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News from ALPA International |
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July 17, 2012 |
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CAL, UAL Pilots Vote Overwhelmingly to Authorize Strike |
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Pilots at legacy United
Airlines and legacy
Continental Airlines,
speaking clearly,
loudly, and with a
unified voice, have
overwhelmingly
authorized their MECs to
cause a legal withdrawal
of service at such time
as they deem it prudent
and advisable. Nearly 94 percent of
the eligible pilots,
represented by the Air
Line Pilots Association,
International, took part
in the ballot, with 99
percent voting in
support of a withdrawal
of services, if
required. This
authorization comes
after two years of
negotiations for a new
joint pilot contract
following the merger of
United and Continental,
announced in May 2010.
If the National
Mediation Board (NMB)
concludes that further
mediated negotiations
will not produce an
agreement, it could
release both sides into
economic self-help after
the expiration of a
30-day cooling-off
period, at which point a
strike could ensue.
Read more.
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 The
11th and 12th Known
Crewmember-participating
airports opened for
business today in Salt
Lake City and Denver,
with regular KCM users
and newcomers alike
praising the ALPA-inspired
program. Known
Crewmember, an enhanced
security-screening
program for airline
crewmembers, positively
verifies a pilot’s
identity and employment
status, strengthening
aviation security and
shortening screening
lines for passengers.
Almost 100 pilots from
United, Delta, Air
Wisconsin, and other
airlines used the new
KCM checkpoint at Salt
Lake City International
Airport’s Terminal 1.
Roughly the same number
had gone through one of
two access points at
Denver International
Airport by midday
Tuesday. ALPA staff, TSA
officials, and a Delta
chief pilot were on hand
to welcome pilots and
encourage them to check
out the Known Crewmember
system.
“This is much
quicker, this is much
faster. This expedites
the time we arrive at
the airport and get to
flight operations, which
is a huge benefit so
that we’re not stuck in
lines,” said United F/O
Chuck Higgins.
Read more.
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Focus Customs, Immigration Resources on U.S. Gateways |
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 The Air Line Pilots
Association, Int’l, and
Airlines for America
(A4A) yesterday called
on Congress to focus its
limited Customs and
Border Protection (CBP)
resources on better
serving U.S. gateway
airports rather than
creating a new
pay-to-play scheme that
diverts funds overseas
and puts U.S. jobs at
risk.
In a
joint letter to
the Senate Homeland
Security Subcommittee, ALPA and A4A objected to
a Department of Homeland
Security (DHS) spending
proposal, which would
allow foreign
governments to pay for
preclearance facilities
at international
airports regardless if
they are served by U.S.
airlines and without
consideration to where
the greatest need for
CBP staffing exists.
“The safety and
security of our
passengers and crew is
our top priority and we
believe having private
or third parties fund a
government function may
have significant
unintended consequences
for national security as
well as the
competitiveness of the
U.S. airline industry,”
said Capt. Lee Moak,
ALPA’s president.
Read more.
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FAA Issues New Rule on Medical Certification |
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 The
FAA has just published a direct final rule, effective July 20, 2012, that
rescinds the requirement that individuals granted the special issuance of a
medical certificate have their letter of authorization in their physical
possession or readily accessible on the aircraft while exercising pilot
privileges.
The FAA identified this action as relieving a burden from affected pilots and
ALPA submitted comments supporting this rule.
Please contact the ALPA Aeromedical Office at 303-341-4435 if you have any
questions.
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This Week on Capitol Hill |
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ALPA’s Pilot Partisan
Agenda reports that
House panels will
address two interesting
aviation issues and the
Senate Commerce
Committee will explore
industry
competitiveness.
Tomorrow, the House
Transportation and
Infrastructure Committee
will hold a hearing to
review the FAA’s
Contract Tower Program.
This program, which
provides private air
traffic control services
at smaller airports, has
been the subject of a
DOT IG report and audit.
The DOT IG and others
will provide testimony
regarding the new audit
and the program. The
hearing will be held
at 10:00 a.m. on July 18
in room 2167.
Also tomorrow, the U.S.
Senate Subcommittee on
Aviation Operations,
Safety, and Security
will hold a hearing on
“The Global
Competitiveness of the
U.S. Aviation Industry:
Addressing Competition
Issues to Maintain U.S.
Leadership in the
Aerospace Market.” This
hearing will address
critical competition
issues facing the U.S.
aviation industry,
including workforce
development, regulatory
issues, and access to
foreign markets. The
hearing will be held
at 3:00 p.m. in room
253, Russell.
