Originally Posted by Bucking Bar

We were separate airlines then ... whether or not NWA had pilots on furlough bypass was of no consequence to Delta's growth and hiring pre-merger.

I am glad our furloughees* are back and I also glad we restored their longevity, they are returning to a much better deal than the job they bypassed. Not only did we keep their seat warm (and it is their's) but we improved their compensation and working conditions.

IMHO, the "thanks" should cut both ways.

Originally Posted by gloopy

So its pretty much move along, nothing to see here, and welcome back.

I don't think BB was implying anything adversarial either way. If anyone on this board is about unity its him.

Originally Posted by buzzpat

Uh, ahem, never mind. I greatly appreciate your posts and knowledge of our industry. I think you greatly misunderstand how the furloughs went down.

Originally Posted by gloopy

IMO the big threat with this type of crony corporatism, taxpayer gift to foreign megalomaniacs isn't so much the convenience factor on the front end as it is the seamless tie ins on the other end. Namely JB, VX, possibly SW and the never ending stream of start ups which in the future will likely be as heavily subsidized by said foreign carriers as the law allows. And there will only be more pressure applied in the corrupt process to relax the existing limits.

No one is going to choose EY (or whoever) just because they can clear there instead of here. What this does, however, is allow much greater so called LCC tie ins with airlines that don't typically have large presences with customs facilities.

We will look back at the last 5 or 6 years as incredibly easy compared to the next 5 to 10. Our biggest threat, far beyond pre clearance gifts to fake royal airlines that bribe us with our own money, and even far beyond the lower than scumbag operators like NAI, will be finding management teams that can move past the insanely unsustainable paradigm of endless YoY RASM growth by any means necessary (i.e. capacity dicipline).

Going forward its going to get ugly and there will be pressures on yields that no amount of capacity trimming will solve. We will have to take it to them with extreme prejudice, running some out of markets at a cost, and driving others to liquidation. Or they will do it to us. The biggest threat is how soon the collective MBA bonus mongers in the industry, high on the capacity yield gravy train, can turn around their own mentality and adapt their playbook.

Originally Posted by daldude

What are you saying "maybe next time". I for one hope there is not a next time. Once is enough for me. How sad is it that Delta pilots are upset that people who were furloughed and had theirs and their family's lives virtually ruined are mad that they are coming back to positions like the MD88B and 717B and 737B.

I can honestly say it never occurred to me that people were mad when we came back from furlough or furlough bypass.

So dash 8 what would you propose we do "next time" to the furloughees?

How was seniority not honored had they not been furloughed they would have been on property and bid what they wanted.

Originally Posted by Bucking Bar

No Sir, I did not misunderstand. I understood (and wrote) long before they happened. I did my best to advise the Captains, that "hey boss you've set the altitude alert below the MEA." so many times.

Divided = we fail
Unified = we win

The math is so easy.

Originally Posted by buzzpat

Bar,

I truly appreciate your approach and your foresight. I also agree that unified is the only way. My comment about you not understanding is really based on the tenet that if you haven't been there, you can't go there. We had guys taking their lives and leaving families behind. It was horrid. So, while I appreciate your sentiment, most of us don't feel that there are thanks owed both ways. This is not directed at you....hundreds of Delta and NWA guys were kicked to the curb and younger, less experienced guys accelerated their careers at regionals because of that. Fine, that's life and that's definitely the career we have embarked upon. Please understand that guys who were hired years before your peers and are choosing to come back ( many senior to me BTW) are owed every possible advantage as is detailed in our PWA.

Regards,
Buzz

Originally Posted by buzzpat

Bar,

I truly appreciate your approach and your foresight. I also agree that unified is the only way. My comment about you not understanding is really based on the tenet that if you haven't been there, you can't go there. We had guys taking their lives and leaving families behind. It was horrid. So, while I appreciate your sentiment, most of us don't feel that there are thanks owed both ways. This is not directed at you....hundreds of Delta and NWA guys were kicked to the curb and younger, less experienced guys accelerated their careers at regionals because of that. Fine, that's life and that's definitely the career we have embarked upon. Please understand that guys who were hired years before your peers and are choosing to come back ( many senior to me BTW) are owed every possible advantage as is detailed in our PWA.

Regards,
Buzz

Originally Posted by DeadHead

Quick question.....Anyone been able to delay/postpone a training date after an Advanced Entitlement Award?

Obviously training early is not an option because it's seniority based, but I was thinking postponing it might be an option if it still a few months away. Just curious as to see if anyone else here has been in the situation.