Comair updates?
09-01-2010 | 10:35 AM
Works Every Weekend
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 3,506
Likes: 0
From: 737 ATL
The Delta pilots and the people doing the hiring are aware of all that.
Junior Comair pilots have no association with the RJDC or the Lawson era MEC.
09-01-2010 | 10:36 AM
Gets Weekends Off
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 2,539
Likes: 0
09-01-2010 | 11:04 AM
Gets Weekends Off
Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 886
Likes: 0
From: "if it's got wings, I can crash it".
THIS IS A "Q&A" ATTACHMENT TO THE MEMO MAKING THE ANNOUNCEMENT. PRETTY INTERESTING IF I MAY SAY SO.
Employee Questions and Answers
September 1, 2010
General
What does today’s news mean for Comair?
In the coming months, we will focus on addressing our main challenges − our aging fleet, high overhead costs
and uncompetitive crew costs − by transforming Comair in three key areas:
Retaining our important CRJ-700 and CRJ-900 fleets while accelerating the reduction of our aging, less
efficient 50-seat fleet, in keeping with Delta’s plans for its regional operations. Reductions will be timed
to avoid upcoming costly Maintenance events and engine overhauls on aircraft leaving the fleet,
resulting in a savings of approximately $110 million over the next four years;
Aligning staffing levels − including our leadership structure − with what is needed to support a smaller
operation; and
Working with our unions to secure long-term competitive agreements.
In recent years, Comair has made significant progress against cost-saving initiatives. Why are more
adjustments necessary?
Successful businesses continually change and adapt based on the environments in which they operate. While we
have been addressing our cost disadvantage for some time and have made strides in this area, particularly over
the past year, this is an ongoing exercise. Even more significant changes are needed in the coming months to
make us competitive and position us to be a viable airline going forward.
In July, Delta announced a second quarter profit, and we have continued receiving Profit Sharing checks
each quarter. If we are making money, why do we need to make further changes?
Under our current capacity purchase arrangement with Delta, as long as we meet planned expenses and hit our
performance targets, we will reflect levels of profitability, but that is not an indicator of our competitive position
against our peers. At this time, we remain approximately 20 percent more costly than our peers on a cost-perblock-
hour basis. We must be able to earn a profit while reducing our operating costs to what the market is
willing to pay for our services.
When announcing the sale of Mesaba and Compass last month, Delta leaders said they want to ensure that its
regional carriers are independently positioned for success with a competitive cost structure. Our current cost
structure doesn’t enable us to be competitive in this landscape as a standalone entity. These changes, while
difficult, will do just that.
How does today’s news impact negotiations between Comair and the three unions (IAM, IBT and
ALPA)?
One of the key focus areas for company leaders is securing competitive agreements with our three unions: IAM,
IBT and ALPA. Those discussions will begin in the coming weeks.
What are Delta’s plans for Comair after we shrink to a smaller operation, with lower overhead costs?
Delta leaders have said publicly they do not have to own their regional partners to derive value from them and
that they are continuing to explore alternatives. They have also said that they want to ensure that each partner
airline is independently positioned for success with a competitive cost structure. While Delta will not comment
on its future plans for Comair, it is clear that we have to make significant changes to our airline to remain viable
and become a more solid business partner for Delta or potentially others.
Why isn’t growth one of our key focus areas?
We continue to operate in an industry where the current environment is not conducive to growth. While it’s
uncertain when growth will return, one thing is certain: We must become a cost-competitive organization to
have any hope of achieving growth in the future.
Why is this news being shared two years in advance? Isn’t there a chance it could change?
While it may seem premature to talk about changes that will occur in 2011 and 2012, Comair leaders firmly
believe that employees need to know about any impact to their careers as soon as possible. Comair team
members have proven time and time again that they are a tremendous group of professionals capable of handling
the challenges ahead of us.
Will Delta reassign the flying to other Delta Connection carriers?
