Eventually you have to ask, what is Delta's core business? What is ALPA's core business?

• Our Association's President negotiated contract that just transferred at least 100 jobs to Teamsters.
• Delta Air Lines outsources as much passenger lift as possible. In every area, Delta management has chosen to outsource nearly to the limit permitted under contract. Yet, we provide our TOC as a service to other airlines, as we do our reservations systems. What is it we do?
• Alaska Air Lines is in the process of turning on the spigot to SkyWest. If I am not mistaken, 50% of that capacity in large RJ's are Delta seats.

Frankly both ALPA and management NEED to be hammered on this topic. I list ALPA first because they have an affirmative duty to protect jobs. Delta, listed secondly, because I'm tired of hearing happy talk about "insourcing" when in fact, we aren't. Sure we pulled down Comair which made some folks happy, but Comair is a Delta subsidiary and as far as our bottom line is concerned, a Delta flying operation.

Captain O'Malley, what is our core business?
Mr. Anderson, what is our core business?

Now what really bugs me ... Delta signs these capacity agreements which locks Delta in for flying services. These contracts leave Delta less able to adjust its own capacity. When the need for adjustments come, during a down turn, our own DC9's and MD88's become the accumulator in the system. Our junior pilots become the only source of capacity reduction which Delta has immediate (90 day) flexibility to park.

Meanwhile the flying we don't do continues and grows, through 9/11, SARS, and other factors beyond our control. In case anyone missed the news, the Middle East is boiling over again, meanwhile we lock into a contract for flying services not performed by our pilots.

Under contract, the expendable pilot, is me.

 

Absolutely. If you want to feel ill, read on.

Via another forum this is apparently an updated list of cities served just by the EMB-175. Not to mention all of the other planes like CR2, CR7, CR9, Saab...

It's basically all of the former -9 and little bus routes. Granted many of these still have lots of other aircraft flying them besides the -175 but it just goes to show the extent of the outsourcing.

MSP-YVR, YYC, YXE, GTF, BZN, BIL, SAT, IAH, DFW, OMA, FSD, MOT, FAR, GFK, MCI, STL, MSN, GRB, MKE, ORD, MDW, SDF, BHM, JAX, CLT, RDU, RIC, ORF, IAD, DCA, BWI, PHL, EWR, LGA, BDL, PVD

DTW-YYZ, SAT, DFW, MCI, STL, MKE, ORD, IND, GRR, CMH, SDF, MYR, DCA, BDL

LGA-OMA, MSP, MCI, ORD, IND, CMH, RSW, TPA, DCA

DCA-MSP, DTW, MIA, TPA, MCO, LGA

ATL-YYZ, GRR, SDF

RDU-MSP, IND

 

Because every couple years Republic uses Delta's money to pull USAir out of Ch 11?

I may be simplifying their involvement somewhat, but that's the general relationship.

 

Which happens to be a Delta asset. Cheer if you want, but management is just outsourcing flying to a cheaper, non ALPA, entity with newer, bigger and better airplanes.

The great news it that when fuel goes above about $85 a barrel the replacement jets cross over into lower CASM than MD88's and DC9's cost as much on a seat mile basis as door to door service in a Lamborghini driven by Justin Timberlake (not really, but close).

 

Believe me, the noise you hear in CVG tomorrow will not be cheering.

It will be the collective moan of a thousand ALPA pilots that just took another Delta kick to the jimmies.

 

That, or the fact a deal was in the works to outsource more of our jobs.

The interviews for Delta flying will be held at Republic.

 

Exactly. Not only that though, but the mid range and most of the senior pilots also inherit the downward effects of this, and every pilot feels the effects of such a massive portion of our flights, block hours and pilot positions being shopped to the lowest bidder.

Some of the code share/JV stuff at the top end sould be doe by us, but some of it (like intra-France or Russia, etc) is a net positive resulting in feed and all that. But 100% of the bottom end = our jobs lost. 100%, every time, and it negatively effects every part of the list and its a swampy foundation to try and build a "restoration" contract on if we don't fix it.

 

The steelers rode to Dallas on the mighty A-321 (USAir). The Pack of course rode on one of our A330-300's

 

Not complaining here... very happy to be improving my commute by a wide margin, but why is the company back-filling ATL767B when it's as overmanned as it appears to be? I was very surprised to get the award. I guess I'm set up well for a MD/VD next round. I know... bid what you want, want what you bid.

 

That is all.