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News from ALPA International |
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January 19, 2012 |
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Moak Urges Congress to Pass Long-Term FAA Funding Bill |
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 ALPA
continues to press
Congress for a
multiyear, properly
funded bill that gives
the FAA the resources it
needs to update its
aging infrastructure and
implement NextGen
initiatives. Capt. Lee
Moak, president of the
Air Line Pilots
Association, Int’l,
yesterday wrote to
members of the House of
Representatives, urging
these lawmakers to take
action.
“We respectfully ask
that you put politics
and interests not
relevant to the safety
of our air
transportation system
aside, work through the
issues, and make passage
of a final FAA
reauthorization bill
your first priority as
the second session of
the 112th Congress
begins, eliminating the
need for a 23rd
extension,” said Moak.
He added, “If we fail
to provide stability for
the FAA and continue to
postpone investments in
our aviation system, we
will inevitably degrade
the safety structures
the American public
relies on to safely
travel by air. We must
not let that happen.”
Read
Moak’s January 18 letter.
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ALPA Supports President’s Initiative to Streamline Visa Process |
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ALPA applauds President
Obama’s initiative to
boost international
travel to the United
States by establishing
an expedited, but
secure, visa process for
low-risk travelers.
“We support the
administration’s
initiative to take
affirmative steps in
this area that will
offer tangible results
for U.S. pilots and the
airline industry,” said
ALPA’s president, Capt.
Lee Moak. “This
initiative has been a
priority of ours for the
last few months and this
is a clear illustration
of how our union can
help effect change.”
ALPA and its partners
in the aviation industry
have been encouraging
the administration to
eliminate inefficiencies
in the U.S. visa
process—specifically for
travelers from China,
Brazil, and India—in an
effort to spur economic
growth, as well as
benefit U.S. pilot jobs
and the airline
industry.
ALPA and allies in
the industry believe
there is potential for
passenger travel growth
from China, Brazil, and
India, but tourists have
been deterred from
traveling to the United
States due to
restrictive U.S. visa
procedures.
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ALPA Security Leadership Meets with FAMS |
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 ALPA’s
first vice president and
national safety
coordinator, Capt. Sean
Cassidy (ALA), and
aviation security
chairman, Capt. Fred
Eissler (FDX), met with
Federal Air Marshal
Service (FAMS) leaders
in Reston, Va., on
Tuesday, January 17.
ALPA representatives,
FAMS Director Robert
Bray, and Assistant
Director for Flight
Operations Brett Gunter
discussed issues of
mutual interest,
including future goals
and management of the
Federal Flight Deck
Officer (FFDO) program.
Discussions addressed
concerns raised during
the most recent FFDO
stakeholder meeting in
November 2011. The
exchange resulted in the
FAMS agreeing to not
implement some of the
FFDO program’s standard
operating procedure
changes that were
opposed by ALPA. These
discussions also
included improvements
supported by ALPA and
commitments to revisit
additional issues of
concern through future
meetings. Details will
be made available
directly to FFDOs by
FAMS leadership.
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We Want to Hear from You! |
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 To
better connect with you
in the New Year, the
ALPA Communications team
wants your feedback on
social media and how
ALPA can better utilize
these tools.Please complete a
brief
eight-question survey
that will help us build
our network to keep you
better informed.
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ALPA Presents Security Positions at Airports Conference |
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 ALPA’s
aviation security
chairman, Capt. Fred
Eissler (FDX),
represented the
Association’s security
interests at the
American Association of
Airport Executives’ (AAAEs’)
26th annual Aviation
Issues Conference
January 9–12, 2012.
Serving as a panelist
during the conference’s
aviation security
session, Eissler
articulated ALPA’s views
on the Known Crewmember
program, Threatened
Airspace Management
initiative, and other
security matters of
critical interest to
ALPA pilots.
Working with Eissler
were Capt. Mike Coffield
(CAL) and Jim Andresakes
of ALPA’s Engineering
and Air Safety
Department. The
conference offered
additional value in
providing opportunities
for networking with
representatives of the
federal government,
airports, and airlines.
