GTC, thanks for the well wishes. I have been hard at work and starting to get responses. A great place to start for anyone interested in making their opinion heard is the
American Consulate. They are the final word and decision making body in all of this. The USCIS is just an administrative exercise.
Seems as though DL(who interestingly enough is Canadian...) tried to apply for H-1B Specialty Occupation visas for his countrymen, which is the appropriate visa for pilots seeking employment in the US, but it was denied based on merit. So they are trying to back-door it with the L-1A Intracompany Transferee Executive or Manager, claiming that the captains are in Management, and specifically required for the operation. Also they havent told the USCIS that these "Canadian Managers" will not be living in the US working at the US based office, but instead commuting in and out of this supposed US based job. The deceit just gets deeper and deeper. Grab your popcorn gentlemen.
An I-797 Notice of Action showing the approval of the visa petition does not guarantee that a visa will be issued at the U.S. consulate or embassy, but L-1 visas are normally approved if the consular officer concludes that the individual is qualified and that both the U.S. company and the foreign parent, subsidiary, affiliate or branch are legitimate.
Basis for visa denial: A consular officer may deny the issuance of an L-1 visa in cases where the officer determines the U.S. company that filed the L-1 petition may not be qualified, or that the parent, subsidiary, affiliate or branch outside the United States is not qualified or does not intend to continue in business after L-1 visa issuance, or that USCIS approved the petition based on a fraud committed by the company or the visa applicant, or that the applicant is ineligible for that class of visa under section 212(a) of the Immigration and Naturalization Act. In addition, the consular officer may request that the underlying petition be reconsidered by USCIS.