The Last Mileage Run of the Year
Aug 26th
I’ve booked my last mileage run of the year: no surprise, it’s another trip to Seattle. 
I’ve lost track of how many trips I have made to the Pacific Northwest, but it is the longest non-stop flight that American Airlines (AA) offers from DFW in the lower 48, so it gives me the chance to earn the largest number of miles.
AA is running a sale that ends tonight, August 26, and I took advantage of it. Austin to DFW to Seattle and back for $251. That’s 2.91 cents per mile, not great, but these days I am thrilled to find any fare below 3 cents.
It’s a November 6 trip, I’ll fly out at 7 a.m., get to Seattle at 11:25 a.m., then fly out of there on the red-eye to DFW at 11:55 p.m., arriving back in Austin at 8 Sunday morning. Another long day, but a good close to the year.
People have recommended the Seattle Underground tour, I may take advantage of it on this trip. I’d love to do the tour of the Boeing plant, but since it is in Mukilteo, 25 miles northwest of Seattle, there is no easy way to get there without renting a car.
November in Seattle can be cold, particularly when compared to Central Texas, but I look forward to it nonetheless.
FAA’s New Tarmac Rule A Success
Aug 24th
Sometimes government regulations help, sometimes they hurt. Here is an example of the government getting involved and making a big difference for the consumer.
On rare occasions, airlines have, for one reason or another, left passengers stranded on aircraft, either at the gate or on the tarmac. I was once stuck on a British Airways flight at Heathrow for over seven hours before they decided the aircraft could not fly and switched us to another one. Other, more famous incidents include:
- August, 2009: 47 passengers were stranded overnight aboard a Continental Express plane at the Rochester, Minnesota airport. Their Houston to Minneapolis flight had been diverted due to bad weather. Once they arrived at Rochester they were not allowed off the plane for six hours, spending the night on the plane with no water and overflowing toilets.
- December, 2006: Kate Hanni, was stranded with her husband and two children for 9 hours on the tarmac in Austin, Texas. Hanni later went on to form FlyersRights.org, an organization dedicated to the creation of the Airline Passengers’ Bill of Rights. the bill would allow passengers in the US allows passengers the option of getting off delayed planes after 3 hours on the ground, and require airlines to provide adequate food, water, temperature controls, ventilation and working toilets to accommodate a 3-hour delay.
In response to these and other incidents, US Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced new rules in December 2009 that established a 3-hour time limit after which U.S. airlines must allow passengers to deplane from delayed domestic flights. In addition carriers would be required to provide adequate food and potable drinking water for passengers within two hours of the aircraft being delayed on the tarmac and to maintain operable lavatories and, if necessary, provide medical attention.
Passenger rights organizations supported the rules, the airlines opposed them saying that they would lead to additional flight cancellations. They argued that an airline faced with the possibility of a 3-hour tarmac delay of a flight, would simply cancel it rather than have to comply with the new rules. They took affect at the end of April 2010 and, so far, appear to be a great success.
May 2010 was the first full month of the rules being in affect. In May 2009 there were 34 tarmac times of more than three hours; in May 2010 there were only five. A subsequent Department of Transportation investigation determined that four of the five May flights were misreported by the airline.
In June 2009, the FAA reported 268 flight with tarmac delays of three hours or more. In June 2010, that number dropped to only three (all three were United flights at Chicago O’Hare on a day when winds exceeded 75 miles per hour.) As far as the increase in cancellations that the airlines had predicted, that did not happen. The airlines canceled 1.5 percent of their flights in June 2010, the same percentage as in June 2009.
So, tarmac delays dropped 85 percent in May, and then an incredible 99 percent in June. The airlines also reported a slightly higher percentage of on-time flights in June 2010 compared to June 2009. See the Department of Transportation’s press release for all the details.
Will the rules be as helpful four months from now when winter storms cause airports to shut down? We’ll see, but in the meantime the good news is that the rules are working exactly as intended. That’s good for the traveler, and whether they admit it or not, it’s good for the airlines too.
How Large is Emirates’ New Purchase?
Aug 13th
In my last post, I wrote about the huge orders that Emirates Airlines had placed in the last month. When these orders are filled, they will have 90 Airbus A-380s, and 101 Boeing 777s. It’s easy for me to say that’s a large order, but exactly how large is it?
First, let’s look at the capabilities of the two aircraft.
