Re: ExpressJet Holdings to close ExpressJet Airlines Sept 2
I'll be going kicking and screaming back to coex... I've been quiet over the past few months during the internal turmoil that we've been going through. I'm a mod on our pilot's forums, so I try to keep things upbeat and factual. That's been difficult recently as you can imagine.
This really hits hard though, and I feel for the guys toward the bottom of the list, many of whom are current posters here and some of which I personally have written letters of recommendation for.
That said... our union is top notch and is aggressively persuing any and all furlough mitigating options with the company, and they appear to be listening. Kudo's to the company for actually informing us pilot's of this news straight from the CEO's mouth prior to the news releases.
Although I don't advocate posting internal memo's... here's a part of one that I received today that I think is OK to throw out there:
Although our crews performed superbly and helped meet all of the revenue targets the Company had set for the operation, ...the increase in fuel cost had made it cost prohibitive to continue. Talking to the gathered employees in Ontario, Mr. Ream said, “What you did on the West Coast was breathtaking. You deserve better than the outcome.”
I couldn't agree more.
Load factors were on a pace that exceeded all expectations, and I personally worked and flew with a great number of guys/gals that took great pride, and a keen personal interest in branded doing well. It always does my heart good when I greet the passengers at the end of every flight and I consistently hear about what a great company, airline, flight attendant, etc. we have. You could actually feel the customers pushing for us to succeed...
Wrong time I guess... that's what this whole industry is about, right? Timing.
ExpressJet continues to be a great company to work for, we still have some awesome people, a nice contract, a great union, and a management team that 90% of our workgroup respects. We will hunker down and survive under the coex umbrella for a while... but I suspect that down the road we will be stronger, especially with the removal of the MFN clause and the ability to fly any aircraft into and out of CAL hubs.
Timing... it's not good now... but I still advocate this profession. I trained to become a pilot in the aftermath of 9/11, airlines furloughing left and right, concessionary contracts, and other airlines going out of business. Everyone thought I was crazy... my family, my friends, and even my co-workers. My wife supported me 100% through it all... and as a result, I was at the head of a great hiring wave.
That will happen again... this industry is cyclical after all. However, it really sucks that in the meantime, we will lose a lot of really great folks who have, or will soon become, frustrated with "the game".
It's time for all of us JC "oldtimers" to return to the role of supporters and mentors that the ones before us were. We need to keep the dream alive, and we have a wonderful conduit right here, thanks to D&K. The petty squables need to be put in check for a while and our attention as a collective needs to be turned toward the support of those in our midst who we all helped, mentored, and convinced to get into this profession and who will be directly affected by the current state of this industry.
Hang in there everyone, no matter what airline you work (or worked) for... keep your chins up... and keep being the best you can be, no matter what you do.
I'd still rather be doing nothing else for a living.
As always... Fly safe!
Bob