ALPA was successful in
stressing the need for
and value in better
communication with
pilots-in-command during
ongoing aviation
security events and
offered to provide pilot
expertise during airport
tabletop exercises.
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 “Work
Connects Us All” is the
message of a new AFL-CIO
campaign, which includes
television
advertisements to
emphasize the shared
values of America’s
workers.
“I teach your kid;
you fix my car; he
builds my city; she
keeps it safe,” the ad’s
narrator says. “Work is
what connects us—all of
us.”
Can you identify the
ALPA pilot who appears
in the ad?
The spot launched in
Austin and Pittsburgh
this week, and will
appear in Portland,
Ore., in the near
future.
Read more.
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ECA Pilots Critique New Fatigue Rule Proposal |
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 The
United States and Canada
are not the only nations
revisiting the issue of
pilot fatigue. New rules
have also been proposed
by the European Aviation
Safety Agency (EASA) to
improve aviation safety.
However, the latest EASA-drafted
proposal for new EU-wide
fatigue rules, issued on
January 18, falls short
of what the European
Cockpit Association (ECA)
has been lobbying for.
The latest proposal
makes “a number of
welcome changes,” says
ECA President Nico
Voorbach. “However, many
critical points remain,
such as the excessive
working times when on
standby. If not amended,
a pilot could be asked
to land the plane after
20–21 hours of being
awake. This is not what
passengers deserve!
Passengers and pilots
expect the EU legislator
to set strong safety
legislation.”
“EASA mandated three
scientists to evaluate
its proposal;
regrettably, it seems
that EASA chose to
ignore most of their
recommendations when
these could negatively
impact the airlines’
commercial interests,”
explains ECA Secretary
General Philip von
Schöppenthau. “EASA can
and must do better!”
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The Council for
Disability Awareness
reports that a
disability is incurred
once every second—and
most are not freak
accidents but more
familiar causes such as
back injury, cancer, and
heart disease. We at
ALPA understand the
nature of your life, and
the importance of your
license for your
livelihood. That’s why
ALPA is proud to offer
Loss of License/Plus
coverage to our members
to ensure that you
remain financially
secure should you ever
lose your license. The
ALPA plan is an “own
occupation” plan,
meaning that benefits
are provided for
qualifying disabilities
that prevent you from
carrying out the duties
of your own occupation,
regardless of your
ability to conduct the
responsibilities of a
nonflying job. The ALPA
plan offers:
• Monthly coverage
amounts up to $4,200,
payable for up to 48
months.
• After 24 months of a
covered disability, you
can request that your
Loss of License benefits
be capitalized with a
lump-sum payout.
• At the end of your
“own occupation” period,
there are optional
additional benefits of
50 percent of the amount
of your loss of license
coverage (if disability
renders you unable to
perform the duties of
any occupation for which
your education and
training have prepared
you).
• “Seat Change”
benefits, in the event
that a disability
requires you to fly in a
lesser capacity.
Visit
www.alpa.org/mbin to
learn more about Loss of
License coverage and
other great benefits
that your ALPA
membership can offer you
today!
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• The Baltimore Sun says most U.S. airlines are poised to report
profitable fourth quarters, a trend set to continue in 2012 as cost-cutting and
fare hikes help the industry weather rising fuel costs and global economic
uncertainty that could hamper travel demand.
Read more.
• The Wall Street Journal reports that the European Union has no plans to
suspend the controversial inclusion of the airline industry in the bloc’s
carbon-trading market, though leaders told Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
they remain open to exempting U.S. carriers if they become subject to other
measures that reduce emissions.
Read more.
• According to MarketWatch, the Department of Transportation’s Bureau of
Transportation Statistics reported that U.S. airlines carried 61.2 million
scheduled domestic and international passengers in October 2011.
Read more.
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ALPA president Capt. Dave Behncke and his wife, Gladys, were official guests of
President Harry Truman at his inauguration on Thursday, January 20, 1949. Just
months prior, Truman’s influence had helped end the National Airlines pilots’
strike of 1948 in ALPA’s favor. From the beginning, Behncke recognized the value
of lobbying politicians to support airline and labor issues.
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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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