The 777 was the first commercial aircraft to be digitally designed. According to Boeing, “The Model 777, the first entirely new Boeing airplane in more than a decade, was the first jetliner to be 100 percent digitally designed using three-dimensional computer graphics. Throughout the design process, the airplane was “preassembled” on the computer, eliminating the need for a costly, full-scale mock-up.” Its first flight, in 1995, was with United Airlines. Its range is 4,210 (6,775 km) to 8,270 (13,309 km) miles, and it can seat 305 to 440 passengers.
This is a long-distance aircraft. American Airlines uses it on their longest non-stop flight, Chicago to New Delhi, 7,483 miles (12,042 km). Continental Airlines flies it from Newark to Hong Kong, 8,065 miles (12,979 km). Delta Airlines uses it to fly from Atlanta to Johannesburg, 8,439 miles (13,581 km).
The A-380 has similar numbers. According to Airbus the A-380, with 525 passengers, has a range of 8,200 nautical miles (15,200 km), allowing it to fly New York to Hong Kong.
With the range of these two aircraft, Emirates can offer non-stop service from Dubai to every city in North and South America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia. In other words, they can fly non-stop from Dubai to any major airport anywhere in the world. So now we know what their market is.
How large is their order compared to other airlines?
Emirates will have 101 777s. American Airlines currently has 47. British Airways also has 47.
Emirates has ordered 90 A-380s. The next two largest orders are Qantas with 20, Singapore Airlines with 19. (source: Airbus orders, June 2010)
Emirates will have more 777s than American Airlines and British Airways combined. Its A-380 order is more than four times the size of the next largest order. The numbers speak for themselves. If Emirates’ goal is not to dominate long-distance air travel worldwide, then they are certainly spending a lot of money on aircraft they won’t need.
Emirates has an advantage over many other airlines. According to an article in the Wall Street Journal, “Emirates is owned by the government of Dubai, which also owns the emirate’s airports. The ruling family has developed its aviation policies to promote Dubai as a global hub connecting far-flung markets. It allows almost any airline to land at its airport, which charges low fees. Dubai has no income tax or corporate tax. The low costs help Emirates against rivals in higher-cost markets.”
But the article also highlights efforts by Lufthansa to limit Emirates’ access to the German market, currently 4 cities (Hamburg, Munich, Frankfurt, and Dusseldorf). At the same time, Air Canada wants to limit Emirate’s access to the Canadian market, currently one city (Toronto).
For Emireates, the orders are placed and the aircraft are coming. Will other countries grant them access to their markets, or will national carriers such as Air Canada and Lufthansa try to limit them? This will be interesting to watch.
Will Emirates Dominate Long-Distance Air Travel?
Aug 11th
Emirates Airlines, with its headquarters in Dubai, is the largest airline in the Middle East. More importantly, it consistently earns some of the highest customer service rankings in the industry. Its configuration of the Airbus A-380 takes luxury to a new level, from suites with a shower and a dedicated lounge in first and business class to more than 1,200 channels of entertainment in coach.
In the past few years Dubai has done everything it can to establish itself as a world-class city with the tallest building in the world (the stunning Burj Khalifa), the only indoor ski slope in the Middle East (Ski Dubai), one of the most luxurious hotels in the world (the Burj Al Arab), and the largest man-made islands in the world, the incredible Palm Islands.
But all has not gone well. The tallest building was originally named the Burj Dubai, but with the collapse of the world economy in 2008, Dubai needed to get emergency funding from Abu Dhabi to complete the project. The building was renamed the Burj Khalifa as a show of appreciation to Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the President of the United Arab Emirates who helped arrange the financing. At the same time, many of the homes on the Palm Islands sit empty. Things have not gone as well as they had hoped.
Plainly, they “think big” in Dubai, and Emirates has followed that theme with its recent aircraft purchases that serve notice that it intends to be a major player in long-distance air travel.
In the past month Emirates has ordered 32 Airbus A-380s, this is in addition to the 58 it already has on order for a total of 90. No other airline has placed this kind of order. Emirates’ Airbus order is almost 3 times the number of A-380s currently in service worldwide (31).The order represents 40% of all A-380 orders
In addition, Emirates ordered 30 Boeing 777-300 aircraft; this is in addition to the 71 it had previously ordered, 53 of which are now in service. These two orders will give Emirates 101 777s, and 90 A-380s. These purchases may give Emirates the most modern fleet in the air.
