Furloughes at American
 

Had a few of my friends that were recently recalled saying the possibility of furloughes at American to be decided within the next 4-6 weeks.

Anyone to confirm or deny this ??

Hopefully, this was just a rumor that grew legs, and has not substance to it.

FF

Hopefully its not true. But if it is... they would be furloughing the same guys who just came back to class in the last few months after being on a long furlough.

Very true statement U-Akro. I was offered recall a few months ago at American after being furloughed since July 2003.

Flifast

I would assume that after reducing their schedule by 11-12% that furloughs would be a probability.

Hope not.

Man I sure hope not. We have an instuctor that is 2cd from the bottom and patiently waiting his recall. I can't imagine how depressing getting furloughed before getting recalled would be.:(

As American retires md-80's and takes delivery of 737's there is bound to be a training bubble, which should keep most people on the property, at least for a while.

737 is supposed to replace gas guzzling MD80s... that seemed like a good choice with last years fuel prices. Not sure if the 737 can hang with todays fuel prices and some of the new fuel efficient jets on the drawing boards.

If they did furlough again, by the time they actually hire off the street the youngest person on property is going to be in their 40's.(speculative guess)

heck, the new hires that will fill the first class at AA havent been born yet!

The actual American draw down (non eagle) is roughly 6%.

Here is a letter from one of our ORD chairs.

Fellow Chicago Pilots,

I am sure by now you have heard or read about American Airlines' response to the record high oil price and the unstable U.S. airline industry. As was announced on Wednesday, AMR is reducing domestic capacity by 11 percent at both American Airlines and American Eagle, and is looking at increasing international flying.

A quick overview of AMR’s announcement:

--Delivery of 70 737-800s in the next 30 months

--34 in 2009

--36 in 2010

--Up to 42 MD-80s parked. These aircraft were scheduled for replacement in 2009

--At least 3 Airbus parked and possibly more going forward

--35 to 40 RJ and turboprops parked


The parking of these aircraft will equate to 6 percent of the domestic capacity. Management also said that this could result in employee reductions and facility closures. By mid-June, management will solidify the number of employee reductions, facility closures and schedule adjustments.

So what does this mean to the Chicago pilots?

American is short some 200 pilots going into the summer season, and the plan is to make it work short-staffed through the summer. And as we start a “training bubble” with the arrival of more 737s and unknown pilot retirements, going forward it is unlikely American will furlough any pilots.

American is looking into reducing city pairs that are unprofitable and unfortunately, ORD has many city pairs that are unprofitable. It does appear that ORD will have a greater percentage of city pairs that will be cut. How this will affect the number of jobs at ORD on the MD-80 going forward is unknown at this time.

Right now, the plan is to reintroduce the 737 to ORD sometime in 2009, and with the announcement of the possibility of more international flights, my hope is that ORD base will remain the same size or possibly increase.

So where do we go from here?

As pilots, we have no control over of the current economic conditions, U.S. foreign policy, lack of a U.S. energy policy, AMR’s lack of a fuel hedge, inefficient aircraft, airline reliability and an economically unstable airline industry.

What we do have control over is making sure that we continue to do what the pilots at American Airlines do best -- taking care of the crew and passengers and safely and comfortable flying them from Point A to Point B.

As a union, we have control over our preparation for the certainty of the uncertainty of this industry. APA has retained Miller Buckfire, a highly creditable merger and acquisition firm (which, coincidently, AMR looked at retaining back in 2002). In addition, APA has created a trust to pay the legal fees incurred in merging seniority lists, if AMR were to merge in the future. Preparation is vital to assure that the pilots of American Airlines do not get put into a position in which we have to make rushed decisions. The APA leadership has prepared and will continue to prepare for the industry volatility.

Mr. Arpey stated this past Wednesday he believes in paying top dollar for top talent. We at APA believe that concept also holds true for the pilots of American Airlines and are committed to restoring our profession.

Enjoy this Memorial Day weekend with family and friends, for those who have to work and be away from your family, I thank you.

Fly Safe and take care of one another!

Could make getting in at the begining of street hiring very lucrative seniority-wise for someone in their 20's when that date rolls around. They could be top dog for 10-15 years. Thats all a moot point right now though.

Good luck AA folks.

Thanks Flyer for the info.

One more question, we see/heard/read the MD, opps, Super-80 is being parked because it is a gas guzzler and possibly because it is near the end of it's useful life and the recent FAA debacle with the wiring harnesses.

Here's my question, asked in kind of an oblique fashion:

The MD80 burns about 6,000 lbs in cruise vs just over 5000 for the 737, and holds a few less bodies. The MD80 has a hard time getting above 33,000 feet unless near empty, and 37,000 feet is a rarety, thus higher fuel flows. I see the argument that way, but my question is, how cheap are they to operate otherwise (maint/insurance/landing fees/lease fees) vs the 737.