Delta continues to upgauge domestic flying with greater reliance on the two-class regional and mainline aircraft
preferred by customers. The 50-seat RJs that will be returned from Comair during 2011 and 2012 will gradually
exit the Delta Connection fleet and will not be deployed to other carriers in the program. For airports served by
these specific aircraft, routes that warrant larger aircraft or replacement 50-seat aircraft would receive
replacement service as appropriate as part of Delta’s normal network planning process.
What is the status of the headquarters building?
We are looking at every opportunity to decrease costs, including options for moving out of our headquarters
building, which was designed for a much larger workforce than what we have today. We will remain
headquartered in Northern Kentucky but will be evaluating more appropriately sized office facilities near the
airport.
Fleet
Why was the decision made to reduce Comair’s fleet?
Delta has announced previously its goal to reduce the use of less efficient 50-seat aircraft in its network in order
to improve the overall efficiency of the fleet and expand the amount of service offered to domestic customers
using the larger, two-class jets they prefer. As the leases for Comair’s 50-seat aircraft approach their expiration,
those aircraft will be returned to the lessors in order to reduce the number of less-efficient 50-seat aircraft in the
Delta network.
As the launch customer for the regional jet in the early 1990s, Comair has one of the oldest domestic 50-seat
fleets. The planned reductions will enable us to reduce our average overall fleet age at the end of 2012 to
approximately nine years from what would have been about 13 years and avoid more than $100 million in
Maintenance costs.
What part of our fleet will be reduced and when?
Reductions are focused on our 50-seat fleet and will be staggered over 2011 and 2012, as determined by a
combination of lease return deadlines and upcoming Maintenance schedules.
As we know from previous experience, the exact number of aircraft in our fleet fluctuates based on market
demand, scheduling decisions made by our mainline partner and many other factors.
While these factors make it difficult to predict exact numbers, here is what we know at this time: By the end of
this year, as planned, we will have 65 50-seat aircraft in our fleet. Starting in January of next year, we will
reduce our 50-seat fleet by 49 airplanes to a total of 16 airplanes, retiring 19 by the end of 2011 and 30 in 2012.
We will retain our CRJ-700s (15) and 900s (13), and by the end of 2012, expect to operate a fleet of 44 aircraft.
After these changes, how many aircraft will Comair continue to operate?
When the anticipated fleet changes are complete, Comair’s complement will be approximately:
13 CRJ 900s (76-seaters)
15 CRJ 700s (65-seaters)
16 CRJ 100s and 200s (50-seaters)
TOTAL: 44 aircraft (2012)
How does reducing the fleet help us reduce our costs?
The 50-seat fleet reductions will be timed to avoid upcoming costly Maintenance events and engine overhauls
on aircraft leaving the fleet, resulting in a savings of approximately $110 million over the next four years. (The
majority of that savings comes from our ability to realign engines to avoid about 90 percent of our scheduled
engine costs over the next four years. In addition, we expect to avoid $6 million in parts expense associated with
aircraft ‘C’ checks over the next two years.)
Considering Delta’s plans to reduce the use of 50-seat aircraft in its network and focus on larger-gauge aircraft
preferred by customers, making such a large investment in the routine maintenance of these aging aircraft would
not be prudent.
What is the future of the remaining 100/200 fleet?
No different than the way we operate our fleet today, the aircraft will be used to fly scheduled service as long as
Delta needs them in the schedule.
Will other Delta Connection carriers’ fleets be impacted? Why Comair?
We are not aware of fleet reductions at other carriers. Comair leaders remain focused on making the required
fleet adjustments at Comair. These adjustments are necessary because of the age and efficiency of our fleet and
our cost structure, which remains significantly higher than that of other Delta Connection carriers.
Staffing
Will staffing reductions occur as a result of this announcement?
Yes, we will need to re-align our staffing to what is needed to support the new, smaller size of the airline. All
departments and areas (operational and support) will be impacted, including leadership ranks, with the number
of reductions varying by department. By the end of 2012, staffing will be commensurate with what is needed to
run a 44-aircraft operation.