On July 19, the House
Homeland Security
Committee will explore
security issues relating
to unmanned aerial
systems. The
hearing, titled
“Using Unmanned Aerial
Systems within the
Homeland: Security Game
Changer?” will begin at
9:30 a.m., in room 311,
Cannon.
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 The
aviation industry is changing faster than ever before. The new
“ALPA Daily”
feature at www.alpa.org will keep you informed
of the latest industry developments and analysis from around the globe. Check it
out each day to stay up-to-date on the news that affects pilots and the piloting
profession.
• According to the Aero-News Network, U.S. airlines deliver improved on-time
performance, record baggage handling.
Read more.
• ABC News reports that a JetBlue pilot suffered an eye injury when a green
laser was pointed directly into the cockpit as the plane was en route to New
York’s John F. Kennedy Airport.
Read more.
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ALPA Air Safety Forum Less than a Month Away |
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Register today for the 58th annual ALPA Air Safety Forum, which will be held
Aug. 6-9 at the Washington Hilton, in Washington, D.C. The event offers
fascinating panel discussions and presentations, and speakers include FAA Acting
Administrator Michael Huerta, TSA Administrator John Pistole, and former
Secretary of Transportation Norman Mineta.
For more information and to register, visit
safetyforum.alpa.org.
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  Stay connected with your
union, your profession,
and your industry by
reading Air Line
Pilot magazine and
watching monthly
episodes of The
FlightDeck.Read
about the issues
discussed at the 67th
annual meeting of the
International Federation
of Air Line Pilots’
Associations, on page 18 of the
June/July issue of Air Line Pilot magazine.
On the 17th
installment
of
The
FlightDeck,
learn what the
Transportation Safety
Board of Canada included
on its newly released
watch list. Remember that both Air Line Pilot
and The FlightDeck
can also be accessed
from the members-only
portion of the ALPA
website at
www.alpa.org.
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ALPA Family Member Awarded Union Plus Scholarship |
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Hayden Amaro, Union Plus
Scholarship
recipient. |
Union Plus has
awarded $150,000 in
scholarships to 129
students representing 44
unions, including one
winner representing ALPA,
in the 2012 Union Plus
Scholarship program. In
this 20th anniversary
year of the scholarship
program, more than 5,600
applications were
received from union
members and families in
all 50 states. This
year’s ALPA winner is:
Hayden Amaro of Hayden, Idaho, whose father, John Amaro, is a member of ALPA
ASTAR Council 17, has been awarded a $1,000 scholarship.
“Education is a core value for the American union worker,” says Leslie Tolf,
president of Union Privilege, the organization that provides the Union Plus
benefits. “With rising tuitions, the Union Plus Scholarship program can make all
the difference in enabling union members and their families to further their
education.”
Read more.
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Attend the Cleveland National Air Show |
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 The
Cleveland National Air Show has become a Labor Day weekend tradition. Held at
Burke Lakefront Airport Sept. 1–3, the event includes three days of aerial
thrills featuring the U.S. Navy Blue Angels, Sky Soldiers Helicopter Team,
Shockwave Jet Truck, Sean D. Tucker Power Acrobatics, wing walking, military jet
demonstrations, and parachuting. Plus, there’s excitement on the ground with
interactive displays, kid-friendly activities, and more.For more information,
go to www.clevelandairshow.com.
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On July 17, 1908, the first U.S. aviation legislation was passed—a municipal
ordinance requiring an annual license and regulating aircraft within the city
limits of Kissimmee, Fla.
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Feedback & E-mail Address Changes |
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| Questions or comments on this FastRead? Give us your feedback at
communications@alpa.org. If you have moved or changed your ISP or e-mail
address, please update your ALPA records. If you don’t, you
will no longer receive the ALPA FastRead and other e-mail bulletins and notices,
and once your postal forwarding order expires, you’ll no longer receive the
magazine and other ALPA mail. You can do it yourself by going to
www.alpa.org and logging
in. Go to “My ALPA” in the menu at the top of the page, and from there, you’ll be
instructed how to make the necessary changes. If you don’t have access to the
members-only section of
www.alpa.org, you can
e-mail your requests by sending them to
membership@alpa.org. Be sure to include your member number or enough other
information so that we can identify you in the membership database, and tell us
what information needs to be updated. Please note that it is not sufficient
just to notify your LEC or MEC of these changes—you should register them with
the ALPA Membership Department in Herndon. Can’t remember your member number
or how to log in? Need information about your ALPA insurance programs? These and
other questions about ALPA services can be answered by contacting
membership@alpa.org. Return to top
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Air Line Pilots Association, Int’l
1625 Massachusetts Avenue NW
| Washington, DC 20036 | 703-689-2270 |
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