September 21, 2000 Hotline

September 21, 2000

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Golf Tournament
Hats off to Membership Committee Chairman Kyle Sims and his team for putting together
yesterday’s first annual “Drive for Unity” golf tournament. If you
didn’t attend the event, which was held at the Phantom Horse Golf Course at South
Mountain, you missed a great opportunity for fun, fellowship, and solidarity. We look
forward to more of these events from Kyle and the Membership Committee.

PBS

A comprehensive information package
covering the bidding procedures for bids 172-174 will be distributed to all pilot
mailboxes later this week. Also, a handout discussing new bid options and a new version of
the Bidder Interface will be placed in pilot mailboxes as soon as the PBS Committee has
completed testing of the new version.

This is the last stage in what has been
a long period of PBS development. ALPA and management are currently developing the joint
“satisfaction survey,” plus the MEC plans to conduct its own independent vote on
whether or not to turn PBS on. All pilots are strongly encouraged to participate in both
the poll and the vote when the time comes.

LEC Elections

For a list of the candidates, visit the
Decision 2000 LEC Candidates web page on the MEC web site at www.awalpa.org.

Flight Pay Loss

737 Rudder Fix

America West has informed us that the
rudder replacements for all of its 737s will gradually be fazed in to each aircraft’s
regular heavy maintenance schedule. The entire 737 fleet should be completed by 2006.

Political Activism

Senator McCain went on to say,
“And you know what saddens me the most? A large number of these pilots are former
military whose code is supposed to be duty, honor, and country. Now they take actions
without a thought for the Americans that rely upon them to ferry their families across the
country for a family vacation, attend a wedding, or be at the side of a sick
relative.”

Senator McCain has plainly shown why
contributing to the ALPA PAC is so important. This is just one of the most recent examples
of how politicians can directly affect our livelihood. And if it weren’t for ALPA
President Duane Woerth defending us, and all pilots, at these hearings, our voices would
surely not have been heard. By contributing to the ALPA PAC, you can do your part in
making sure the interests of ALPA pilots are protected. I would strongly urge all pilots
to consider how they plan to vote in the next few months. Putting your head in the sand
won’t make the obligation go away. Just ask the pilots at Eastern and Continental
about getting involved in politics.

That’s it for this week. The next
hotline update will be on Thursday, September 28th. Thanks for listening.

• Golf Tournament
• PBS
• LEC Elections
• Flight Pay Loss
• 737 Rudder Fix
• Political Activism

		MEC Hotline
		Good evening, this is MEC Vice Chairman Bill Archer with the hotline message for Thursday, September 21st. Tonight’s topics are: The MEC and management have agreed to begin “test-flying” PBS lines for three bid periods, beginning with bid period 172. ALPA and management both agree that three bid periods is the optimal number to best evaluate the PBS system. So, for bid periods 172, 173, and 174 there will be no paper bid lines, no A days, and no low-line adjustment process. This is PBS for real. If you have questions, call the PBS Help Desk. Once again, if you’re interested in running for an LEC position in the upcoming election, you must submit your name by the October 10th local council meeting. That meeting will be held at the Doubletree Hotel in Phoenix. Any pilot in good standing is eligible to run for union office. So far, we have 10 candidates for captain rep; six candidates for first officer rep; and three candidates for secretary-treasurer. You will be receiving a blank nomination ballot in the mail. Take the time to fill in the names of candidates you would like to see run for office. Make sure you talk to the person you would like to nominate to make sure they would be willing to serve if elected. Keep in mind that the pilots elected will have a direct impact on your future here at America West and the direction our Negotiating Committee takes in contract negotiations. So get involved and vote. The flight pay loss fund is now up to more than $127,000. 552 captains and 690 first officers have contributed, for a total of 1,242 pilot donors. If you have not yet contributed, please do so soon. It’s just one credit hour per calendar year. Call Sandi at the MEC office to make a donation. MEC Chairman Roger Cox has spent this week in Seattle getting details from Boeing on the recently announced rudder replacement for the 737s. The 737 has a well-deserved reputation for safety, and this decision by the FAA and Boeing to completely replace the aircraft’s rudder assemblies will help eliminate potential problems, and allow 737 pilots to more effectively deal with rudder control events. Last Thursday, Arizona Senator and Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John McCain made the following comments. “This year, more than ever, airline employees have caused enormous delays. Recently, the pilots at United have undertaken work stoppages to satisfy their personal greed. Last year, pilots at American engaged in similar tactics. And who bears the brunt of these stoppages? Middle America. Average Americans plan for months to take vacations, only to be greeted at the airport by canceled flights and lost vacations due to pilot greed.”