When will staffing reductions occur?
Timing will vary by department. In operational areas (for crews and Maintenance team members, for example)
and in some support areas, the timing of reductions will be closely tied to the reduction of the fleet.
In other administrative areas, we expect staffing reductions to occur over the next four to 16 months.
Notifications in some departments will begin as soon as this month with some employees leaving the
organization by the end of the year. Other positions will be retained over a longer period of time.
How/when will crewmembers know the timing of the changes?
As always, crew staffing is directly related to schedule reductions and our fleet. We will adjust crew staffing
over the next two years to coincide with the aircraft returns. Based on what we know today, we expect the first
round of crew furloughs to occur in the second quarter of 2011. Comair leaders are committed to providing
crews timely information to make informed decisions regarding their careers, and as the specific timing and
number of furloughs are determined, we will communicate that information.
Will Comair offer voluntary exit programs for contract and scale employees?
Employees who are furloughed will follow the terms of their collective bargaining agreements, which include
provisions that provide for these situations. In addition, Comair leaders will be meeting with union leaders in the
coming days to explore their interest in offering voluntary exit packages for contract employees, and we will
communicate additional details as decisions are made. We will offer voluntary exit packages for scale
employees.
Does Comair plan to offer severance packages to impacted employees?
In keeping with our commitment to value our people, we plan to offer severance packages to help ease
transitions for those impacted. Packages will include financial assistance and career assistance workshops. Even
though these packages are not legally required, the availability of these packages demonstrates Comair’s
philosophy to support our people. Contract employees who are furloughed will follow the terms of the collective
bargaining agreement. More information will be provided by Human Resources to those employees impacted.
Does Comair plan to offer voluntary exit programs for merit employees (non-contract, non-scale
employees)?
We do not plan to offer voluntary exit programs for merit employees.
How do these fleet and staffing reductions affect our crew and maintenance bases?
At this time, we are not making changes to our crew and maintenance locations, although staffing levels may
change based on operational need. Over the next two years, we will continue to evaluate these bases and
anticipate the need to make changes to ensure we are best aligned to support the operation. We will
communicate any changes to employees as soon as decisions are made.
Are there any pay changes for merit employees associated with today’s announcement?
We have no plans to initiate across-the-board pay cuts associated with today’s announcement. However, as we
review staffing, it is possible that some positions will be revised, including the need to make title and/or pay
grade changes. Those decisions will be communicated directly with affected employees.
How will the new, smaller size of the organization impact Comair’s officers and directors?
We have continued to downsize our officer and director ranks over the past two years. As with all staffing, we
will continue to adjust these groups to ensure we have the right people in the best positions to lead the company
given our current direction and that our staffing levels are in line with what is needed to run a smaller operation.
Some of these changes have already been communicated, and we will share additional information as decisions
are made.
Employee Questions and Answers
September 1, 2010
General
What does today’s news mean for Comair?
In the coming months, we will focus on addressing our main challenges − our aging fleet, high overhead costs
and uncompetitive crew costs − by transforming Comair in three key areas:
Retaining our important CRJ-700 and CRJ-900 fleets while accelerating the reduction of our aging, less
efficient 50-seat fleet, in keeping with Delta’s plans for its regional operations. Reductions will be timed
to avoid upcoming costly Maintenance events and engine overhauls on aircraft leaving the fleet,
resulting in a savings of approximately $110 million over the next four years;
Aligning staffing levels − including our leadership structure − with what is needed to support a smaller
operation; and
Working with our unions to secure long-term competitive agreements.
In recent years, Comair has made significant progress against cost-saving initiatives. Why are more
adjustments necessary?
Successful businesses continually change and adapt based on the environments in which they operate. While we
have been addressing our cost disadvantage for some time and have made strides in this area, particularly over
the past year, this is an ongoing exercise. Even more significant changes are needed in the coming months to
make us competitive and position us to be a viable airline going forward.
