Larry King Live and USAPA

SlumTodd_Millionaire

Most Hated Member
Did anybody else see this? USAPA put out a ridiculous ad in the USAToday this morning that claimed the company was punishing their Captains for asking for more fuel, so Larry King lead with the story tonight! Bad publicity all around!
 
Did anybody else see this? USAPA put out a ridiculous ad in the USAToday this morning that claimed the company was punishing their Captains for asking for more fuel, so Larry King lead with the story tonight! Bad publicity all around!
Here we go...
If it was ALPA they would be championing safety for the industry but since it's USAPA it's bad publicity.:banghead:
 
Mike, I saw the whole thing and USAPA really didn't look all that great.

When I was playing football we had media training days where they taught us to speak to the media properly. It was obvious, this USAPA guy didn't have this training.

This training is provided by ALPA by the way to its members if need be.
 
Here we go...
If it was ALPA they would be championing safety for the industry but since it's USAPA it's bad publicity.:banghead:

No, ALPA wouldn't have done this ad. You have to know the facts behind this. There is a small group of Captains on the East that are going on their own little vendetta against the company by doing all sorts of things to waste fuel. Several have decided to run the APU the entire way across the Atlantic on the A330. Had it been ALPA, the union would have gotten Pro Standards to take these guys aside and school them on how to act like professionals. USAPA, on the other hand, has decided to waste tens of thousands of dollars on a bad publicity campaign to harm the company, just to show them "who's boss."
 
No, ALPA wouldn't have done this ad. You have to know the facts behind this. There is a small group of Captains on the East that are going on their own little vendetta against the company by doing all sorts of things to waste fuel. Several have decided to run the APU the entire way across the Atlantic on the A330. Had it been ALPA, the union would have gotten Pro Standards to take these guys aside and school them on how to act like professionals. USAPA, on the other hand, has decided to waste tens of thousands of dollars on a bad publicity campaign to harm the company, just to show them "who's boss."

I totally agree, given the harsh time all the airlines are already facing.

It was funny when Larry ask (forgot her name already) if she think flying is safe, her response "no" ..Follow by Larry "would you fly tomorrow?" Her response "yes" hahaha what a joke she was.
 
ALPA trains people how to spin BS?

No

The media are professionals. In order to deal with professionals and not get backed into a corner, properly dictate your answers, and get your points across, it is imperative that you have a professional train you to properly answer these questions.
 
No, ALPA wouldn't have done this ad. You have to know the facts behind this. There is a small group of Captains on the East that are going on their own little vendetta against the company by doing all sorts of things to waste fuel. Several have decided to run the APU the entire way across the Atlantic on the A330. Had it been ALPA, the union would have gotten Pro Standards to take these guys aside and school them on how to act like professionals. USAPA, on the other hand, has decided to waste tens of thousands of dollars on a bad publicity campaign to harm the company, just to show them "who's boss."

I don't know the story of the eight pilots that had to go through retraining, nor do I know if they are purposely wasting fuel, but could this be a political move on USAPA's part? (Serious question)
 
ALPA trains people how to spin BS?

I would say the training is more along the lines of teaching how to deal with the media BS.

Not to say ALPA doesn't have its fair share of people who are able to spin BS, along with every other union, company, organization, etc.
 
My understanding is that they were international flights.

I'm watching Larry on Tivo and DP canceled, but they have the lovely and talented Mary Schiavo :rolleyes: on the line. DP schedules the interview to talk about fuel speculation, the USAPA ad goes to press on the morning of the interview, and DP cancels because of "scheduling."

Regardless of what is true, that's kinda fishy. Perception is the reality in the media, right?
 
It also came up on Nightline last night, a USAir Captain was talking about it and was blamming the senior pilots to pressure the rest of the pilot group to fly with less fuel.
 
I don't know the story of the eight pilots that had to go through retraining, nor do I know if they are purposely wasting fuel, but could this be a political move on USAPA's part? (Serious question)

I'm not sure I understand your question. Obviously any PR efforts are political in nature, but the question is whether it is a smart move or effective. I would argue that it is neither in this case, and it made all of us look bad.
 
The only refreshing thing about this is to see the pilot group do something bold to sway public opinion. I am not arguing the specific issue regarding fuel, it was just nice to see a pilot group do something somewhat militant on behalf of Captain's Authority. I have thought for a long time that ALPA has a pretty good story to tell the general public regarding their history of advances for the pilots and to tell a good story to refute the "pilots are over-paid" myth that management throws out all the time. I do not see a lot of action taken in this area by ALPA and it is a mistake. USAPA, for all their faults, actually stood up and did something bold - give them some credit for that at least.

As an aside - I was in DC this week, and walked past ALPA's building on the way to dinner. Nice building and real close to Dupont Circle. Anyone who has been there - I wonder if the homeless guys who play speed-chess in the circle are actually brighter than some of the people working in the nice ALPA building? Discuss
 
Crazy publicity stunts like this only harm our image. If you want to advance the idea of CA's authority, then making us look like a bunch of buffoons in the USAToday and on national television isn't the way to do it. Do you have any idea how much of an embarrassment it is going to be if Larry's producers get word that USAPA is only protecting a group of 8 trouble-makers that are purposefully wasting fuel? They'll lead with the story again and pilots will look like a bunch of immature children that can't resolve disputes like adults. They'll turn us into the reason that the airlines are failing. "Damned pilots are wasting fuel and causing the airlines to go out of business!" Oh, I can see the mess now.

The building you walked by isn't ALPA's headquarters. The HQ is down in Herndon. The building you saw isn't actually owned by ALPA anymore, but ALPA retains the rights to have their name on it and still rents an entire floor. As for the intelligence of the people there, that's where ALPA Legal does most of their work, and Paul Rice also spends a significant amount of time in that office. I would say that they are some of the most intelligent people you'll find in this business.
 
Todd you know your my boy, and I am a big fan of ALPA but the summer of love was not good.
 
Todd you know your my boy, and I am a big fan of ALPA but the summer of love was not good.

You're the man, Gonzo, but we're never going to agree on this. :) The Summer of Love was a thing of beauty. A masterful manipulation of the law, the circumstances, and PR to bring about the most expensive pilot contract in industry history (at the time). ALPA still teaches about the success of the Summer of Love when you go to ALPA Leadership Training as a new rep. It's one of ALPA's biggest successes.
 
Yeah sure, it was a good contract, but it was unsustainable, and even EF&A knew it. That specific contract made it really easy for companies to get the wages back down to where they are now.
 
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