An airline does not make this type of purchase so that it can expand service from Dubai to Kuwait City. It appears that Emirates’ goal is to dominate long-distance air travel across the world, with Dubai as a hub With new aircraft and outstanding customer service, Emirates may become the carrier of choice for many routes. (Are you traveling from Kuala Lumpur to Frankfurt? Fly Emirates through Dubai. Need to go from New York to Sydney? Fly Emirates through Dubai.) They have recently added or will soon add service to several cities in Europe, India, South Africa, and South America, including Prague, Amsterdam, Durban, Milan, Los Angeles, Cape Town, and São Paulo. With new aircraft and great service, why would you not want to fly Emirates?
But it goes beyond simply linking major cities. They not only want you to fly through Dubai, they want you to spend a few days there on your layover; their website is even offering hotel discounts to passengers who do a layover in Dubai.
Emirates is thinking big. Let’s hope they are more successful than some of Dubai’s recent big projects.
Saturday Mileage Run to San Jose
Jul 29th
I did another mileage run this weekend, this one to San Jose, California. American Airlines (AA) was not offering any great deals on this trip, but it was a better deal than most I had found lately, so I made the reservation. These would be easy miles, I’d get home Saturday evening, no red-eye from the West Coast.
Twenty-four hours before the trip began AA sent me the standard e-mail telling me that I could now check in for my flight. I’ve done this in the past, printing my boarding pass at home. Since I am flying without luggage, that means I can go straight to the security check-in line when I get to the terminal. Not needing to check in for my boarding pass saves anywhere from 5-15 minutes waiting on line. so it is a good deal.
I noticed that AA was offering a new service: they would send an electronic boarding pass to my smartphone. Interesting! So I tried it. Moments after hitting “submit” I received an e-mail from AA with a link to my electronic boarding passes. This page provides more information on the process and shows what the pass looks like.
I would be taking four flights, and had four boarding passes. Each contained the digital design at the top, with my name, flight number, seat number, etc. beneath it. I looked forward to seeing how it would work.
I drove to the airport and took the shuttle from the parking lot to the terminal, arriving a little before 5 a.m. My first stop was the security check-in line. When I got to the front the TSA agent asked to see my boarding pass and ID. I gave him my driver’s license, and told him my boarding pass was on my phone.
He smiled and said “Not a problem!” He turned on an electronic scanner/reader at the side of his desk, said “Let’s wait a moment for it to warm up,” and then “Place your phone under the scanner, screen up.”
I followed his instructions. After two seconds the reader beeped, signifying that it had read my pass, and the agent sent me on my way. I was impressed, the boarding pass worked!
After a short stay at the Admirals Club, it was time for me to board the aircraft. When I got to the front of the line I told the gate agent I had an electronic boarding pass. Rather than scanning it, she simply asked me for my name, I gave it to her, she entered me into the system, and I boarded the plane.
We had a smooth flight to DFW and landed on time. I took the SkyLink to Terminal D, and after a short wait, prepared to board my flight to San Jose.
When I checked in, I told the gate agent that I had the electronic boarding pass. The gate agent in Austin had not even tried to scan the pass, but they did try at DFW. I held my phone under the reader and no matter what we did, we never heard the beep signifying that the scanner had read it. After several failed attempts we finally gave up and she did the same as the Austin gate agent, asked me my name, entered it in the system, and then let me board.
So, I had tried to use the electronic pass three times. It worked great with the Austin TSA, the Austin gate agent did not even try to use it, and we could not get it to work at DFW. That was enough for me, when I got to San Jose I had them print my return boarding passes, at least I know they work.
We had a smooth uneventful flight to San Jose, arriving on time. I had flown through that airport several times before and it was not one of my favorites: the terminal was old, crowded, too small. I expected to see the same, but was in for a pleasant surprise.
Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport had been rebuilt with a brand new terminal! No more crowds, no more problems trying to walk past a gate but not being able to because there were so many people trying to board a flight. Those days are gone at SJC!
The spacious new terminal at Mineta International Airport in San Jose.
As travelers carry all sorts of electronic devices with them, one of the major problems they face is trying to find a place to recharge them at an airline terminal. It’s almost impossible to find an outlet at some airports. That is not a problem at San Jose.
Electrical outlets in the armrests of many of the seats st San Jose.
Many of the seats in the terminal have power outlets built into the armrests, making it very easy to recharge that phone or laptop. I have never seen this at any other airport, I wish more of them had this feature!
I had two-and-a-half hours before my flight back to DFW. I had coffee at Starbucks, ate a slice of pizza for lunch, and spent some time at the Admirals’ Club before going to the departure gate.
The flight back to DFW was on an MD-80, as were all my flights that day, It was an uneventful flight, landing 10 minutes early.