In July, Delta announced a second quarter profit, and we have continued receiving Profit Sharing checks
each quarter. If we are making money, why do we need to make further changes?
Under our current capacity purchase arrangement with Delta, as long as we meet planned expenses and hit our
performance targets, we will reflect levels of profitability, but that is not an indicator of our competitive position
against our peers. At this time, we remain approximately 20 percent more costly than our peers on a cost-perblock-
hour basis. We must be able to earn a profit while reducing our operating costs to what the market is
willing to pay for our services.
When announcing the sale of Mesaba and Compass last month, Delta leaders said they want to ensure that its
regional carriers are independently positioned for success with a competitive cost structure. Our current cost
structure doesn’t enable us to be competitive in this landscape as a standalone entity. These changes, while
difficult, will do just that.
How does today’s news impact negotiations between Comair and the three unions (IAM, IBT and
ALPA)?
One of the key focus areas for company leaders is securing competitive agreements with our three unions: IAM,
IBT and ALPA. Those discussions will begin in the coming weeks.
What are Delta’s plans for Comair after we shrink to a smaller operation, with lower overhead costs?
Delta leaders have said publicly they do not have to own their regional partners to derive value from them and
that they are continuing to explore alternatives. They have also said that they want to ensure that each partner
airline is independently positioned for success with a competitive cost structure. While Delta will not comment
on its future plans for Comair, it is clear that we have to make significant changes to our airline to remain viable
and become a more solid business partner for Delta or potentially others.
Why isn’t growth one of our key focus areas?
We continue to operate in an industry where the current environment is not conducive to growth. While it’s
uncertain when growth will return, one thing is certain: We must become a cost-competitive organization to
have any hope of achieving growth in the future.
Why is this news being shared two years in advance? Isn’t there a chance it could change?
While it may seem premature to talk about changes that will occur in 2011 and 2012, Comair leaders firmly
believe that employees need to know about any impact to their careers as soon as possible. Comair team
members have proven time and time again that they are a tremendous group of professionals capable of handling
the challenges ahead of us.
Will Delta reassign the flying to other Delta Connection carriers?
Delta continues to upgauge domestic flying with greater reliance on the two-class regional and mainline aircraft
preferred by customers. The 50-seat RJs that will be returned from Comair during 2011 and 2012 will gradually
exit the Delta Connection fleet and will not be deployed to other carriers in the program. For airports served by
these specific aircraft, routes that warrant larger aircraft or replacement 50-seat aircraft would receive
replacement service as appropriate as part of Delta’s normal network planning process.
What is the status of the headquarters building?
We are looking at every opportunity to decrease costs, including options for moving out of our headquarters
building, which was designed for a much larger workforce than what we have today. We will remain
headquartered in Northern Kentucky but will be evaluating more appropriately sized office facilities near the
airport.
Fleet
Why was the decision made to reduce Comair’s fleet?
Delta has announced previously its goal to reduce the use of less efficient 50-seat aircraft in its network in order
to improve the overall efficiency of the fleet and expand the amount of service offered to domestic customers
using the larger, two-class jets they prefer. As the leases for Comair’s 50-seat aircraft approach their expiration,
those aircraft will be returned to the lessors in order to reduce the number of less-efficient 50-seat aircraft in the
Delta network.
As the launch customer for the regional jet in the early 1990s, Comair has one of the oldest domestic 50-seat
fleets. The planned reductions will enable us to reduce our average overall fleet age at the end of 2012 to
approximately nine years from what would have been about 13 years and avoid more than $100 million in
Maintenance costs.
What part of our fleet will be reduced and when?
Reductions are focused on our 50-seat fleet and will be staggered over 2011 and 2012, as determined by a
combination of lease return deadlines and upcoming Maintenance schedules.
As we know from previous experience, the exact number of aircraft in our fleet fluctuates based on market
demand, scheduling decisions made by our mainline partner and many other factors.
