Maybe they see the Delta pilots wearing their hats and think that's the reason Delta is doing so good. Their reasoning is. "If you look like a Delta pilot, then we can make mad money like Delta."

They forget that management at Delta is playing at a higher level than themselves, maybe?

"...worried about whether we fall into line by wearing our hats in conjunction with our clown uniforms"

Maybe I'm missing something here, who are these managers running around as hat police?

I have not met nor flown with one pilot who said I was forced to or told to wear their hat. So is this thread really about someone's imagination?

Now I have noticed all my fellow ex UAL pilots are wearing their new generic shoulder boards and wings (OK one wore his old wings and said he would do so until told not to). What I have seen is more than one ex CAL pilots wearing their old boards (yes they look almost the same as my generic pilot ones) and embroidered wing shirts.

So are the ex UAL more compliant with the changes than the ex CAL?

Let's hope that certain folks in high places (Chase Manhattan, JPM etc) are sharpening their focus on our marginal performance. Yes the stock jumped crazily this week, yet the money isn't flowing in as it is in Atlanta.

2013 Profit Sharing promises to be tepid at best when comparing it to Delta's numbers.

Please don't shoot the messenger for personally I am a hat guy due to having a bald pate which is improved by any such adornment as well as the nicety of not feeling chilly raindrops on said bare area during walk arounds but alas I digress from my primary point . . .

Having recently returned from DTK and having had many a late night beverage with many UAL pilots of varied background that were attending Captain Charm School I can tell you what the corporate message was regarding hats. Customer surveys show conclusively that our customers, especially the premium customers, prefer the sharp dressed look of Barney Five rather than the cool casual attire of Sheriff Andy. No corporate conspiracy to force submission; just a carefully calculated attempt to do what they can to enhance customer satisfaction. (I know, I know . . . why give us a Clown Costume then . . . like I said don't shoot the messenger.)

Again, not that I am telling anyone what to do, just presenting what little knowledge I have that may or may not be of interest to all who peruse this most erudite of forums.

When you get right down to it, UAL is paying you to fly their jets. In doing so, they require you to follow SOP via the FM, FOM, etc.

FOM has uniform protocol. They pay you for a service and expect professionalism. It's really not that hard.

Do I like the hat? Not really. But I'll wear it and not let stupid vanity dictate my life. I wear it because its required and I'm getting paid to.

Flame on. I don't really care.

Not shooting the messenger, but apparently they only feel this way from October through April?????

Are you trying to say that corporate policy is illogical and providing conflicting messages?

I'd be curious to know how the customers felt about hiring overweight and frumpy flight attendants or would they prefer something like a singapore airlines flight attendant OR just see our pilots wearing hats?

Flame on?? You hit the nail right on the head! Well said.

And therein lies the problem. The captain charm school talking about hats or, in my case, why we shouldn't be calling in sick, shows what their primarily concern is--superficialities--when the real problem is how poorly and unprofessionally they're running the largest airline in the world. Seeing how many people they can cut from each box on the organizational diagram to barely scrape by is the problem. Not hats. Not sick calls. Not refusing aircraft. NOT PILOTS. If they built a truly world-class company, sparing no expense for a working CCS, a full-up staffed crew scheduling, and in-house maintenance given all the people and the tools necessary to remove an MEL when it touches a hub, THEN I would bet you'd see a lot more people wearing their hats. Funny how it works that way. You can't reverse engineer organizational professionalism. It starts at the top with their character, their vision, their purpose, and permeates the organization from within. When they're having meetings on hats, sick calls, and buttoned jackets, they're pinning the blame not finding a solution. When their purpose is stock value and bonuses, then they should happy with what they're getting. When their purpose becomes a personal pride in being part of a well-run, customer-respected, safety and employee-centered, life-long career place to work, then they might expect similar buy in from their employees.

Thanks for that peek behind the curtain. This is not shooting the messenger, just a comment on that observed data point.