Skywest, ASA, Expressjet Merger?

FlyChicaga said:
Is that all the Delta and US Airways and United and Continental and Pinnacle and Colgan and Compass and Trans States and Mesaba guys talk about all day?
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You know, I've flown with quite a few FNWA guys, never discussed the merger, did the work, enjoyed a nice afternoon during a European layover and didn't even blink.

Mergers solely benefit management. They'll take bonuses, pat themselves on the back, enjoy the spoils of their ventures. The rest of us, no matter how we kick, scream, chug koolaid or spit vitriol, it's so far out of our hands it's not even funny.

Does anyone think USAir is really about ALPA versus USAPA? It's about Parker learning from his old ways of knowing that "a fractured group is a cheap group" because they're too busy fighting amongst themselves than demanding a better contract.

A merger is only there to make the people who control the money at either carrier, richer. There's nothing about synergies, or "two great tastes that taste great together" like a Reeses peanut butter cup or any "peaches and cream" MikeD-Says-KILL-the-touchy-feelie jazz like that.

It's all about bonuses, stock options and maximizing dollars in Harvard B-school grad's pockets. You might get a scrap or two, but when you've got a bowl of trip from the freshly slaughtered cow, the man in the bespoke suit has got the big roast steamship of beef dabbing little yummy flecks of creamy horseradish over the thickly sliced, perfectly medium rare flesh.

It's nothing personal, it's just some animals are more equal than others on the big animal farm.

It'll work out. It's not as "OMG this is the best thing EVAR!!!!!" as some think, and it's not "The End Of Days Buy Gold NOW, tuk ur jawbz and R jumpseats" like others think.

It is what it is. Fly airplanes, move up the food chain, drink beer.

Myocardial infarctions over non-controllable crap can really eff up your day.

Doug Taylor. Merger Survivor. Rush Chairman.
 
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FlyChicaga said:
Is that all the Delta and US Airways and United and Continental and Pinnacle and Colgan and Compass and Trans States and Mesaba guys talk about all day?
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Around here, it's one of the top topics of conversation. We're just trying to figure out a) what the company is thinking by saying they want one list and TWO contracts b) where things are gonna fall and c) how the company is gonna attempt to screw over all three pilot groups at once. The senior guys are worried they'll go from 18-19 days off down to 15-16 days off, and the junior guys are worried they'll either never upgrade or never get off reserve. The guys comfortably in the middle don't really care either way.

Me personally, I'm just trying to get the frak out as fast as I can....
 
FlyChicaga said:
So the evening after the merger was announced, we were finishing up a 15+ hour duty day at 1:00AM, and were kindly waiting in the van for a SkyWest crew from DEN who arrived about the same time as us. While standing on the curb, I turned to my crew and said, "If we start talking about the merger AT ALL on this ride, I'm opening the door and jumping out of the van." Seriously, I know it's big news, but must that be ALL we talk about?

Is that all the Delta and US Airways and United and Continental and Pinnacle and Colgan and Compass and Trans States and Mesaba guys talk about all day?

Personally, I'm going to just keep going to work the same as I did yesterday and the same as I did the day before yesterday. When something comes to a vote, I'll vote. Until then, I hope all my paychecks are deposited on time, and I hope I don't get reassigned into a day off. There is no reason to get all riled up right now about things that are a) out of our control at the moment, and b) not going to be an issue for months.
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The problem isn't with talking about these issues, because this merger is going to have a huge affect on lots of people. The problem is that most of what people are saying is a fantastic combo of outright incorrect and conjecture.

It is, quite frankly, hilarious to watch pilots attempt to reason out how this merger is going to go. One list? Two lists? Three lists? Shoving ALPA down Skywest's throat!? Oh but Skywest would NEVER do this unless they knew that they could get away with it! ASA bought XJT, not SKW! ZOMG! What will the callsign be? How about "Whipsaw 3243" (I'll admit, that's my favorite so far). Blah blah blah blah blah.

So allow me to cut through the BS, guys; lawyers don't get everything right, we have no idea WHAT Skywest's attorneys told them, and they could well be posturing in order to scare the crap out of us because WE DON'T HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT WE'RE DOING. We fly airplanes, we don't litigate contracts, and thus they know that fear and misinformation will fly.

So it's not that we need to not talk about this, it's that we need to have reasonable, rational discussions about topics we have become educated on. So if you want to get started with that, call your reps and ask them if we're going to have one list. Even if they don't know now, they probably will within a few weeks as OUR attorneys start to churn through the data. With an issue as complex as this, it will probably take a TEAM of attorneys a few weeks to figure out exactly what positions each party holds.
 
My point is, there is no reason to get stressed out about things that are not within our control. There are some things that ARE in our control, but I see people getting all tied in knots worrying about stuff in which we have no say.

Yes, this could have a profound effect on all of us, both positive and negative. However, let's not give ourselves ulcers worrying about it. Calmly handle what we can control, and spend the rest of our energy worrying about what's really important: Home, friends, family, and life outside work. This is not the end of the world.

Seriously, I heard people freaking out in the crew room about what color our uniforms will be now, or what our ATC callsign will be. I mean, really???

While we're on the subject though, I think our new callsign should be "Synergy."

"Synergy 5938, you are cleared to land runway 27L." :cool:
 
FlyChicaga said:
My point is, there is no reason to get stressed out about things that are not within our control. There are some things that ARE in our control, but I see people getting all tied in knots worrying about stuff in which we have no say.

