ChinsFive

You must have missed the part why SKYW said they wouldn't buy ExpressJet unless the pilots modified their contract. All indications show that the BOD wanted to sell based on the fact that XJT ALPA and SKYW management were negotiating on changes to the contract.

Basically if the BOD did sell before SKYW got the pilots to change the contract they would have to abide by it - and that would mean one list... Obviously the SKYW dosen't want this and it's the pilots to get rid of. So the sharholders may want to sell, but SKYW dosen't want to buy - soley because of what the pilot group wants.

ToiletDuck

SKYW isn't the only player in the market. SKYW wants to buy. Continental wants XJT to be bought. The shareholders want XJT to be bought. One way or another money will talk and someone will pick up the tab. Don't feel that it's SKYW and SKYW only in the ring. XJT is still a money making company once the branded is cut. There is no way other parties aren't interested in that. I'll venture to say even non-aviation related investment groups. I'll also say Jim Ream's days are numbered. Again my opinion, but he's done a horrible job as far as running a company goes. His employees may love him but his investors don't and they're the ones that count. They don't like how he's managed the company and relations in regards to CAL. Many of them see a sellout as the best possible means to get any sort of return on their stock values.

Take a look here: http://sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1...250exv99w2.htm They are very accurate. Some things they've wanted done haven't been done. It's also known that RAH has looked at XJT as well. I don't expect them to move in that direction but Bedford has made his surprises and things have been quiet here lately. Which means something's brewing. Someone out there will pick up the XJT tab and when they do they'll slice the fat right off the company which will include a chunk of the pilot group and selling what assets the company does have turning it into a more efficient machine.

Bond

Well, you're entitled to your opinion, and that's all it is. Some of us who actually live through this day in and day out can give you the facts.

1. The company can sell at any time with out the pilot's concent. However, there are strings attatched, and that's what killed the skywest deal. Those strings were very wisely put in place to protect our jobs...and it worked, skywest wanted to come in and get rid of 700 people...no thanks.

2. Jim Ream has done an excellent job. You my friend are of the school of thought that stockholders should always come first. Well, Herb, Bethune, and Ream always believed that if you take care of your employees, your employees take care of your customers, your customers take care of your stockholders, a very simple principle that has been forgotten and pushed aside by the bean counters. He saved our jobs upon the release of the 69 aircraft, successfully launched three ventures (two which are generating a consistent cash flow), and never asked the employee groups for concessions. Branded is still in it's infancy, and we all know that even with fuel hedged, in this economy everyone is struggling. The solution, as he already mentioned in his last address to the masses, trim branded, reallocate the assets to the profitable revenue streams.

Oh and by the way the BOD just voted him in for another term. The diffenrence between Ream and other CEO's is that he actually cares about his employees and has demonstrated it through out the last decade.

So, have your opinions, but leave the facts to those who have worked for this company for years. How are those 70 seaters Larry promised coming along????

G-Dog

Speaking of facts, since you are full of them, when was someone promised 70 seaters for CAL?

ExperimentalAB

Nobody in their right mind would sign a contract with the "promise" of an entire Pilot group voting down scope, after having seen how well doing so has worked out for their Peers at United, Airways, and to a lesser extent American...70-seaters at CAL, unless it's on paper, is a silly reason to sign on the dotted-line.

Bond

Why don't you ask the Reverend? Isn't that what he advertised to you guys as the reason for launching an expensive venture envolving a new fleet type? Don't be naive, both LK and BB were counting on scope relieve from CAL, two years into the mix, the CRJ's are going away, and there's no scope relieve in sight.

You tell me, I'd be more than happy to list all the threads where RAH's guys quoted the Reverend as saying that the CAL 70 seaters were coming.

ChinsFive

I agree with pretty much everything you say, and I don't love Ream - I've been bashing him for 2 years, often to weird looks in the crew room.

What I am trying to explain to you though, is that if a holding company that owns any other airline buys us they will be forced to combine the senority lists (unless XJT pilots vote this out of their contract).

So if RAH or Mesa or SKYW or whoever buys us and then wants to furlough they'd have to furlough off of the arbitrated list. In fact if we were bought by a company like AMR or Alaska Air Group that has a wholy owned regional they would be forced to combine lists with every airline owned by the holding company.

It's iron-clad and it's the reason SKYW wanted it totally removed from our contract.

ToiletDuck

I never said there were no strings attached with the XJT pilots. I said there are still interested parties out there that will pick up the company. Yes a company is owned by it's shareholders and therefore is responsible to them. Not to the employees. Jim Ream has seen nothing but a constant decline in market value. A constant decline. Nothing he has done to this point has increased the companies value. He's butted heads with the hand that feeds him. He admits it and shareholders everywhere have stated their concern. Like I said his employees like him but that doesn't matter in the money world. He's not producing and there's only been a constant decline in the company he runs while other regionals have grown hand over fist during that time. When compared to others in a pure numbers sense he hasn't done the job which is why on the of the largest shareholders in the company, as shown above, had to point these issues out to him. These are the only facts. I don't know what you'd be referring to. SKYW and XJT have not come to agreement. They haven't abandoned talks and there's nothing saying anything against what I've said earlier. I'm not trying to toot my horn here this is just an honest opinion.

dontsurf

wow, talk about drinking kool-aid

tpersuit

Toilet you really need to watch what you have been saying. What ever happened to your 1.5 year upgrades you were praising? What happened to your stock? What is happening to your CAL flying, Frontier flying and possible American flying? Don't you find it a little odd CAL is reducing you guys and going to SKYW? Talk about who is playing who here.

Wake up and stop throwing stones from a glass house.