I went to the Skylink shuttle to change terminals. There are two Skylink routes, one going around the airport clockwise, the other counterclockwise. So, it doesn’t matter which line you use when changing terminals, they will both get you where you are going, but one will get you there a few minutes faster. I went to the station and heard the announcement that the Skylink line I needed was out of order. No big deal, I simply took train in the other direction and got a grand tour of DFW.
DFW's Skylink takes you from terminal to terminal in 6 minutes or less.
After a quick stop at the Admirals Club I boarded the flight to Austin, and was on the ground an hour later.
All of my flights this day were almost completely full, not unusual considering that AA’s current capacity level is 86%. The bad news, at least for me, is that the high capacity rate lets the airlines keep fares much higher than last year, making mileage runs more difficult to find
This was a good mileage run: I took four flights, never ran into turbulence, and three flights arrived on time while the fourth was early. The worst thing that happened was the poor performance of the electronic boarding pass. All in all, it was a good day.
KFC Logo Visible From Space!
Jul 14th
The small town of Rachel, Nevada, has something that no other town anywhere in the world has: a KFC logo so large that it is supposedly visible from space! Want to see it? Here’s what to do.
- Go to Google Maps
- Enter 37.646188,-115.750709 in the location bar. (These are the geographic coordinates, 36.6 degrees north, 115.7 degrees west) of the logo.
- Click on Search Maps
- Voila! There’s the logo!
According to Wikipedia, KFC built the logo in 2006 to mark the debut of a “massive global re-image campaign that will contemporize 14,000 plus KFCs around the world.” The logo was built in 6 days from 65,000 one-foot-square tiles.
When you zoom in you’ll see an 18-wheeler parked to the left of the Colonel, and the shadows (next to his ear) of two people looking at the logo.
This Saturday I am doing a mileage run to San Jose, California. It doesn’t look like a flight from DFW to SJC will fly over the logo, but a St. Louis to San Francisco flight might. I’ll bring a copy of this article and give it to the flight crew: who knows, maybe bad weather will divert us north.
Thanks to MentalFloss.com for finding the story!
This is the Time to Apply For the Starwood American Express Card
Jul 13th
One of the easiest ways to earn hotel points and airline miles is with an affinity credit card. Perhaps you already have one: my first was the American Airlines MasterCard with which I earned one AAdvanatage mile for every dollar I spent. For several years I made almost all of my purchases on that card: food, gas, cell phone service, etc, and then paid it off at the end of the month, thus avoiding any interest fees. The miles I earned by doing that paid for two trips to Hawaii for Mrs. HappyFlier and I!
Several years ago I switched to the Starwood American Express Card as my primary charge card. It has many advantages over the AAdvantage Mastercard. The Starwood AmEx not only allows me to earn Starwood hotel points (one for every dollar I charge) that I can use at any of the 800+ Starwood properties around the world (including Sheraton, Westin, W, Le Meridien, and St. Regis hotels, to name a few) but also allows me to earn airline miles. I can transfer my Starwood points to any one of 30+ airlines and earn miles on a one-to-one basis, But, and this is a big but, if I transfer 20,000 Starwood points to the airline, I’ll get 25,000 airline miles, a 25% bonus! So, every dollar I spend on the Starwood card is both more flexible and more valuable than a dollar I spend on the AAdvantage Mastercard.
The Starwood American Express is so good that it has repeatedly won the prestigious Freddy Award as the Best Affinity Credit Card. A list of the numerous SPG membership benefits shows what makes the program so good.
I’ve used my Starwood points to stay in Hong Kong, in a suite in Bangkok, in a two-story villa in Phuket, and in a suite in Nassau. I would not have been able to do this without the points I earned from the Starwood American Express.
This is the time to apply
Starwood and American Express have combined to make the card an even better deal. Open an account now and earn an extra 25,000 Starwood points! You’ll get 10,000 bonus points when you make your first purchase, and an additional 15,000 points when you charge $15,000 on the card in the first six months. This is an unbelievable deal, one you should not pass up. Visit this page to apply for the card.
If you spend the money and earn the bonus points listed above, you’ll have 40,000 Starwood points (25,000 bonus points, plus 15,000 for your spending). What can you do with 40,000 points?
You can convert them to 50,000 airline miles, or you can use it for a free stay at a hotel. For that many points you could get five free nights at, for example, the Westin Bonaventure Hotel & Suites in Los Angeles. Or you can also used them to get reduced rates (cash plus points) on your hotel stays. Check the list of SPG membership benefit for the complete details.
