Continental takes delivery of first Next-Generation Boeing 737-900ER

Earlier this week,  Continental Airlines took delivery of its first Boeing Next-Generation 737-900ER aircraft. Continental was the first carrier in the Americas to order this long-range, high-capacity derivative of the aircraft type, and now will be the first to operate the aircraft as well.

A news release issued jointly by Continental and Boeing quoted Continental's CEO Larry Kellner who said, "Continental's new 737-900ER will have among the lowest operating costs in the industry and allows us to build upon our efficient Boeing Next-Generation 737 fleet. These aircraft are part of our continued focus on fleet modernization, fuel efficiency and delivering the best product in the business."

Continental's B737-900ER is configured with 173 seats in two classes: 20 first class seats, and 153 in economy. The airline has 26 more of these aircraft on order, and expects to take delivery of two to three new Next-Generation 737s per month this year, on average, including a mix of 737-900ERs and 737-800s.

All aircraft of this type are equipped with performance-enhancing Blended Winglets, said to improve fuel efficiency and reduce CO2 emissions by up to 4 percent. According to Boeing, the 737-900ER also incorporates a new pair of exit doors and a flat, rear-pressure bulkhead that allow a maximum capacity of 220 passengers in a single-class layout. Aerodynamic and structural design changes allow the 737-900ER to accommodate higher takeoff weights and increase its range up to 3,175 nautical miles (5,885 km).

Boeing says that, to date, eight customers around the world have placed orders for 169 Next-Generation 737-900ERs.

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American Airlines pilots want mediation of contract talks

American Airlines and its pilots' union, the Allied Pilots Association (APA), have been in contract negotiation since September 2006, and have been at an impasse since November of 2007. Although the bargaining process was initiated by American well ahead of the current contract's amendable date of May, 2008, the negotiations broke down when the airline insisted that the costs of the pilots' pay proposals could not be sustained, and would put American at a financial disadvantage, vis a vis its competitors.

For their part, the pilots had been seeking restoration of pay and benefits that they had accepted in 2003 in order to help American avoid bankruptcy. The pilots reason that they should have a fair share in the airline's subsequent financial recovery.

Late last week, the APA announced that it was inviting American Airlines management "to join in a request for National Mediation Board (NMB) involvement in the ongoing negotiations for a new pilots' contract." APA President, Capt. Lloyd Hill indicated that the union would wait until the close of business on Monday, January 14 for management's response to the union's invitation before contacting the NMB unilaterally.

Earlier today, American announced that it had rejected APA's request, saying the two sides could make more progress in direct negotiations. The Dallas Morning News reported:

"After considering the APA's offer to file a joint request for mediation, the company believes that remaining in joint control of the negotiation schedule and continuing direct bargaining with the APA is the best course to expeditiously reach an agreement," American official Denny Newgren said in a letter to the union's negotiating committee.

"We believe that in order to make substantial progress, it may make sense to consider using private facilitation and/or technical negotiating assistance offered by the National Mediation Board," Mr. Newgren wrote, "and we would like to discuss this idea further with the APA negotiating committee."

Mr. Newgren is managing director of employee relations for the flight department at American Airlines.

The pilots continue to contend that NMB mediation is warranted. The Dallas Morning News article quoted an APA spokesman who said he expects the union today to ask mediators to intervene despite American's letter.

Taxi prang for Sen. Obama's chartered Gulfstream

A chartered Gulfstream II aircraft "touched wings" with a parked Cessna 208 Caravan in the wee hours of the morning on January 12. The Caravan was parked at Chicago's Midway Airport, and the Gulfstream was taxiing to a parking space under its own power at the time of the incident. No one was injured, and only minor damage was recorded.

Were it not for the fact that one of the ten passengers on board happened to be U.S. presidential candidate Senator Barack Obama, no one would have paid much attention to the incident. But, Senator Obama was on board, having just arrived aboard the Gulfstream from a speaking engagement in Las Vegas.

An article about the incident on the Fox News Embedded Producers blog quotes an FAA Spokeswoman who said:

“There was an incident at Midway airport at 2:30am on Saturday morning when a Gulfstream 2 taxiing to park at Midway touched wings with a parked Cessna 208. The left wing of the Gulf hit the right wing of the Cessna, there was nobody on the Cessna and there were no reported injuries on the Gulfstream. The plane, the Gulfstream, was taxiing under its own direction, it was no longer under FAA air traffic control direction. The FAA is investigating, the National Transportation Safety Board is leading the investigation. These investigations typically take a few months or weeks.”

