Airline Pilot Central Forums - Any "Latest & Greatest" about Delta?

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- - Any "Latest & Greatest" about Delta? (https://www.airlinepilotforums.com/delta/36912-any-latest-greatest-about-delta.html)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Carl Spackler (Post 750856)

I'm surprised that you are not aware of the tactics available to manipulate earnings. Tactics that are completely within GAAP and Sarbanes Oxley.

Carl

Carl,

Yes and No. Like most conspiracy theories there is just enough truth to let people with active imaginations connect the dots in a way that leads to an incorrect conclusion.

Slowplay is right, on the money. Further, after the battle of bankruptcy, you've got seasoned veterans keeping an eye on the financial performance of the Company and a Pilot Director.

I wish the news was better, so do you and the Company.

Quote:

Originally Posted by newKnow (Post 750803)

A lot of them just lost 2000 plus hours in their sick bank though.

I was one of them.

Carl

I can't believe there are pilots worried about other pilots abusing sick leave. Sick leave is not an insurance policy. It's bad enough that we have management scrutinizing us; now we have to worry about our fellow pilots. We're in trouble next contract. I was hoping for huge raises. I figured we'd settle for about 20 percent raises, but now I'm thinking we'll be lucky to maintain status quo.

Quote:

Originally Posted by forgot to bid (Post 750607)

*We don't cheer for USC players in the FTB house.

+1 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Nor do we in BigdaddieTown

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cogf16 (Post 750842)

You make a good point. I admit I have flown when I have had a cold but it wasn't really due to the nature of the policy, but I can see where many guys do. I agree that our new sick leave policy could drive guys to fly sick. It stinks and we need a better system. However, I still can't condone rampant abuse of sick leave for commuting. Not naive or idealistic!

Kumbaya. I think you and I agree on this issue more than you might realize. I don't.. nor do I condone sickin' out because of a commute. I can understand why some guys do it, but that is their conscious that they have to deal with. So.. maybe BOTH sick leave, AND commuting policies need improvement. what a concept. As this thread within a thread has evolved, I have noticed guys talking about sick outs because of rotations/layovers. That is an area that IMO needs addressing too. If DAL paid some sort of override to go to places like LOS or (I am seeing Manaus as another garden spot), you might see "abused" sick leave reduced. With the 767 going to an all -ER category in the not too distant future (My conjecture, no inside information); we are going to be seeing more and more pilots being sent to places that in a former category they had no possibility of seeing before. How can we handle the situation where the job becomes 'dangerous' enough to exceed some peoples' limits? I know there will always be the "Well you don't have to fly in that category" crowd, but that is sidestepping the issue. I think putting DAL crews in harm's way (be it terrorists or mosquitos) should be compensated, because you cannot always protect people in those situations. Like paying overtime pay for holidays, somehow the increase in money always seems to find takers. (I am personally amazed that there is such a difference in 1.5x vs 2.0x for greenslips)

Quote:

Originally Posted by hockeypilot44 (Post 750861)

Here's what I find interesting (not from the Kool-Aid drinkers, but from the regular fDAL guys):

Remember when USAir wanted to buy Delta? Management was sure scared because they would lose their jobs. DALPA was scared for a number of reasons. It was one of those moments where the desires of management and labor coincinded albeit for totally different reasons. Lee Moak was quoted as saying that DALPA was able to convince Wall Street bankers who be financing the deal, that it would be really hard to run an airline with angry pilots. What do you think he meant by that?

Some guys on here think it meant everything except a pilot calling in sick when he/she decided they were sick. ;)

Carl

Speaking of sick......

We are required to get a yellow fever vaccine????? :confused: :confused:

Comments to DAL Investors

New paint and interiors ... no new capital expenditures on state of the art equipment. ...

Press Release Source: Delta Air Lines On Monday January 25, 2010, 11:24 am
ATLANTA,Jan. 25 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) will invest $1 billion, or about $300 million per year, through mid-2013 to improve the customer experience in the air and on the ground. The capital investment will improve the consistency and level of service provided to Delta's BusinessElite, First Class and elite-level flyers, as well as increasing the efficiency of the airline's fleet. Planned enhancements include:

Installing full flat-bed seats in BusinessElite on 90 trans-oceanic aircraft, including 14 Boeing 767-400ERs, 52 Boeing 767-300ERs, 16 Boeing 747-400s and eight Boeing 777-200ERs. Upon completion, each of these fleets will have full flat bed seats on all aircraft.
Adding in-seat audio and video on demand throughout Economy Class on 16 Boeing 747-400 and 52 Boeing 767-300ER aircraft. With these additions, Delta will offer personal, in-seat entertainment for both BusinessElite and Economy class customers on all wide-body aircraft.
Adding First Class cabins to 66 CRJ-700 aircraft operated by Delta Connection carriers ASA, Comair and SkyWest, bringing to 219 the number of regional aircraft with First Class seating. (rather see SkyWest spend part of their pile of cash on their airplanes - ed)
Completing the modification of 269 pre-merger Northwest aircraft to feature Delta's signature blue leather seats, updated lighting and enhanced cabin amenities such as increased overhead bin space on pre-merger Northwest 757-200s.
Installing winglets on more than 170 Boeing 767-300ER, 757-200 and 737-800 aircraft to extend aircraft range and improve fuel efficiency by as much as five percent.
Renovating and expanding Delta's Los Angeles Sky Club lounge, and introducing new Sky Club locations in Seattle, Philadelphia and Indianapolis.

