dn_wisconsin

Negative there ghostrider, why do you think we went mandatory. I wanted to go back as late as I can.......that is Dec. 1st or resign. Yes if you are number one on the list you can make it longer but not April. We have around 40 on furlough, at 12 a class and at least one class a month that puts us into Feburary if everyone returns. Which we all know didn't happen. I was notified Nov. 1st and must go back Dec. 1st, thats not 6 months.

Normann

I had to do the <24 from dequalified. Roughly 50% of initial. That after being out for almost two years. I forgot basic instrument rules. Still training got boring half way through the PT lessons well before going near the sim. Instructors told us they could have signed us off during sim lesson 1. I did study my ass off before recall though. Because I too was worried. But you really don't need to worry about it.

Jedinight

All furloughed pilots I've talked to have said that training is even beter than the first time.

4 days of ground, 4 sits, 4 pt's and 3 sims with a PC at the end.

If someone is having problems they will give them 1 additional sim and up to 2 to 3 more PT's on company dime. No one has needed it and neither will they .

I alot of us have been waiting a long time to come back and I wish them the best.

And I will see you all in class on Dec 1


JN

unitedcop30

Left handed - the way out recall rights work at United is like this...they go down the list once...you either come back when they call or not. If you don't come back you still have the right to for 10 years from your furlough date. You just call them up and tell them you're ready to come back...the only catch is they have to be actively hiring at that time. If Spirit had something like this I'm sure your furloughs would like it much better, than this immediate December 1 class call they got.

Gatorbird - I figured you weren't on the mec. And the reason I posted this stuff on this open forum was to start a discussion about it and bring the situation to peoples attention who had no idea what was happening. Its obvious in your posts that spirit can do no wrong...and that's your opinion...so I really don't care to debate that. But let Me ask you this...just because it's not in the CBA is it not worth fighting for? Im sure if you were in these guys shoes you would be fighting also...i don't think you would just sit back and say "well, spirits following the CBA, FOR ONCE, I guess I'm just out of luck and will accept it. I highly doubt you would accept something like that...so don't go preaching "it's in the CBA" to me.

Plane Ramrod

So the MEC is pushing their NO OT, NO JA, PAY CAP, GET OUT OF WORK AS MUCH AS YOU CAN, agenda in a futile attempt to force the company to rehire those furloughed; who by the way, don't want to come back to work?????

Socialism gone wild!

captscott26

Ok unitedcop, I have done some research into this situation. I found out the real story here, and I have to tell you I am not at all impressed with your friend, nor are any of my colleagues as the details of this story get around on the line.

For those here who do not know, and since united felt it necessary to air this on a public forum, here are the facts...

One of our furloughees, who just happens to be on the very bottom of the list, is under contract out in the middle east. Per the CBA, she received her recall notice at Spirit. Since she is on the bottom of the list, and the recall went mandatory, she received her mandatory recall notice shortly thereafter. She was denied an LOA by the company and decided to contact the union. Only problem is, she didnt contact her furlough coordinator, nor did she attempt to contact anyone on the MEC. Instead, she thought her best course of action would be to write a scathing email to John Prater. I have read this email in its entirety. In it she accuses Spirit of hiring her with the sole intention of furloughing her. She insults the Spirit MEC and ALPA as a whole for not being able to help her. Her sense of entitlement is astounding. I was embarrased for her when I read this email. She, along with many others, have been on furlough for over 2 years. It has been no secret over the past 6 months that Spirit was to grow next year and recall all of its furloughed pilots. It is written in plain english in our CBA the process the company must follow while recalling those furloughed pilots. They have followed that procedure with zero exceptions. If it was her intention to return to Spirit then the resposnsibility to get her affairs in order to allow that to happen is hers and hers alone. The idea that somehow she is above the CBA and should be granted all this special treatment is utter nonsense. She is requesting that the company act in violation of the pilot contract. So according to her our pilot contract should be violated so that her pilot contract can be honored.

Look, it would be great if we had some clause in our contract to force the company to give her an LOA. If we did, you can be sure I and every single one of her colleagues here would stand up and fight for her. The simple fact is, we do not. She, along with every other furloughed pilot, knew this and knew the procedure for recall. Her acting like a child after being denied the LOA is not helping her cause. She is burning bridges at a very rapid pace.

dudeskibro

Agreed, I felt uncomfortable and embarrassed reading her whining, ungrateful, *****y email. DP's response was typical, but get over it. I was thrilled to be recalled and didn't have the luxury of a posh middle east flying job...and know a lot of guys chomping at the bit to get out of their miserable RJ jobs and would gladly take her seniority number.

gatorbird

Spirit can do no wrong? You got the wrong guy, dude. We've had some slimeballs around here that have pulled some pretty atrocious stuff and I'll be the last to defend them for it. This place isn't perfect: not the company, not the MEC, not anywhere. My point about "it's not in the CBA" was not to say that there weren't gains to be made, that it couldn't get any better. To be clear, there are MULTIPLE areas that could be improved, both in our CBA and the work environment in general. Hey, I'm not jumping for joy over our pay rates either, nor our loss of a great premium pay system (much to the dismay of Ramrod...that's right Ram...I'm not all cheery about some of it either). Could the LOA section be improved? Absolutely! But it is what it is, at least for the time being. My statement was not meant to convince you that I'm happy with the CBA's language; my statement was made to clarify how our CBA addresses LOAs. And in this case, the company IS following the CBA. How do you ask the MEC to fight something that the company is in compliance with?

gatorbird

You didn't so much mention it on a public forum as you did come on and start firing nukes. Ever figure that it's why you get reactions like you did? Something tells me you've done that before in life- opened your mouth before it ran through your head.

unitedcop30

capt scott....first off ... your facts are incorrect. she does not fly in the middle east, contrary to what you think. Second, a medical leave of absence was granted for a female...you can look that up. And about the CBA, as I've said before, Baldanza violates that CBA 10 ways to Tuesday, what makes you think he won't do it with this one?

gatorbird...I always think before I open my mouth, I figured I'd get that kind of response from the pilot group as I have from you. It only confirms what myself and most furlough pilots from Spirit believe about you and the current pilot group. My friend has received numerous emails from furloughed pilots who feel exactly as she does. I would be happy to de-identify the emails and post them on here...but I realize that is a fruitless effort. No matter what I or the furloughees say nothing will change anybodys' mind.

I'm done talking about this, it's pointless speaking with you people about this. You will feel and experience what the furloughed pilots do now sometime in your career I'm sure. I can only hope you are treated the same and receive the same empathy and consideration when your time has come.

To all the furloughed pilots reading this, I feel for you and wish you best of luck in your careers. I hope you will be hired by a much better airline than Spirit.