Yes, this could have a profound effect on all of us, both positive and negative. However, let's not give ourselves ulcers worrying about it. Calmly handle what we can control, and spend the rest of our energy worrying about what's really important: Home, friends, family, and life outside work. This is not the end of the world.

Seriously, I heard people freaking out in the crew room about what color our uniforms will be now, or what our ATC callsign will be. I mean, really???

While we're on the subject though, I think our new callsign should be "Synergy."

"Synergy 5938, you are cleared to land runway 27L." :cool:
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srsly, dude.

But I still like "Whipsaw" :)
 
FlyChicaga said:
My point is, there is no reason to get stressed out about things that are not within our control. There are some things that ARE in our control, but I see people getting all tied in knots worrying about stuff in which we have no say.

Yes, this could have a profound effect on all of us, both positive and negative. However, let's not give ourselves ulcers worrying about it. Calmly handle what we can control, and spend the rest of our energy worrying about what's really important: Home, friends, family, and life outside work. This is not the end of the world.

Seriously, I heard people freaking out in the crew room about what color our uniforms will be now, or what our ATC callsign will be. I mean, really???

While we're on the subject though, I think our new callsign should be "Synergy."

"Synergy 5938, you are cleared to land runway 27L." :cool:
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You know what you can control? The spike!
 
mrivc211 said:
Also, does anyone have any info on Island Air?
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Oh yeah!!!!

Island Air
Two questions:

First: How to apply? E-mail? Snail mail address? And any contact in HR to confirm a resume has been received?

Second: How much flight time do IA pilots fly on average per month? Per year?

Thanks!
:rawk:
 
What's the deal? C8 ain't cuttin' it for ya? Here's some info for ya:

Island Air's address:

Island Air
Attn: Joe Edwards
99 Kapalulu Place
Honolulu HI 96819

At Island Air, you'll fly around 500-600 hours a year average if you're a bid line guy. More if you pick up OT, less if you don't want to work. Things have changed there since I've been there, but it's still a not a bad place. If you want to work for Aloha, that's one of the best moves you can make.

Upgrade time required is 2500TT and 1000ME with 500 in type (I believe). So it may take you a while to upgrade. The good thing is, attrition is pretty high as long as Aloha is hiring. You should move up the seniority list pretty quick.

Pay is your classic regional pay... I think you start around $20/hr or so. Maybe a current WP pilot could chime in here, but this is one place where you can count on spending every night at home in your own bed. If you're married and have kids, and wife can make a decent living, you'd really enjoy Island Air as you'd never miss holidays at home and family things.

That's about all I can think of... good luck!
 
mrivc211 said:
What's the deal? C8 ain't cuttin' it for ya? Here's some info for ya:

Island Air's address:

Island Air
Attn: Joe Edwards
99 Kapalulu Place
Honolulu HI 96819

At Island Air, you'll fly around 500-600 hours a year average if you're a bid line guy. More if you pick up OT, less if you don't want to work. Things have changed there since I've been there, but it's still a not a bad place. If you want to work for Aloha, that's one of the best moves you can make.

Upgrade time required is 2500TT and 1000ME with 500 in type (I believe). So it may take you a while to upgrade. The good thing is, attrition is pretty high as long as Aloha is hiring. You should move up the seniority list pretty quick.

Pay is your classic regional pay... I think you start around $20/hr or so. Maybe a current WP pilot could chime in here, but this is one place where you can count on spending every night at home in your own bed. If you're married and have kids, and wife can make a decent living, you'd really enjoy Island Air as you'd never miss holidays at home and family things.

That's about all I can think of... good luck!
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:offtopic:, but Aloha, or Hawaiian?
 
This thread was getting kinda lame, but has quickly turned awesome by going old school Island Air. Maybe this thread now has what it takes to reach 100+ pages. :)
 
Yes!! Longest FI thread EVER. Nothing will ever surpass it. :)

I haven't been on that site in a long time. Is that thread still alive? Or did it die with all Hawaiian aviation dreams when Go! came on scene?
 
FlyChicaga said:
Yes!! Longest FI thread EVER. Nothing will ever surpass it. :)

I haven't been on that site in a long time. Is that thread still alive? Or did it die with all Hawaiian aviation dreams when Go! came on scene?
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Congrats on starting the longest aviation thread in history. I'm pretty sure it's still around. Finding out what everyone is talking about between pages 10 through 160+ is on my bucket list :D
 
Doug Taylor said:
A merger is only there to make the people who control the money at either carrier, richer. There's nothing about synergies, or "two great tastes that taste great together" like a Reeses peanut butter cup or any "peaches and cream" MikeD-Says-KILL-the-touchy-feelie jazz like that.
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precisely.

It'll work out. It's not as "OMG this is the best thing EVAR!!!!!" as some think, and it's not "The End Of Days Buy Gold NOW, tuk ur jawbz and R jumpseats" like others think.
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Agree. And I'm headed up to the Show Low/Happy Jack/Mogollon Rim high-country area again tomorrow Doug, if you'd like me to bury more ammunition, food and krugerrands for you than what we already have there.
 
Hootie said:
Congrats on starting the longest aviation thread in history. I'm pretty sure it's still around. Finding out what everyone is talking about between pages 10 through 160+ is on my bucket list :D
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Page 4494 of 4494 for the "latest and greatest at Delta" thread over on APC. We've got a LOOOOONG way to go before we hit "longest aviation thread in history." :) That thread spans three YEARS.
 
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