are. It doesn't need to be that way.
All of that is how Jim operated SouthernAir. He will never get the 777s & ETOPS on the certificate unless there is a huge change in how the company operates. That is just not in his nature. Perhaps he is setting up the company to be sold prior to the 777s arriving?
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Old 02-26-2022, 08:18 AM
  #454  
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Originally Posted by Birdsmash View Post
Perhaps he is setting up the company to be sold prior to the 777s arriving?
There's a lot of speculation...but who would buy it?
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Old 02-26-2022, 11:59 AM
  #455  
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Originally Posted by JohnBurke View Post
There's a lot of speculation...but who would buy it?
Oak Hill Capital for $440 million….oh wait! They already fell for that.
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Old 03-05-2022, 03:35 PM
  #456  
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Default Class date March 28th for 747

Hello all, I have a class date with WGA in the 74. Could someone please PM with any info about good study material before I show? I really appreciate it. I’m looking forward to flying with everyone at WGA.
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Old 03-06-2022, 02:08 AM
  #457  
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Originally Posted by HELOWING View Post
Hello all, I have a class date with WGA in the 74. Could someone please PM with any info about good study material before I show? I really appreciate it. I’m looking forward to flying with everyone at WGA.
Sorry, I have nothing to share as far as studying material.
Would you might, though, sharing the time frame from when you applied through CJO? I'm very curious as I applied Friday.
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Old 03-06-2022, 06:08 AM
  #458  
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Originally Posted by bajthejino View Post
Sorry, I have nothing to share as far as studying material.
Would you might, though, sharing the time frame from when you applied through CJO? I'm very curious as I applied Friday.
Sure- I applied about a month ago. Recruiter contacted me last Wednesday, Zoom interview was this past Friday. Offer same day an hour later. It was really quick.
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Old 03-06-2022, 07:13 AM
  #459  
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Originally Posted by HELOWING View Post
Sure- I applied about a month ago. Recruiter contacted me last Wednesday, Zoom interview was this past Friday. Offer same day an hour later. It was really quick.
Wow, that was quick. Did they have multiple class dates to choose from or just the one to say yes or no to?
And thanks for sharing.
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Old 03-06-2022, 08:12 AM
  #460  
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Originally Posted by bajthejino View Post
Wow, that was quick. Did they have multiple class dates to choose from or just the one to say yes or no to?
And thanks for sharing.
i just sent you a PM
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