Just curious if the extra 1,000 lbs per hour at cruise is offset by other factors...thanks in advance.

FF

Greetings FF,

I am headed out for the night, however I too was curious about the questioned you mentioned. Give me a day to find the answer, I have seen it explained. Over a certain $ amount in the cost of oil, the 737 becomes a bargain.


AAflyer

I remember from my 80 days the burn being a little higher, and yes, less people, and less cargo.

While the 1000-1300 lbs per hour seems marginal, imagine that at 9-11 hours a day over a fleet of 270+...

Yikes!

Can you name one aircraft on the drawing board in the 150 to 170 seat range that will be available in the next 10 years that is more fuel efficient then the 737-800? Boeing themselves just said they don't have the technology to build a jet with the 20% increase in efficiency they say they need to launch a new aircraft and have put off a replacement until at least 2018 and more likely the early 20's. Airbus has made the same choice.

FF,

Can't seem to find the specific numbers, just the general statement that we have "reached the tipping point". Our leases on the 80 are very low or outright owned, which allows us to park them with little cost.

The savings in fuel, initially alone makes up the difference. If you take one S80 and average 10 hours of flying a day for the month at a fuel rate of $2.90 a gallon, the 737 will save roughly $160,000 a month, which almost absorbs the cost of the higher lease difference.

When you add the ability to put more people and cargo on, with long term fleet streamlining for crews and maintenance it makes a lot of sense.

Regards,
AAflyer

P.S. The numbers above are mine, and are rough. If I can ever find that message will drop a note.

Flyer,

Thanks...good info.

Cheers,
FF

How many pilots does AMR have retiring at the end of May? I'd think that with the 90 day lookback on the stock price, this might be a good time to bail. That'll help ease any future furloughs.

As for the 737s scheduled for delivery, I wouldn't count my chickens before they're hatched.

I have no idea, hard to tell now that 65 is here. Yes there is a 90 day look back, however the high unit values where the few months prior. Right now they are average, so I would expect a handful to go.

As for the 737s, they are coming. School house is getting geared up, hiring more instructors for 737. They are needed, and management knows it.

I guess Andy, in the end NOTHING is guaranteed. 737s, staying in business, another terrorist attack. etc.

As of now I will plan on it.

Regards,

AA

The 737-800 seats 155 in two classes.
The 737-900 seats 169 in two classes.
The 737-900ER seats 173 in two classes.
(These are CAL's configurations)

All certified ETOPS and FL410.

The potential savings over the MD-80's adds up. Imagine 29 more paying people on a plane that burns less. More money for American.

I hope it works out and no one ends up on the street. Good luck.

That only holds true if you can fill the seats.

The 90 day lookback is for the "B" plan is that correct ?

FF

We do. :rolleyes:

Yes it is. You must be over 50 yrs, and have submitted your retirement papers.
By the end of each month, you must call your local flt office and tell them "I am not retiring the 1st of next month" or "I am retiring the 1st of next month." If you were locked in, then you can go back and pick the highest B Fund value for the last 90 days. But only from the time you first gave your retirement notice. So some pilots have been locked in for a long time and are calling at the end of each month.
Thus AA never really knows how many might retire each month.
But it's their system and they designed it. With a little help form APA.

Here are the current B fund value.
Some pilots with 30 years have 15,000 units to 20,000 units.

The A fund is currently doing very well in times of economic uncertainty.
And we have a no-match 401K.

https://www.aapilots.com/images/spacer.gif B-Fund https://www.aapilots.com/images/spacer.gif $112.383 https://www.aapilots.com/images/spacer.gif
Adjusted Unit Value for the Pilot Variable Plan (Plan "B")

2006 Year End Audited Unit Value (December 31, 2006) - $116.268

Date Unit Value April 30, 2008 $112.383 March 31, 2008 $106.831 February 29, 2008 $114.642 January 31, 2008 $116.500 December 31, 2007 $125.441 November 30, 2007 $126.370 October 31, 2007 $131.944 September 30, 2007 $128.344 August 31, 2007 $123.235 July 31, 2007 $123.235 June 30, 2007 $127.067 May 31, 2007 $127.880 April 30, 2007 $123.583
This info is for many whom aren't aware of AA's retirement systems.

That would really suck for those guys, who probably quit a job to go back to AA.

maybe if you guys taxied faster you'd waste less fuel...

Good work 7576FO. One thing I will add is the A fund is currently funded to 115%, no worries there for awhile. Also, AA is actually saving money (about $150 million a year) because of age 65. That's because they get to re-figure longer pilot careers and fewer retirement years before death.

UNDERstatement of the decade.

Hopefully, no furloughs and just the end of recalls until '09.

Provocative comment....for a turtle I mean.

Yes. That's what's wrong with the airline industry. Slow taxi pilots and their wasteful fuel management. AA's problems or any other airline problems have very little to do with their pilots and a LOT to do with their management teams.