The preliminary incident report did show up this morning on the FAA website, but we notice that the Gulfstream's registration number is listed as "Unknown." Given who was on board, it's unlikely that the FAA really didn't know the registration number of that aircraft. We'll assume that the omission has something to do with security, rather than with saving the crew of that aircraft from embarrassment.

But do they not have ramp marshallers at Midway at 02:30 in the morning?

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Pinnacle vs. pilots: The latest chapter

Pilots at Pinnacle Airlines have not had a pay raise since 2004. They have been in contract negotiations with the airline's management since January 2005, with no satisfactory progress. This past Monday the pilots formally requested binding arbitration by the National Mediation Board (NMB). The following day, the airline filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court against the Air Line Pilots Association International (ALPA), the union representing the 12,000 pilots, citing bad-faith bargaining in contract talks.

In his January 7, 2008 letter to the NMB, ALPA President Capt. John Prater says that the airline's "best and last" offer submitted to the pilots in December of 2005 proposes pay rates and work rules that "fall well below industry average." Also at issue is the lack of a so-called successor clause in the company bylaws that would address job security protection.

Chairman of the Pinnacle MEC of ALPA, Capt. Scott Erickson, referring to Pinnacle's acquisition of non-union Colgan Airlines last year, said, "Essentially, it comes down to this: They took money out of the coffers of our airline, floated it up to Pinnacle Corp., the holding company, and bought another airline." The pilots fear that Colgan pilots eventually will be flying Pinnacle routes.

In its lawsuit, Pinnacle Airlines accuses the pilots of bad faith bargaining. In a news release issued by Pinnacle on January 8, Clive Seal, Vice President and General Manager of Pinnacle Airlines Inc. said, "We regret having to file this lawsuit, but the union left us with no choice. On more than one occasion, we agreed to terms that the union said would result in an agreement, and then they moved the goalposts and made additional demands. We need them to come to the table and deal fairly in a genuine effort to get a fair contract for our Pilots and their families. I believe we would have an agreement already if our Pilots had been told the truth about our offer and been allowed by the union to vote on the company proposal as we requested."

Philip H. Trenary, President and CEO of Pinnacle Airline, echoed Seal's sentiment, saying, "We want a new contract for our Pilots. We want to be at the table and bring these negotiations to a close. We have bargained in good faith and have repeatedly responded positively to requests from the union. We have been more than fair. All of us built this company together under the premise that we are a team, and we think it's unfair that our pilots are the only employee group that has not had a raise since 2005. Now, it's time for the union to be fair by putting union politics aside and doing what's in the best interest of our Pilots."

But ALPA called these statements by Pinnacle management "the height of cynicism." ALPA's Capt. Prater said in a news release:

"I’m astounded that Pinnacle management has the gall to accuse ALPA of bad-faith bargaining when management, not ALPA, has been dragging out negotiations for the last 18 months. It’s the height of cynicism.

"I sent a letter to the National Mediation Board just yesterday requesting that it issue a proffer of arbitration to the airline and the union. I do not believe the suit’s timing is a coincidence.

"I am equally outraged that Pinnacle, in a news release dated today, charged that ALPA negotiators had not 'told the truth' to pilot members regarding offers Pinnacle had made. Pilots have been fully informed on all details of negotiations throughout the process.

"How dare this management accuse us of lying to our pilots? No pilot group is more unified, well led, and serious about negotiations than our Pinnacle pilots.

"Even though many contract issues have been resolved, this management refuses to make any serious improvements in pilots' job security protection, pay rates, and work rules that would appreciably improve pilots’ quality of life."

Pinnacle MEC chairman Erickson added, "Filing this baseless lawsuit can only be a delaying tactic in retaliation for our request to the NMB. It's the latest in a long line of attempts to put off the inevitable and to misrepresent where the real blame lies—with Pinnacle management—for the failure to achieve a fair contract after three very difficult years."

The next move may be in the hands of the NMB. If the NMB denies ALPA's request for binding arbitration, negotiations will supposedly continue, although given the current climate, that seems a grim prospect. If either side rejects arbitration, a strike may ensue after a compulsory 30-day 'cooling off' period. Last November, Pinnacle pilots voted overwhelmingly in favor of a strike, so the stage is set.

