Airline Division Week In Review - January 29, 2012

Citation Air Negotiations Begin
The Citation Air pilots negotiating committee met January 10^th – 12^th, for bargaining with management at corporate headquarters in Greenwich, Connecticut. International Representative Rick Dubinsky reports that consistent with the previous bargaining sessions for this newly organized pilot group, the atmosphere during negotiations was cordial, professional and productive.  Important progress was made on certain documents and understandings between the parties, the most important of which was a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) regarding the Aviation Safety Action Program (ASAP). Negotiations will resume next month when the parties next meet February 7^th 9^th, again in Greenwich, Connecticut.

XJT Negotiations Update
This week marked the first week of negotiations with the participation of a Federal Mediator.
The Mediator met separately with both parties and there were also face to face meetings with proposals exchanged. Tentative Agreement was reached on Section 21- System Board of Arbitration.  The Union also presented their proposal on Moving Expenses. The company has informed the union that they do not feel obligated to accept the previous tentative agreements that have been reached on various contract sections. While the union believes these previous tentative agreements to be reasonable and the companies’ insistence on this approach will slow down the process of obtaining a fair successor contract; if the company insists on introducing new proposals on previously agreed upon issues, the union will bargain with the company in good faith. This would also mean that the union would also be free to introduce new proposals. The Company has indicated that it wants to give the Union and its negotiating committee an updated financial presentation; the parties are discussing the scheduling of the meeting. The Mediator has scheduled the next round of negotiations for February 15^th, 16^th and 17^th in Philadelphia.

Airline Industry News

Governmental and Regulatory
In a move that should finally clear the way for a bill for full funding of the FAA, on Thursday the Senate approved a funding extension   for the agency…according to an inspector general's report&nbsp, the lone Republican member of the NLRB was not pressured to resign.

Airline Industry and Labor
US Airways confirms that it is looking into a merger with American Airlines…American Airlines said employees whose pension plans are vested will not have their benefits reduced despite the bankruptcy filing by the carrier's parent company, AMR Corp…DHL Express USA plans to expand operations at the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport…Flight Attendants at USAirways Express could go on strike…The pilots union for Air Canada says the carrier has turned its back on federal conciliation…Flight Instructors at Southwest and AirTran have reached a deal on seniority.
Republic Airways Holdings appointed David Siegel as CEO, president and interim chief operating officer of Frontier Airlines. Republic has said it is considering selling or spinning off Frontier Airlines. Siegel previously served as CEO of US Airways Group.