Oh well. To rephrase some similar comments, the many assorted airline Local Council and Master Council members have different attitudes towards the regionals. I've never worked for the union, but realize, as a line pilot, that there are often so many conflicting goals within an airline, that it might be inevitable to find them within the national organization. I've stated before on Pprune how so much pressure was brought to bear upon Delta Airlines, from the ATA (the airline mgmt union/association, which often denies the existence of "pattern-bargaining") and the federal government, during the Comair strike.
I hate to see those situations where the regional pilots, who on average work harder and often much longer duty periods than many of us, are looked down on by some of our representatives, and even some line pilots (who often had no civilian flying background). But there is nothing that I can do about it, and not all reps feel that way towards their brethren, maybe not even a large majority. Don't forget, some of the guys on certain 'widebody airline' Merger Committees (I said some) even presumed to look down on jets with 100 to 145 seats, in order to justify their "expectations" in the desperate arguements to 'His Holiness', the ('Most Esteemed') Arbitrator. But not all of them used such rationalizations to the same degree.
If someone can suggest an adequate substitute for ALPA, then we can all finally be enlightened. It will be most refreshing, after years of waiting, and reading the Pprune remarks by those whose 'Schadenfreude' (joy at somebody else's harm or embarassment) motivates them. Maybe the regionals should have their own national union.
By the way, some of you guys who always 'badmouth' everything about ALPA never spent a whole career working for US airlines, but, on the otherhand, are sometimes suggesting that the regional ALPA units are a good thing, in order to highlight the second-class (or worse) service by national ALPA, so there seems to be a contradiction here. There must be many management pilots and wanabes who, considering themselves so superior to the "unwashed masses" (line pilots), would resent any regional First Officers wanting or receiving a net monthly salary which is even a few hundred dollars per above minimim wage (due to this appalling, prevailing, average FO "salary", marketplace forces or not...), because only a very strong union could hope to achieve such progress.
Tarring everyone with the same brush, as mentioned by somebody else, is simply creating an over-generalization and a fashionable "soundbyte", designed for the uninformed laymen and foreign pilots.
Last edited by Ignition Override; 24th Nov 2002 at 03:57.