Transaven Let L-410 missing off Venezuelan coast

A small twin engine turboprop aircraft with 12 passengers and two crew on board went missing off the coast of Venezuela this past Friday. The aircraft, a Czech-made Let L-410, operated by Venezuelan carrier Transaven Airlines, disappeared on January 4, 2008 while en route from Caracas to the Los Roques islands.

Various news media have reported that the crew reported engine failure shortly before the aircraft presumably crashed into the Caribbean Sea. Search and rescue operations have been unsuccessful in locating the crash site, and have found neither wreckage nor any sign of those on board.

Both pilots are believed to be Venezuelan nationals.

UPDATE January 10, 2008: According to an  article published this morning by SignOnSanDiego.com , "Authorities have found no sign of survivors from an airplane crash and are calling off active search efforts for the 14 aboard, including eight Italians and a Swiss citizen."

NetJets pilots' contract amended and extended

NetJets Aviation (NJA) announced that its pilots, represented by Teamsters Local 1108, had approved a major amendment and extension to their collective bargaining agreement last month. The agreement was reached after six months of negotiations.

A press release issued by the company said that 75.7% of NJA's more than 2,600 pilots had voted in favor of the agreement. Over 95% of the pilots had participated in the referendum.

The press release did not include details of the terms of the agreement, however an article about the amended NetJets contract in Aviation International News (AIN) noted that major provisions of the agreement included increasing the number of crew bases, more schedule options and pay increases.

Here are some details about the pay packages, reported by AIN:

NetJets first officers benefit greatly from the new agreement, with first-year pay climbing from $39,000 to $56,875 a year under the seven-days-on/seven-days-off schedule. This eclipses the previous industry-leading annual salary for new-hire first officers of $40,000 at CitationShares. Lowest on the scale are Flight Options first officers, who earn an average salary of $33,996 per year.

While the first officers got sizeable pay increases, NetJets’ captains fared well too. First-year captain salaries increased from $52,500 to $87,500, a significant step beyond the previous high of $64,000 at CitationShares. Flight Options occupies the lowest end of the scale, with captains starting at $51,996 a year.

Under the new payscale, NetJets first officers top out at $81,081 after year 10. Five-year captains will earn six figures under the new deal.

The agreement, which was signed by both NJA and the pilots union last month, will become amendable in five and a half years, but can be extended for another three years should NetJets meet certain parameters. AIN reports that these include "giving NJA 85 percent of all international flying, maintaining the same level of health care at no cost to pilots, opening 10 additional crew bases and adding cost-of-living adjustments to pay tables each year of the extension."

New prohibition on lithium batteries in checked baggage

The U. S. Department of Transportation (DOT) will prohibit loose lithium batteries from being carried in checked baggage, beginning today, January 1, 2008. The new rule is in response to the known fire risks of lithium batteries.

These batteries may still be packed in carry-on baggage. The DOT provides these tips for transporting spare batteries for devices such as cell phones, laptop computers, PDAs, cameras, and other battery-powered devices in order to prevent inadvertent activation aboard aircraft:

• Pack spare batteries in carry-on baggage. In the passenger compartment, flight crews can better monitor safety conditions to prevent an incident, and can access fire extinguishers, if an incident does happen.
• Keep spare batteries in the original retail packaging, to prevent unintentional activation or short-circuiting.
• For loose batteries, place tape across the battery's contacts to isolate terminals. Isolating terminals prevents short-circuiting.
• If original packaging is not available, effectively insulate battery terminals by isolating spare batteries from contact with other batteries and metal. Place each battery in its own protective case, plastic bag, or package. Do not permit a loose battery to come in contact with metal objects, such as coins, keys, or jewelry.
• Only charge batteries which you are sure are rechargeable! Non-rechargeable batteries are not designed for re-charging, and become hazards if they are placed in a battery charger. NEVER attempt to recharge a battery unless you know it is rechargeable.
• If you have already charged a non-rechargeable battery, do NOT bring such a battery on board an aircraft.
• Use only chargers designed for your type of batteries. If unsure about compatibility, contact the product manufacturer.
• Take steps to prevent crushing, puncturing, or putting a high degree of pressure on the battery, as this can cause an internal short-circuit, resulting in overheating.

Several months ago, the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) issued a safety alert to its members regarding response to in-flight passenger electronic equipment fires. Click here to download the ALPA Safety Alert (3 page 'pdf' file).

Safe flying for 2008!