Tag Archives for pilots.
American Airlines will no longer allow anyone with a beard or goatee to occupy a jumpseat in the cockpit on a mainline aircraft, citing risk that in the event oxygen masks are needed that facial hair will interfere with full flow of oxygen.
The highest paid jobs in the country are doctors, CEOs, and commercial airline pilots. And that was before the recent round of raises in new pilot contracts at Delta, American and United.
Yet despite the attractions of the profession, there aren’t nearly enough pilots. And that’s a safety risk.
The FAA is investigating approximately 4,800 U.S. pilots for “falsifying their medical records to conceal…mental health disorders and other serious conditions that could make them unfit to fly.” Around 600 hold commercial airline pilot licenses, while the rest fly cargo, private, and other aircraft.
The federal government is considering banning air carrier operations that diverge from the model of American Airlines, United, and Delta in order to operate niche service from small cities and private terminals. And the only reason they’re doing this is as a concession to lobbying by unions and an incumbent airline – groups that don’t want to compete with more pilots and innovative business models.
The FAA is considering requiring carriers currently operating as scheduled charters to instead operate as scheduled air carriers, effectively putting upstarts out of business. The loudest lobbying voice with the ear of the powerful wins?
The Air Line Pilots Association, the largest pilot union in the U.S., has filed with the Department of Transportation asking them to outlaw the business model of JSX, which operates 30 seat planes from private terminals.
The National Mediation Board’s purpose is to avoid disruption in transportation so they do not have to immediately grant a request for release from negotiations. They can keep the parties at the bargaining table.
The 1,500 hour rule leads to less well-trained, less-experienced pilots not more experienced pilots. They get hired by commercial airlines and go through remedial training to fix the bad habits they get into building up hours for hours’ sake.
United Airlines pilots haven’t just voted to authorize a strike vote, they have done so unanimously according to their union. Here’s what to expect.
It’s believed that the contract is for four years, with pay rates comparable to Delta’s new deal (which we’ve already expected and the company had publicly committed to) and some improvements for pilots on scheduling (limitation on the kinds of trips the company can require pilots to work).
Delta’s pilot contract costs it $7 billion more over the course of four years. The exact costs to American isn’t yet clear because the details haven’t been released – although the increase likely wipes out the carrier’s current run rate of profits.
Say what you will about the business logic of providing United pilots with a richer contract, these aren’t traditional blue collar workers. They aren’t working 80 hour weeks to make ends meet and slowly falling behind, they fly 80 hours a month, and are well-paid, and many of them have side businesses – hardly the image of Cesar Chavez standing up with grape workers, “We draw our strength from the very despair in which we have been forced to live. We shall endure.”
Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel -- a topic he has covered since 2002.
Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »
