LEC 171 (IAH) Regarding Japan/NRT Flying
03-23-2011, 11:27 AM
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LEC 171 (IAH) Regarding Japan/NRT Flying
The following is from the Interim Officer's (CA/FO) in Houston 03/23/11
This has been an important week for the pilots of the IAH base, as well as pilots throughout Continental and United Airlines. The disaster in Japan has had, and continues to have, an effect on flight operations. Our concerns grew daily about the safety of our crews which overnight in Narita. With continuous aftershocks, rolling blackouts, and concerns about contaminated food and water supplies, your association was been working tirelessly to ensure our crews are not put in any danger and have opportunity for worry free rest. Your union had determined the best course of action is for our crews to overnight in nearby cities such as Osaka or Seoul which provide a buffer from the dangerous situation near Tokyo. While Management should not have needed any convincing, after countless conversations and emails, Management finally agreed to a plan to overnight our crews in Osaka; only to rescind its’agreement at the last moment. Osaka, approximately 200 miles away from Tokyo, provides an area where little to no tremors are occurring, the threat of nuclear fallout is greatly lessened, and an evacuation plan could be executed with greater effectiveness than in Tokyo. Our crews would have been able to get adequate rest without waking up by multiple tremors and be able to sleep in peace knowing that there is a greater buffer to the nuclear threat.
After stalling all weekend to make official the agreement to move the overnight to Osaka, Management tells ALPA that they now believe the situation in Tokyo does not warrant such a change and intends to leave crews in NRT for the overnight. Your LC 171 Reps have been involved throughout the project and have been contacting the departing crews and listening to their concerns. While we know what the easy and right thing to do is, it continues to baffle us why it is so difficult for Management to come to the same conclusions. Once again Management stands at a fork in the road; clearly where one fork demonstrates moral and ethical leadership and the other demonstrates a bean counter mentality and lack of conscience.
"That's a vision that will take a couple of years to do, because we have to bring the carriers together. But ... we will be not only the world's largest airline, we want to be the world's best airline."--Jeff Smisek
Heard enough of slogans and company chants? To be the "World's Best Airline" you must have a plan! Oh... we do have our "Go Forward Plan". Is not the foundation of this plan built on Safety? Can you tout having the best team in the business without addressing the very fundamental needs of your team's safety? Did this cornerstone leave with Gordon and Larry? This is about morality and ethics and they do have a cost, but the return on investment is infinite. Standing behind commitments demonstrates the leadership we demand, even when it reduces profits. Why was it so easy for Singapore Airlines, Lufthansa, Air France-KLM, SAS, and many others to put the safety of their crews before profit margins? Do they measure safety differently? Do they use a different Threat and Error Model than the one Management now teaches in "United as Professionals"? Maybe Management needs to come to this class and work through the Japan scenario using the new TEM. It would be enlightening to say the least.
Your Local Council 171 Representatives have been working hard on this and many other safety matters. Safety will always be our first priority. We always "Fly to Win", but can only do it in solidarity and with integrity. We demand that of ourselves, of each other, and of Management. Only standing shoulder to shoulder can we fix these problems in this contract and ensure that the next contract is written to protect you from management’s whims.
Through unity we can achieve our goals together. Through unity we WILL win.
LC 171 Officers:
03-23-2011, 04:49 PM
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Here are the latest stories from Japan from the nuclear fallout:
It looks like the radiation leak is getting pretty close to Chernobyl: (courtesy zero hedge)
Run-Rated Fukushima Radiation Release On Par With, And In Some Cases Greater Than, Chernobyl
Even as the spin continues by both the media and nuclear energy advocates that the dangers from Fukushima are overblown, calculations done behind the scenes indicate that Fukushima and Chernobyl are actually very comparable in terms of radioactive particulate release, and in some cases, such as Cesium 137, Fukushima is already runrating as a worse catastrophe than Chernobyl. From Reuters: “The release of two types of radioactive particles in the first 3-4 days of Japan’s nuclear crisis is estimated to have reached 20-50 percent of the amounts from Chernobyl in 10 days, an Austrian expert said on Wednesday. Based on measurements made at monitoring stations in Japan and the United States, Wotawa said the iodine released from Fukushima in the first three-four days was about 20 percent of that released from Chernobyl during a ten-day period. For Caesium-137, the figure could amount to some 50 percent.” In other words, run rating the release of Cesium for a 10 day period, leaked radioactive Cesium is now about 120-150% of what it was during the full blow reactor explosion experiencing during Chernobyl. But yes, aside from the facts, watering the reactor that are certainly melting down (if haven’t done so already) should surely have great benefits.
It looks like the radiation leak is getting pretty close to Chernobyl: (courtesy zero hedge)
Run-Rated Fukushima Radiation Release On Par With, And In Some Cases Greater Than, Chernobyl
Even as the spin continues by both the media and nuclear energy advocates that the dangers from Fukushima are overblown, calculations done behind the scenes indicate that Fukushima and Chernobyl are actually very comparable in terms of radioactive particulate release, and in some cases, such as Cesium 137, Fukushima is already runrating as a worse catastrophe than Chernobyl. From Reuters: “The release of two types of radioactive particles in the first 3-4 days of Japan’s nuclear crisis is estimated to have reached 20-50 percent of the amounts from Chernobyl in 10 days, an Austrian expert said on Wednesday. Based on measurements made at monitoring stations in Japan and the United States, Wotawa said the iodine released from Fukushima in the first three-four days was about 20 percent of that released from Chernobyl during a ten-day period. For Caesium-137, the figure could amount to some 50 percent.” In other words, run rating the release of Cesium for a 10 day period, leaked radioactive Cesium is now about 120-150% of what it was during the full blow reactor explosion experiencing during Chernobyl. But yes, aside from the facts, watering the reactor that are certainly melting down (if haven’t done so already) should surely have great benefits.
03-24-2011, 05:54 AM
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