"Delta's planned fleet and product investments mark the most significant investment we have made in our customers in more than a decade," said Delta CEO Richard Anderson. "Our premium travelers tell us that the comfort of a flat bed seat with direct aisle access, a first class experience on regional jets and in-flight entertainment are important factors in their choice of carrier."

"This investment will be made while staying well within the level of our historical capital expenditures," said Ed Bastian, Delta's president. "Rather than invest in new aircraft, Delta will be spending its capital to improve the quality and consistency of the on-board product and efficiency of the aircraft we already own."

Quote:

Originally Posted by hockeypilot44 (Post 750861)

A big +1 here! You should all be ashamed of yourselves for calling your fellow pilots "thieves.". WE ARE ON THE SAME SIDE. Management will steal from you at the earliest opportunity. I agree that our recently cooperative relationship with management is refreshing, but beware when our interests diverge to any significant degree (2012!!!!!!)

Remember who your friends are. I can't believe the level of management posturing I've been reading over the last few pages re: the sick policy. I don't think that anyone is advocating emptying their "insurance policy" every year, though I'm sure a very small minority will. I am fine with leaving usage up to the individual pilot to know when he/she should call in sick. We are largely responsible team players, as a group, but at the same time need to remember which team we're on.

Quote:

Originally Posted by newKnow (Post 750803)

DISCLAIMER FOR THE POWERS THAT BE: I have never called in sick when I wasn't.

Herc & Slow,

Doesn't your exampe only work if the company is having to actually have to "pay" claims out? I think you guys are gonna have to explain to me how the company is losing money when a pilot calls in sick if he is on a fleet that has a ton of reserves that will cover his flying? They were going to be paid 70 or 75 hours anyway, right? Doesn't it all depend on IF the company has to change their staffing formula at a later date based on their historical data?

Also, if this discussion began because you think Carl said that the post bankruptcy contract gains were accomplished because of sick calls costing the company too much money and those guys who called in sick were "thieves," I think you should consider one thing: NWA management had just scored a HUGE gain in being able to force all pilots to fly 88-89 hours per month. Excuse me, I should have made FORCE bold and underlined it. I have no facts or figures, but IMO I would guess that the gain realized by being able to put an extra 20 hours on each pilots line far exceeded the loss of a few guys calling in sick. And slow, while I'm not informed on how your 1113 negotiations went, shouldn't management be required to show the gains they have made that might have contributed to the increased sick call usage? Is it not fair that they get to claim the bad and hide the good?

I will say though, that the New Delta contract in many ways is better than what we had at NWA. Being able to drop trips and other things are perks we didn't have. So, maybe some DAL-N guys will take advantage of those things, instead of calling in sick. A lot of them just lost 2000 plus hours in their sick bank though. So, those guys might be a little sour to the idea of not calling in sick. Who knows? This merger is a process and the two groups and their way of doing things will not be melded together overnight. But I think that we should at least try to understand each other.

From my perspective, I think there are too many labels being thrown around and I think it's counter productive. Everything is not black and white and we shouldn't try to make it that way. The more "captains discretions" we have in the K, the better.

New K Now

Excellent Post!

The issue is NOT black and white as some on here seem to think. Take two theoretical pilots over a five-year period. Pilot A takes care of himself, stays fit, eats well, and for whatever reason (luck, hit the genetic lottery,whatever) has not been sick in five years. Pilot B on the other hand doesn't really take care of himself, isn't fit, eats junk, and gets sick all the time.

Pilot A has called in sick once in the last five years. His sickness was questionable. It looks like he just got caught with his pants down.

Pilot B has called in sick an average of three times a year for the last five years for a total of fifteen sick calls... Poor guy.

I see some of the posters on this forum saying that pilot A is stealing from them and the company. Our sick usage is high and it is because our own pilots are stealing it.

The fact is our profession is different from most in regards to sick leave. We need a liberal sick leave policy. We don't need incentives for sick pilots to come to work. As everyone here knows, a head cold in our line of work is different than other professions.

It is up to us as individuals to make the call if we are fit for work or not. If our sick policy costs negotiating capital, so be it. It all comes out in the wash. This issue is not black and white.