Release #01.48
May 22, 2001

ALPA Leadership Finalizes Merger With IACP
Photos from the Executive Board meeting

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Executive Board of the Air Line Pilots Association, International (ALPA) today unanimously approved the Merger Agreement between ALPA and the Independent Association of Continental Pilots (IACP), completing the final step in the merger process between the two unions. The Agreement will go into effect June 1, with the full transfer of representational rights to ALPA. The pilots and flight instructors of Continental and Continental Express Airlines voted April 12 to merge their independent union with ALPA.

"The mission of the Air Line Pilots Association has always been to represent the collective interests of all commercial airline pilots," said Capt. Duane Woerth, president of ALPA, "and this final approval in the merger of IACP with ALPA brings us one step closer to fully realizing that mission. I am proud to serve at the helm of this Association as we focus on pilot unification and strengthening the voice of airline pilots to advance aviation safety, pilot contracts and the piloting profession. I welcome the Continental and Continental Express pilots and flight instructors and look forward to their contributions in shaping the future of our great union."

The IACP Board of Directors had approved the Merger Agreement on December 12, 2000, prior to sending it out to its nearly 7,000 members for ratification. All IACP elected representatives will transition to ALPA representatives and form the Continental and Continental Express Master Executive Council (MEC), with IACP president, Capt. Patrick Burke, as chairman.

" I am extremely pleased to see the Continental and Continental Express pilots and flight instructors as members in the Air Line Pilots Association," said Capt. Burke. "With ALPA’s abundant resources and representation experience, I firmly believe that we can build on IACP’s achievements and be in a better position to achieve our goals in upcoming negotiations."

The Agreement provides ALPA membership for IACP members, seamless transition of IACP representation to the ALPA governance structure, retention of all current IACP funds within the Continental and Continental Express pilot group after the merger, and maintenance of a fully-staffed office in Houston.

The IACP has represented the almost 7,000 professional pilots of Continental and Continental Express Airlines since the union’s formation in 1993. The companies’ flight instructors voted to join the IACP only last year. Continental and Continental Express serve the U.S., Europe, South and Central America, and the Pacific Rim through major hubs in Cleveland, Houston, Newark, Honolulu and Guam.

Formed in 1931, ALPA is the world’s oldest and largest pilots union. ALPA’s Executive Board is comprised of the master chairmen from each pilot group within the Association. As of June 1, ALPA will represent more than 66,000 pilots at 47 airlines. ALPA’s Web site is http://cf.alpa.org.

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ALPA Contacts: Anya Piazza or John Mazor — 703-481-4440