While these factors make it difficult to predict exact numbers, here is what we know at this time: By the end of
this year, as planned, we will have 65 50-seat aircraft in our fleet. Starting in January of next year, we will
reduce our 50-seat fleet by 49 airplanes to a total of 16 airplanes, retiring 19 by the end of 2011 and 30 in 2012.
We will retain our CRJ-700s (15) and 900s (13), and by the end of 2012, expect to operate a fleet of 44 aircraft.
After these changes, how many aircraft will Comair continue to operate?
When the anticipated fleet changes are complete, Comair’s complement will be approximately:
13 CRJ 900s (76-seaters)
15 CRJ 700s (65-seaters)
16 CRJ 100s and 200s (50-seaters)
TOTAL: 44 aircraft (2012)
How does reducing the fleet help us reduce our costs?
The 50-seat fleet reductions will be timed to avoid upcoming costly Maintenance events and engine overhauls
on aircraft leaving the fleet, resulting in a savings of approximately $110 million over the next four years. (The
majority of that savings comes from our ability to realign engines to avoid about 90 percent of our scheduled
engine costs over the next four years. In addition, we expect to avoid $6 million in parts expense associated with
aircraft ‘C’ checks over the next two years.)
Considering Delta’s plans to reduce the use of 50-seat aircraft in its network and focus on larger-gauge aircraft
preferred by customers, making such a large investment in the routine maintenance of these aging aircraft would
not be prudent.
What is the future of the remaining 100/200 fleet?
No different than the way we operate our fleet today, the aircraft will be used to fly scheduled service as long as
Delta needs them in the schedule.
Will other Delta Connection carriers’ fleets be impacted? Why Comair?
We are not aware of fleet reductions at other carriers. Comair leaders remain focused on making the required
fleet adjustments at Comair. These adjustments are necessary because of the age and efficiency of our fleet and
our cost structure, which remains significantly higher than that of other Delta Connection carriers.
Staffing
Will staffing reductions occur as a result of this announcement?
Yes, we will need to re-align our staffing to what is needed to support the new, smaller size of the airline. All
departments and areas (operational and support) will be impacted, including leadership ranks, with the number
of reductions varying by department. By the end of 2012, staffing will be commensurate with what is needed to
run a 44-aircraft operation.
When will staffing reductions occur?
Timing will vary by department. In operational areas (for crews and Maintenance team members, for example)
and in some support areas, the timing of reductions will be closely tied to the reduction of the fleet.
In other administrative areas, we expect staffing reductions to occur over the next four to 16 months.
Notifications in some departments will begin as soon as this month with some employees leaving the
organization by the end of the year. Other positions will be retained over a longer period of time.
How/when will crewmembers know the timing of the changes?
As always, crew staffing is directly related to schedule reductions and our fleet. We will adjust crew staffing
over the next two years to coincide with the aircraft returns. Based on what we know today, we expect the first
round of crew furloughs to occur in the second quarter of 2011. Comair leaders are committed to providing
crews timely information to make informed decisions regarding their careers, and as the specific timing and
number of furloughs are determined, we will communicate that information.
Will Comair offer voluntary exit programs for contract and scale employees?
Employees who are furloughed will follow the terms of their collective bargaining agreements, which include
provisions that provide for these situations. In addition, Comair leaders will be meeting with union leaders in the
coming days to explore their interest in offering voluntary exit packages for contract employees, and we will
communicate additional details as decisions are made. We will offer voluntary exit packages for scale
employees.
Does Comair plan to offer severance packages to impacted employees?
In keeping with our commitment to value our people, we plan to offer severance packages to help ease
transitions for those impacted. Packages will include financial assistance and career assistance workshops. Even
though these packages are not legally required, the availability of these packages demonstrates Comair’s
philosophy to support our people. Contract employees who are furloughed will follow the terms of the collective
bargaining agreement. More information will be provided by Human Resources to those employees impacted.
Does Comair plan to offer voluntary exit programs for merit employees (non-contract, non-scale
employees)?
We do not plan to offer voluntary exit programs for merit employees.
How do these fleet and staffing reductions affect our crew and maintenance bases?
