Looking at this award, there are arguments all throughout as to what is fair and what isn't. This is true of any ISL process and if someone was extremely happy, it definitely wouldn't have been fair.

That said, one thing sticks out to me as a major screw up on the United Merger Committee side of things. The initial proposal for CAL did not ask for any fences whatsoever. The United team asked for a fence on the 747's. This lead to the CAL team asking for 787 fences and then to United adjusting their plan to try and fence 787's in their bases.

The outcome was the new 5 year fence on 787's and 747's or until the 25th airframe is delivered.

Now if I do my math right (using the existing 777 staffing levels as a reference), United gave up the ability to bid over 215 widebody captain and over 500 widebody first officer slots just to hold on to an airplane that was already staffed full with UAL pilots.

There was really no danger of losing a large number of these slots to CAL guys over that 5 year period as there was no flush bid. Now 24 aircraft worth of pilots will be established on aircraft and in base before any openings are available to UAL guys. That mean a fairly large movement in CAL CA's and F/O's in to the widebodies.

Has anyone else looked at this? I would have thought it would be better off had they dropped the fence idea altogether.

 

I agree. Look at where the company is planning to fly the 787. LAX is shrinking on the 777/400, the SEA 777 domicile is closing, and the pilots in DEN have been asking for a widebody base for years.

When the company opens a 787 base in any of those cities, it is off limits to the L-UAL pilots.

 

LAX will be getting the 787 shortly.

 

That was my thought. Plus being on the 777 I haven't met one CAL guy chomping at the bit to bid the 747. It is more work and a worse (albeit still good) schedule than our 777 bases. So essentially over 725 positions were given up for 5 years to protect just the attrition on the 747. It appears to be a big plus for CAL in this arbitration even if the 25th airframe comes before the 5 years is up (which I dont think it will).

 

Your analysis is correct.

But I wouldn't say the UA side screwed up unless it was to fail to show the arbitrators the very real consequences of not doing both a 747 AND a 787/777 fence.

Imagine if the 747 was a growing fleet and 80% of its routes were going to CAL bases at the exclusion of CAL pilots; the CAL side would be livid. That's what happened here.

The harm and havoc to the United side is significant; and all the arbitrators thought about the C&R was that it's "complicated and overreaching".

I guess math is hard for lawyers.

 

Except the closing and re-opening of the 400 base in ORD.

Now it will stay UAL

 

I think this is a "win" for the CAL guys for sure.

Honestly....I have no desire to fly a plastic plane that tends to catch on fire.

A game changer indeed!

(It would have been nice to get some senior UAL guys on it to cause some movement in our bases)

 

I definitely agree with that analysis. It's going to be murder on the west coast for LUAL.

 

Agree with this statement. Even with me being 50% on the new seniority list the 747 and 777 loss of flying and not being able to bid the 787 is going to hurt. Looks like lots of us bidding guppy cappy.

Of course when the fence comes down in 2 years after airplane #25 is delivered, lots of guys should be able to bid into it with great seniority.

 

True, as I said I dont think it would have had many bidders from CAL regardless. I would have been a likely candidate given I commute from MSP but again, I was not about to consider a training event for a harder commute and less days off a month. My guess is the fence will drop about the same time the 747 starts to draw down. It will probably remain UAL until the day it leaves.