If you spend $30,000 a year on your card, you’ll earn automatic Gold Status with Starwood.
The Starwood American Express card is, quite simply, the best card you can carry. The bonus 25,000 points makes it an even better deal. Apply for yours today! This offer expires July 31, 2010.
Triple EQMs on New Mileage Run
Jul 4th
One of the comments I received on my last post (“Finally – I’ve Found a Mileage Run“) came from Bo who asked “How about AUS-ORD-LGA using the triple EQM promo for ORD/BOS-LGA flights?” Great question!
American Airlines and Delta are competing for traffic on the New York La Guardia (LGA) – Chicago O’Hare (ORD) route. Delta offered triple miles and triple elite qualifying miles, (EQMs) and American matched the offer. It runs until August 31.
I checked the price for the remaining Saturdays; it sounds like a great deal, but at $399, it still came to 4.8 cents per mile, including the triple miles, and that’s not a great deal. I checked the price for the remaining Sundays during the promotional period, and actually found a better deal for August 29, the last Sunday of the promotional period. The price was $350, and I could get an additional 10% off using the Century in the Making promotion. It’s still not a great deal, but I desperately need the EQMs and the triple EQMs between ORD and LGA would come in handy.
I used the multi-city feature at AA.com. found an itinerary I liked that would get me home that evening, and I decided to book it. But there was one problem, I was not able to enter the Century in the Making promotional code to get my 10% discount.
I called the AA Platinum desk to ask how to use the 10% discount and was told it was not available on multi-city bookings; it could only be used on round trip reservations. I’m not sure why that policy is in place or what sense it makes, but I had to deal with it.
So, I went back to AA.com and changed my search criteria from AUS-ORD-LGA-ORD-AUS to a more simple AUS-LGA round trip. I looked farther into the listings and sure enough, I found the exact same itinerary through ORD that I had found when using the multi-city feature. And, I could get the 10% discount because I was now booking it as a round trip ticket instead of a multi-city ticket, even though it was the exact same flight. (Note to American Airlines: that doesn’t make any sense!)
My final cost for the ticket was $331. Not great, even with the triple miles between ORD and LGA, it’s almost 4 cents per mile. But I’ll also earn triple EQMs for those segments which will change my total EQMs for the trip from 3,422 to 6,354. Since my biggest need at this time is not miles but EQMs, that will be a big help.
With no business travel this year, and American not offering system-wide double EQMs as they did last year, I’ve given up on making Platinum again this year. But this trip will make it much easier for me to at least make Gold. I won’t get my double miles next year, but I’ll still be able to board early and won’t have to pay luggage fees. I’ll take it.
On another note I saw that American is trying to build business from several cities. For the rest of the year, they are offering triple miles and double EQMs on all trips originating and terminating in St. Louis, Pittsburgh, Nashville, or Raleigh-Durham. Any time American wants to offer that from AUS, I’ll be happy to accept!
Finally – I’ve Found a Mileage Run
Jun 20th
This has not been a good year for mileage runs. Fewer planes are flying, fares are higher, fewer seats are available.
For years, my goal has been to find a flight in the low two cents per mile range or lower. The last time I spent a serious amount of time looking, I couldn’t even find a flight below 4 cents per mile. Today I managed to find a flight below 3.5 cents per mile. Not great, and in most years I would not even consider it, but it’s a good deal by current standards.
I found a trip to San Jose (SJC) on July 17. I’ll leave Austin at 6 a.m., return home at 8 p.m. that evening with a connection both ways at DFW. A three-hour layover at SJC will not allow me to leave the airport and go into town, but it will give me enough time to eat lunch without being rushed. The ticket cost $280; with my Platinum bonus that came to 3.61 cents per mile. Not great, but better than many I have found , particularly for that time of year when ticket prices are so much higher.
I used a 10% discount coupon that I earned for voting in the Century in the Making promotion. That lowered the fare to $257 and a cost per mile of 3.32.
Is this a great mileage run? Absolutely not!
But I’ll earn more than 3,700 EQMs, and 7,750 total miles; I really need those EQMs! My hope at the start of the year had been to again earn Platinum status in 2010; I need 50,000 EQMs to do that. Since it is June and I am only at 13,000 EQMs, I can give up on Platinum unless American offers its double EQM promotion again.
So, my new goal is to earn at least 25,000 miles and achieve Gold status for next year. With this trip I’ll have almost 17,000 miles, putting Gold within reach. All I need to do now is find those 8,000 EQMs.
