Probe

Thankless job?
I think not. ALPA and ALPA national are both a gravy train for those involved. That is why they work hard to get there.

I heard both JP and Steve Arnold both spew the adage "I really want to go back to flying airplanes with you guys instead of going to meetings every day".

Really? Then why do they spend a 20 year career trying NOT to fly airplanes, by sitting in meetings.

UAL T38 Phlyer

I was about to post something similar. When Duane Woerth was Pres, his annual compensation was about $450k, if memory serves. He supposedly flew two trips per year.

I think he was also pres when ALPA had an in-house strike. Seemed the Herndon office staff went on strike---against the Union---for higher wages. The irony of the Union playing the part of "Evil Management," and Duane saying "We can't afford what they are asking; we offer competitive wages..." was sublime.

Three years ago, I took the time to read Flying the Line and Flying the Line Vol II. Took about 3-4 months and I knocked out a few pages each night.

I had assumed, incorrectly, that both books were in-house propaganda for why ALPA was the best union, ever.

Instead, it seems to be a factual history book on the nature of the profession, from the early air mail days, through 2000.

I was surprised, dismayed, and quite disappointed in what I read.

From the necessary beginnings and the principle founding fathers, among them Behncke, there was a pattern:

A leader was found, rallied around, who brought the Association to new heights. Behncke lasted the longest.

Then, power would go to his head, he would be deposed in disgrace, and he would be replaced by one of his trusted Lieutenants, who would reluctantly do so after seeing his icon and friend stumble. The new guy would try to bridge the gap, but the ex-leader would never speak to him again.

Then, the pattern would repeat with alarming regularity (about every 8 to 10 years), all the way through the end of the second book.

Like all things in human nature and big money (whether that be big business, big government, or big labor), the temptation of absolute power sometimes corrupts absolutely.

Don't get me wrong: I think we need ALPA, just like I need car insurance. I think Volunteers at the LEC level do valuable work. Above that level, I get cautious. What is their true motivation?

When you ask young kids "What do you want to be when you grow up?", you used to get answers of "A doctor." "An astronaut." "A scientist." "A pilot." "A rock star." You'd even get "The President."

But I never heard one say "A politician" or "A CEO."