• THE COMPANY THAT COULDN'T SHOOT STRAIGHT

• Accessing The Hub

• AFA Local Numbers

THE COMPANY THAT COULDN'T SHOOT STRAIGHT

48 days after the "Res Migration" on March 4, 2007, US Airways continues to flounder. Agents can't check passengers in for flights. Passengers can't be rebooked after their flights have been cancelled or delayed. Flights are being dispatched without passenger manifests. Employees commuting to work or traveling for pleasure (part of our compensation package) are being left at the gate because record locator numbers "can't be located".

A walk through an East Coast hub airport is like being in the horror film "Night of the Living Dead" as passengers wait zombie-like in endless lines or run madcap through concourses trying to catch their connecting flights.

Employees have no answers and more importantly no direction.

"So far they (the customers) are putting up with this", said Travis Christ, vice president of sales and marketing. "It's not too late".

"If there was an eighth day of the week we would like to have it", said Anthony Mule, senior vice president of customer service.

"You can run a substandard airline for a short period of time, but you can't do it for a long period", said CEO Doug Parker.

Say what?

The bottom line gentleman is this- you can't run a substandard airline FOR ANY LENGTH of time. Your job is to get it right the first time.

After cashing in millions of dollars in stock options last year, key America West managers are now walking around apologizing to customers and employees at the "New US Airways". Most of the same mangers were at the helm in 2000 when the former America West Airlines suffered meltdowns that drove customers away.

At this week's Crew News Session in CLT, Doug Parker said, "we weren't prepared for the reservation migration". We weren't prepared? How would a supervisor respond if a Flight Attendant or a Pilot were to tell them, "I was not prepared to operate that flight'? Employees do not have the luxury to not be prepared. We come to work every day prepared to do our jobs only to be let down by our leaders. As employees we are all held accountable for our actions. As parents we demand accountability from our children. Who holds are leaders accountable? Ultimately it is the people who pay all of our salaries.

There are no more excuses. There is no more time. The days of apologies are over. The employees have had it. The customers have had it.

The merger between America West and US Airways created an airline more than twice the size of America West. The merger also created a mentality among management that the airline could be run at half the cost. It can't. While managers spend time crafting "performance bonus packages" for each other, rank and file employees are left to fend for themselves. Contract talks are going nowhere as management continues to make substandard proposals that will never be ratified by the members.

The lesson here is this- there is no such thing as a "Full Service-Low Cost Airline". That model, sold to Wall Street, only works if you find employees willing to work for nothing and customers willing to pay for nothing. Neither will continue to happen.

Thank you,

Mike Flores, President
The US Airways Master Executive Council
AFA-CWA
 

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AFA Local Numbers

Council 40 PIT 724-695-3329
Council 41 DCA 703-212-8090
Council 69 BOS 781-289-8454
Council 70 PHL 215-492-0840
Council 82 LGA 315-736-3483
Council 89 CLT 704-527-0325

New Hotline Number Toll Free: 866-USA-AFA2
US AIRWAYS Benefits Information 800-872-4780

Reply to Inflight: askinflight@usairways.com

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