Possible Strike by American Airlines Flight Attendants – the Union Speaks Out
Jun 14th
Let me begin this post by saying that I am not now nor have I ever been an employee of American Airlines (AA), the AMR corporation, or any of its subsidiaries. But that did not stop me from getting an e-mail from Laura Glading, the President of the Association of Professional Flight Attendants (APFA).
Background: The APFA members are currently working for AA without a contract. AA and the APFA opened contract negotiations in accordance with Section 6 of the Railway Labor Act in February 2008. More than two years later, they have not yet reached an agreement. APFA members recently voted overwhelmingly to go on strike at American Airlines. In response, AA asked many of its management personnel to volunteer to take flight attendant training so they could help keep the planes flying in case of a strike. That’s where my letter from Ms. Glading comes in.
For some reason. I’ve ended up on an AFPA mailing list of AA management; she wrote to me to give the AFPA’s side of the dispute, and to ask me not to work as a flight attendant during a possible strike.
The letter began with a “Dear Coworker” salutation. It continues:
“Recently, American Airlines sent out a call to management staff to voluntarily train as replacement Flight Attendants in the event of a strike by APFA members. As the President of APFA, and on behalf of our membership of over 17,000 of your fellow employees at American, I implore you to weigh carefully any consideration you give to answering this call.
“Like AA’s management staff, APFA Flight Attendants have a long history building American Airlines. We are all working hard for this company, and we rely on the teamwork that all American’s employees bring to our jobs. Before you volunteer to replace Flight Attendants in the event of a potential strike, it is vital that you get all the facts about what Flight Attendants have gone through in these negotiations and what we are resolutely trying to achieve.
“Flight Attendants are dedicated to our jobs and to American Airlines. We do not want to strike; no one ever wants to strike. However, after seven years struggling under the sacrifices that we have all made for the survival of our airline, we feel strongly we must now take a stand not just for our profession and our futures, but for the futures of all of us.
“Our industry has seen unprecedented lows this past decade, from which we are just now beginning to see a slow and long-anticipated turn-around. American’s very survival through these difficult times bears witness to the perseverance, allegiance and commitment of its work force in all divisions. This work force now deserves to see its future security and prosperity rewarded in working agreements which move toward rebuilding our careers and the financial stability we have put on hold for so long.
“We are not different from you, nor from working Americans across this country. Given what has happened to employees throughout our industry—reflecting the same economic malaise affecting our nation—we feel we are truly standing up for the broader middle class.
“Very simply put: if not now, then when? We are not expecting or demanding an overnight reversal of fortune. But we cannot sit idly by and ignore the promises made by management that this company will prosper and that the employees that sacrificed so much would also share in the prosperity. Our proposals to the company are reasonable and will provide the foundation on which to see Flight Attendants and their families’ living standards and future secured
“Make no mistake. This is about more than just Flight Attendants at American Airlines. It extends to all workers in every facet of the company: from your work place, to the planes we fly, to the airports and to the ramps. It’s about a lifestyle we have all crafted and merit, one in which we don’t live paycheck to paycheck with constant worries about tomorrow. It’s about being able to pay our mortgages and bills and provide for our loved ones. In this, your goals and ours are surely the same.
“American has chosen to negotiate in the media, claiming what APFA is asking for will bankrupt our airline. That is absolutely not true. It’s the last thing Flight Attendants want. We are well aware of the competitive nature of the airline industry and we want American to prosper. Some progress was achieved, in fact, in our recent negotiations, but the Company’s latest proposal will not make us the highest paid in the industry, as management has claimed. That’s not even close. In fact, it will leave our pay, benefits and work rules well below where they were in 2003, when we all made concessions to bail out American.
“This is your struggle too. APFA members are fighting to raise the standard of living for all workers at American. So please think twice before you decide to volunteer to be a replacement Flight Attendant.”
You can find American Airlines’ view of the ongoing negotiations at this website.
Why did I receive that letter from Ms. Glading? I don’t know.
I have no doubt that APFA members are working hard for the company and are dedicated to their jobs and to American Airlines. I also have no doubt that management is doing its best to get the company through a difficult time. Somewhere, there must be a common ground between the two sides. Unfortunately, after more than two years of negotiations helped by a federal mediator, some common ground has been found, but not enough to put a new contract in place.
American is my airline of choice and I hope it succeeds and, along with its employees, thrives in the coming years. Neither side benefits from a strike. I don’t know enough about the issues to say who is right or wrong: all I can say is I hope they are able to reach a resolution soon. More than two years of negotiations is enough.
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