Anyone else hear about more planes going away in 2014 not previously announced? I'm going to ask my reps about this. Hoping it's not true.

 

The TA allows the gain of 76 seaters without growing mainline, only the delivery of SNB aircraft.

Our current contract requires at least 40 aircraft to be brought to mainline before a 70 seater can be parked to bring a 76 seater on line.

 

Isn't that a chief pilot question, not a rep one?

Sure will be nice to have a mainline block hour ratio in the future....

 

I'm going to ask my reps. The block hour ratio doesn't make me feel one it "safer", because, in certain times, one MOU can change everything.

 

It'd be even nicer to have a union that would defend them.

Carl

 

Are you really trying to imply that if the TA passes the company will take on a multi-billion dollar acquisition/lease of 88 new SNB aircraft and then immediately park them, all so that they can keep 70 70 seat RJ's when they expand the 76 seat fleet?

That really does not make sense. If we are spending this much time parsing what the meaning of "establish a fleet" is, we are looking at the wrong parts of the contract for loopholes. I am sure there are some out there, but there are severe economic penalties to the company for this type of move. Seems to be self correcting, particularly with a ratio in place.

 

I don't think that is what he was saying at all nor do I see how you could read that into it. The point was that the TA language allows the addition of 70 LRJs as long as we take delivery of 88 717s or 319s. The TA does not say that these new aircraft must be growth airplanes. In fact the could be 1 for 1 replacement aircraft for the M88 fleet and Delta could still take delivery of all 70 LRJs.

It is a misconception that the 717 s are all growth aircraft for mainline. There will be some aircraft parked as they are delivered. Both ALPA and Delta have thrown out different varying numbers but I think the best case is maybe 400 new hires as a result of 88 new aircraft. That's good but it should be closer to 900 pilots if these were growth aircraft.

The point is there is no protection or even promise that mainline will grow at all with this TA. Others have shown the math that even the 1.56 ratio allows DCI to shrink to the ratio level while mainline stays the same. If you are voting for this contract for mainline growth or the opportunity to upgrade quickly you're voting for the wrong reason.

 

In reference to the 1.56, IF, mainline block hours fall below the "ratio", the fix is to lower block hours of DCI, not 76 seaters. DCI 50 seat block hours will just be lowered and the LRJ's will continue. Once the LRJ's are here, they are here to stay.

Plus we received zero credit for this scope change. Really?

 

If the 717s were all growth airframes then we could have PWA styled language requiring 767 airframes before the 76-seat growth language kicked in. Instead, the TA has dropped that mainline airframe requirement.

So maybe that's a hint of the company's plans?

Let's say the company would rather have a very right sized fleet of 65 MD90s, 88 or 112 B717s and better RJs and get rid of 117 MD-88s.

If that is the case then they could never grow the 76 seat fleet under the PWA, So what we're giving them is relief from the more restrictive PWA and allowing them to grow that fleet PLUS keep the 70 seaters, neither being allowed by the PWA.

So to me, the PWA is better in that regard.

In essence, while the TA is touted as a win for reducing the 255 potential 76-seaters to 223, in reality, we're letting them have something that they did not earn.

 

I haven't heard about any planes leaving in 2014 other then DC9's. A lot of people are assuming that as soon as 737-900ERs arrive the company will just start parking MD88's, B757/767's, and A320's. Write it's true that the 737 deliveries were quoted as being a capacity neutral transaction, it is not implied that we are looking at a 1:1 swap. It was also started that the 737 can be growth aircraft. How is it that Delta is going to be making billions of dollars a year, but continually shrinking? At some point, you can no longer shrink to profitability guys. And people accuse DALPA of selling FUD?