A little background is in order. American Airlines is based in the Dallas/Ft. Worth metro area in the state of Texas, coincidentally the home state of President Bush. The pilots of American nearly all belong to the Arrogant Pilots Association, or APA, and must be forgiven for their boorish behavior because they are far and away superior to all other pilots. This, of course, was the reason why most of the recently acquired TWA pilots, who flew for the company which originated transaltlantic flying from the states nearly 60 years ago and were quite content having the flag painted on the empennage of the aircraft, were deservedly placed on the bottom of the American seniority list, barred from the 777 effectively forever, and subsequently either bought off or furloughed -- 86% at the conclusion of the present round of furloughs.
Now we all know that there is a learning curve to these things, and the members of the Arrogant Pilots Association have only been operating into their TWA-acquired LHR assets for a decade or so and may not yet know that LHR is not a suburb of Dallas, in the great state of Texas, home of their friend, President Bush.
However, change is coming! The Highest and Most Exalted and Most Arrogant pilot of the Arrogant Pilots Association, 777I Captain Ed White, has recognized the wisdom of blending the combined wisdom of even the TWA pilots into American's superior pilot culture, and has seen to it that a handful of the 15 year TWA captains due to be furloughed will be offered RJ jobs at American's regional affiliates where they can be purified and learn of the greatness of Dallas and all its suburbs throughout the US. Cleansed, those who are young enough will eventually be recalled to the mother company, and warmly embraced by all the other Arrogant Pilots, and LHR can once again return to its vaunted status as a proud and more quietly distinguished suburb of Dallas.