Our Careers Could Hang in the Balance

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GhostRider in the Sky
This is the email I just got from ALPA... I don't think the legislation will go through, but we would all be good and •ed if it happened...


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U.S. and European Union (EU) negotiators have officially begun work towards crafting the world’s largest free trade agreement. The EU is asking the U.S. to dismantle our foreign ownership & control and cabotage laws. Such changes could ultimately decimate the U.S. airline industry and severely stunt thousands of pilots’ careers. ALPA and ALPA-PAC are committed to preventing this fundamental threat, but we need your help to win.
Most concerning about these negotiations is the EU’s push to eliminate our cabotage restrictions for its airlines. This change would adversely affect every ALPA member, putting downward pressure on wages and dramatically reducing the number of flight segments our companies fly. If this change goes through, the U.S. airline industry as we know it will disappear.
Currently, non-U.S. citizens are limited to owning no more than 25% of the voting stock of an American-flagged carrier, and actual control of the airline must be in American hands. Preserving our current laws is essential not only for our job security, but our national defense. U.S. carriers are capable of providing 90% of the troop-carrying capacity and 100% of the aeromedical evacuation capacity for our military when fully activated through the Civil Reserve Air Fleet (CRAF). Even in peacetime, the Department of Defense relies heavily on U.S. air carriers for regular troop transport and supply lifts around the world. Allowing U.S. carriers to be controlled by foreign airlines (and nations that own their airlines) could endanger our military preparedness, and is a strategic threat to our national security and national defense.
Beyond the ill effects a loosening of our foreign control laws would have on our military, such changes could be disastrous for pilots’ careers. We need only look to Australia to see how an unregulated international market can work out for pilots. Qantas, formerly the largest airline in the southern hemisphere, recently engaged in a partnership with Emirates Air that has devastated the Qantas pilots’ long-haul flying. Today, out of 98 routes governed by the partnership, Qantas pilots are only flying 14. If foreign control of U.S. airlines becomes legal in the U.S., we can expect to see our international routes drastically reduced in a similar fashion as lucrative routes could easily be transferred to foreign owners/partners.
Our foreign ownership & control and cabotage laws protect our careers, our industry, and our national defense. We cannot suffer the loss of any of these vital rules. At ALPA’s urging, 157 bipartisan Members of Congressrecently sent a letter to the U.S. Trade Representative demanding air traffic rights and related services be excluded from these negotiations. But if we are to win this fight for our careers, this powerful letter must only be the first step. Your support will be essential to our success.
ALPA-PAC is educating Members of Congress on this issue and building support for our position. Our opponents have spent millions of dollars building goodwill in Congress, hoping for an opportunity to break these laws. Our PAC must grow to effectively fight back. I hope you’ll consider joining the PAC today in order to secure the future of the U.S. airline industry.

Sincerely,
Michael Robbins
Director of Government Affairs, ALPA
 
How in the world is that a good deal for us Merkins ...sorry Americans.

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I look forward to working for Ryan Air USA! They only charge $0.50 for employees to use the lav, a 50% discount.
 
Speaking of NAFTA and Trucking. I'm currently sitting in the US/Mex border in Calexico, CA. Its 108 degrees and the tree hugging morons won't let me idle my truck and stay cooled off while I wait for Jose to bring my loaded trailer across the border (probably missing lights and a few other items.) :rolleyes:

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Speaking of NAFTA and Trucking. I'm currently sitting in the US/Mex border in Calexico, CA. Its 108 degrees and the tree hugging morons won't let me idle my truck and stay cooled off while I wait for Jose to bring my loaded trailer across the border (probably missing lights and a few other items.) :rolleyes:

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My dad makes a run down to Brownsville all the time for Frito Lay. He's plenty concerned about the quality and safety of Mexican trucks/drivers coming out of there.
 
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