Airline Division Week In Review - October 16, 2012

Northern Air Cargo Pilots Ratify First Contract
After over four years of dedicated work and by an overwhelming margin, the pilots of Northern Air Cargo have ratified their first contract.

The all cargo airline operates a fleet of Boeing 737 aircraft throughout the state of Alaska. They are owned by Saltchuk Resources, a transportation holding company that owns other transportation related companies including Aloha Airlines, who has members also represented by the Airline Division.

NAC’s pilots are members of Local 959. This represents their first airline agreement for the local since Wein Air.

Commenting on the announcement, Airline Division Director David Bourne said, “I want to extend my congratulations to the pilots of Northern Air Cargo on this momentous vote. I would also like to recognize and thank Rick Canoy and Derek Musto for their hard work and dedication to the pilots and Local 959 Principal Officer Rick Boyles and his team for the years of effort that concluded this agreement.”
Bourne went on to say, “This has truly been a team effort and should leave no doubt about the dedication of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters and the Airline Division to reach out and represent members wherever they may be.”

Centurion MD-11 Suffers Gear Collapse on Landing in Brazil, Airline Division Responds Immediately

On Sunday October 14^th, a McDonnell Douglass MD-11 freighter operated by Centurion Air Cargo, suffered a landing gear collapse on rollout from landing at the Varicopas (VCP) airport in Brazil.

The flight crew, members of Local 769, brought the aircraft to a safe stop and secured the plane before exiting through the main entry door. There was no fire or loss to cargo, but the aircraft suffered substantial damage and closed the airport as it blocked the runway.

Upon notification of the incident, the Safety Hotline was immediately notified and began coordinating efforts with Local 769 Business Agent Daisy Gonzalez-Colli and the Airline Division. While efforts immediately began to secure the crew, hotline representatives coordinated with IBT Legislative Director Jack Albertine, who was briefed and ready to intercede if needed with the U.S. State Department and other agencies to protect the crew if needed. Additional contacts were made by the hotline team to secure legal assistance if needed. Business Agent Gonzalez-Colli also coordinated with Centurion management to keep abreast of all available information.

Thanks to the coordinated efforts, the crew was quickly given their travel release by the local aviation authorities and they were returned back to the U.S. in short order.

“In addition to being very grateful that the crew is safe and unharmed, I would like to congratulate the team that immediately responded and worked nonstop on the crews behalf to ensure their protection and safe transit back to the U.S. in a prompt manner,” said Airline Division Director David Bourne. “The rapid response by the hotline team and Local 769 was instrumental in protecting the crew in the post incident phase and shows the value of having the team in place to respond.

While this thankfully was not as serious as it could have been, it has provided us an opportunity to see firsthand how a response should take place. Our support for the crew will continue until all investigations are completed and we will also conduct a review to further refine our plan and response for the future,” Bourne concluded.  

Airline Industry News

Governmental and Regulatory

The Federal Aviation Administration's acting administrator, Michael Huerta, emphasized the   need for collaboration among government, industry, unions and others in a speech about the Next Generation Air Transportation System.

Industry and Labor

Southwest Airlines has hired a former head of the Federal Aviation Administration as senior vice president of labor relations. Randy Babbitt will be responsible for communication, negotiations and maintaining relationships with each of Southwest's 11 unions.

Two unions have come together in a new attempt to represent Delta Air Lines' flight attendants.
A federal judge has ruled that US Airways Group can begin contract negotiations with its pilots, taking a controversial seniority clause into account, but that the airline risks litigation in doing so.

As a preventive measure, American Airlines will modify seats with a second locking mechanism on 49 Boeing 767 planes. The work should be completed around Oct. 21.

Alaska Air Group announced an order for 50 Boeing 737s on Thursday. The order is a mix of current 737s as well as the updated 737 Max-8 and Max-9 jets.

Delta Air Lines has added more than 100 daily flights at La Guardia Airport in New York, a move that it hopes will increase market share in the region.

American Airlines and US Airways Group have signed a nondisclosure agreement to exchange confidential financial information, which included terms to stop talking publicly about a merger.

Regional Elite Airline Services, a wholly owned Delta subsidiary that provides ground services, is reportedly ending its operations.