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News Release
Release #02.094
October 23, 2002
HOLLYWOOD, Fla. – The Board of Directors of the Air Line Pilots Association, International, today unanimously reelected Capt. Duane E. Woerth, a B-747 Northwest Airlines pilot, and Capt. Dennis Dolan, a B-737-800 Delta Air Lines pilot, to serve second four-year terms as the union’s president and first vice president, respectively. The elections were part of ALPA’s 39th regular biennial Board of Directors meeting, during which all of the union’s representatives meet to deliberate on Association matters and set a course for its future.
Pilot leaders validated the effectiveness of Woerth and Dolan as the union’s first- and second-in-command, reaffirming their faith in both pilots’ ability to navigate the world’s largest pilot union through the currently tumultuous state of the aviation industry. The unanimous votes underscored the delegates’ conviction that ALPA’s two top leaders speak for all 66,000 of the union’s members with one voice, pursuing one collective mission. Woerth and Dolan, who ran unopposed, thanked all pilots for their support and pledged to continue working vigorously on their behalf.
Woerth said, “Even though dark clouds threaten commercial aviation and the piloting profession, I am energized, rather than discouraged. In adversity we are required to gather up our strength and unity; adversity is why we will stay together. I am honored to serve airline pilots and recommit to working for them and their families, confident that together we will accomplish great things,” he said.
“I subscribe to the words of Ralph Waldo Emerson,” Woerth said, “Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.”
Dolan demonstrated the same enthusiasm, saying, “I passionately believe in this Association and this profession. We must roll up our sleeves and work harder, longer and smarter to face the battles that lie ahead, because with adversity come opportunities.”
Woerth, a former U.S. Air Force pilot who retired as lieutenant colonel from the Air National Guard after accumulating more than 20 years of active duty, brings extensive credentials to the job: eight years as the Association’s first vice president before being elected the union’s president in 1998; member of the Northwest Airlines Board of Directors; ALPA’s director for the International Federation of Air Line Pilots Associations (IFALPA); previous chairman of IFALPA’s Industrial Committee; ALPA executive vice president and chairman of the Northwest pilots’ Master Executive Council.
Dolan, a former U.S. Marine Corp pilot who served two tours of duty in Vietnam, also has been serving as chairman of ALPA’s Security Task Force and IFALPA’s principle vice president for international affairs. He, too, brings a multitude of experiences to the post of first vice president, having served as the Association’s Strategic Planning Committee chairman, ALPA executive vice president, Delta Master Executive Council chairman, local executive council chairman, and communications chairman.
ALPA’s Board of Directors elected Capt. Paul Rice, a B-767 United pilot, as the Association’s vice president-administration/secretary, replacing Capt. Jerry Mugerditchian, who recently retired from United and completed his third term of office. As VP-administration/secretary, Rice is responsible for keeping membership records and conducting voting and election procedures.
A 23-year aviation veteran and the son of a retired UAL pilot, Rice has served in numerous union positions, including currently held positions on ALPA’s Strategic Planning Committee and Special Representational Structure Review Committee. He was chairman of United Airlines Council 11 from 1995 to 1999.
Completing the four-member national officer team, the Board elected Capt. Chris Beebe, a B-737 US Airways pilot, as vice president-finance/treasurer. Beebe succeeds Captain John Feldvary, also of US Airways, as the Association’s chief financial officer. Beebe, the current Master Executive Council chairman for US Airways pilots, boasts 20 years of ALPA volunteerism, serving as the US Airways pilots’ negotiating committee chairman, grievance representative, MEC vice chairman, MEC secretary/treasurer, and legislative affairs chairman.
ALPA’s Board elected a new slate of 11 executive vice presidents, who, along with the four national officers, sit on the Association’s Executive Council, the governing body that manages the Association’s fiscal plans and participates in policy decisions. The new executive vice presidents are: Capt. David Morrow (US Airways), Capt. Pat Burke (Continental), FO Michael Geer (Delta), Capt. Joe Fagone (Federal Express), Capt. Darryl Snider (Northwest), Capt. Mark Seal (United), Capt. JC Lawson (Comair), Capt. Jay Schnedorf (Midwest Express), Capt. Mike Milofsky (American Eagle), Capt. Tom Wychor (Mesaba) and Capt. Kent Hardisty (Air Canada Jazz).
ALPA, chartered in 1931 by the AFL-CIO, currently represents nearly 66,000 airline pilots at 43 airlines in United States and Canada. Visit ALPA’s website cf.alpa.org for extensive coverage of the 39th Board of Directors meeting.
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For more information on ALPA’s leadership team, contact John Mazor (703) 481-4440