At this time, we are not making changes to our crew and maintenance locations, although staffing levels may
change based on operational need. Over the next two years, we will continue to evaluate these bases and
anticipate the need to make changes to ensure we are best aligned to support the operation. We will
communicate any changes to employees as soon as decisions are made.
Are there any pay changes for merit employees associated with today’s announcement?
We have no plans to initiate across-the-board pay cuts associated with today’s announcement. However, as we
review staffing, it is possible that some positions will be revised, including the need to make title and/or pay
grade changes. Those decisions will be communicated directly with affected employees.
How will the new, smaller size of the organization impact Comair’s officers and directors?
We have continued to downsize our officer and director ranks over the past two years. As with all staffing, we
will continue to adjust these groups to ensure we have the right people in the best positions to lead the company
given our current direction and that our staffing levels are in line with what is needed to run a smaller operation.
Some of these changes have already been communicated, and we will share additional information as decisions
are made.
09-01-2010 | 11:23 AM
Line Holder
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 57
Likes: 0
From: Car Number 9
GROW UP A LITTLE?!!! Your more mature coworkers at DAL have been smart enough to understand that the people being effected by this down-sizing weren't EVEN ON PROPERTY when all that went down.
My MEC is my responsibility? Before I'm hired? Open your ears, sonny!!Those responsible will still be on property after we're all gone.
I hope you're not representative of the quality of newhire @ DAL!!!
My MEC is my responsibility? Before I'm hired? Open your ears, sonny!!Those responsible will still be on property after we're all gone.
I hope you're not representative of the quality of newhire @ DAL!!!
You got caught in a crappy situation, and unfortunately the wheels of this machine were set into motion long before you got hired. You probably didn't know the corporate culture of the Comair/Delta relationship, but I bet you found out shorty afterwards.
Here's a clue that you are missing...
Delta owns Comair.
Our accountants and lawyers bought it for 1.8 billion dollars.
That turned out to be a bad investment which is being corrected by the accountants and lawyers.
So the evil wrongdoers will be the only ones left you say...I would venture to say that they will not be around too much longer either...but here's a point to consider:
When you built your aviation career with a job offer from Comair in 2004 you were essentially building your house on unstable ground, but you didn't know that and now that house foundation is coming down and all that is left is a broken sewer pipe with some RJDC turds left in it.
I also have a concern in reading these posts in that the service provided by Comair is going to continue to get worse (if possible.) "Call in Sick" says the dial-a-day-off fairy. Do you think that this will be any kind of surprise or shock to Delta or Comair? Do you think that the accountants and lawyers are saying "Whoa! What is happening, people are calling in sick now. How can we stop this? We didn't see this coming."
I would think that that the average pilot sees 1 maybe 2 moves ahead. Alpa, maybe 3 or 4 moves ahead. Delta is seeing like 10 moves ahead with a plan A, B, and C with people they have hired and are overpaying to assure that things are going to go their way.
How is this going to affect the Delta Pax traveling on Comair now? Continued crappy service as Comair continues to impode. Yes. Is this your fault? No. Did you choose your own path in Aviation and build your house of cards where you wanted it? Yes.
Bottom line... find a new job.
[edit: delete insult / flamebait]
Last edited by TonyWilliams; 09-01-2010 at 03:01 PM.
09-01-2010 | 11:29 AM
Line Holder
Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 69
Likes: 0
Does anyone have any information on getting a vacation payout? I've tried called the chief pilot's office (apparently they have to approve it first) and I don't get any response. No one answers the line or calls me back.
09-01-2010 | 11:58 AM
Gets Weekends Off
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 411
Likes: 0
From: EFFO (eternally furloughed First Officer)
PM me i have the details from MP. spoke with him less than an hr ago
09-01-2010 | 12:12 PM
Line Holder
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 33
Likes: 0
From: Furloughed lookin' guy
I'm currently in primary flight training so feel free to PM me with any questions about the process up to that point. Good luck everyone.
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