Chronicle of a Death Foretold: IBERIA AIRLINES OF SPAIN
 

Hi ALL.

We in Iberia note with impotence and rage (and what is worse, inaction) the steady and unstoppable decline of the airline that had the honor of representing the flag of Spain throughout the world.

It's slow and progressive decline of Iberia designed in the offices of temporary workers (ie managers) whose highest aspiration is personal enrichment over the interests of the company they manage.

Managers are invoked for assistant principals and chieftains rather mediocre work for Iberia, just waiting.They aspire to be unlikely when appointed to the chair of the board of directors and replace those who are now ruling the company.

And this endless waiting Iberia makes a company languishes as the sick animal that loses its strength and faints. Iberia cancer is incapable leaders and managers, useless and mediocre. The company lives in a chronic lack of foresight and planning.

No planes. The management team now complains that there has been a policy of fleet renewal and does not have the fleet of aircraft to efficiently tackle the future of the airline.

When planning work is not done now joins the game of lies. Iberia A340 aircraft that are removed for not being profitable, they are on other airlines. And even in the very Iberia A340 fleet continues to operate every day with a record occupancy.

And if that were not enough, why not accept the B777 offered by British to be operated for Iberia?

Poor planning and lies. But that's not the problem ...

The real problem is that there is no future, because there is no strategy for growth, there is no illusion or bosses to be leaders. Iberia is a patient who is dying in his own depression.

Workers have a duty to rebel against the leaders of Iberia to avoid a death foretold of the company. And like the angry, find the formula to organize and act against the management to change course Iberia suicide.

I would also blame all the Iberia pilots for doing nothing for many years:

- Last recruitment of pilots took place in 1999 and after the A320 type Rating Iberia offered no job!

- Iberia has been giving long haul aircraft to another spanish company (Audeli, Gestair)

- No Iberia cargo planes

- No routes to Asia, with all the Chinese people living in Spain it is unbelivable that Iberia has no f.ucking network to Asia. Most European Airlines make a bit of money thanks to the Asian market, but Iberia still thinks it is not necesary. What a shame!!!

- Medium haul routes and A320s given to Vueling with totaly underpaid pilots.

- Ryanair has a huge network in Spain, many bases, many aircraft. Why didn't Iberia union complain about the fact that Ryanair is not paying any local taxes. The Air France pilots union managed to kick Ryanair out of all France territory because the workers where not under local contract. What are you waiting to fight against the same cause?!!


- Iberia managers are clearly useless, what are you waiting for replacing them NOW?

Next step is to see Vueling operating A330s on behalf of Iberia?? C'mon my friend it is time to move you're ass :ugh:

Who are Iberia? I thought they were IAG.:confused:

What it's happening in IBERIA it's very simple. Pilots are IDIOTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! they've been looking all these years only to keep their incredible privileges in a market that has changed a lot. They only look for themselves and they have not been in touch with reality. Why the allowed wetleasing with GESTAIR, AUDELI, CLIKAIR, VUELING.... RYANAIR not paing taxes in Spain, and so on!!!!!! OHHH yes because people hate them in spain because last strike (a huge one on national holidays) they only request a salary increment, MOREEEEE!!!!!, so they were not able to strike again, people are mad with them. So, if they want to walk on the street safely, better to be quiet and do it in a stealth mode, lets bother management.....

During that time management get so tired and started a lot time ago a process to take all production to other companies keeping the brand, which it's the valuable issue, smart movement. Passengers look how the aircraft is painted or the counter desk logo. They don't know about AOC, training, P2F or maintenance, and what is more important THEY DON'T CARE!!! they want cheap tickets. So Iberia will exist for a long time but internally will be a brand new Co. and they never will grow if that means hire pilots with actual conditions.

If long time ago, pilot union SEPLA would fight again what was happening with spanish pilot market (P2F, CRAP salaries, FI with not salary at all....) crap companies that actually are under IB brand they could not be able to offer cheaper operation because they would have to pay to their pilots, and other staff more than 850 €/gross of basic salary :mad::mad::mad: Pilots should think twice about actual terms and conditions and forget middle age privileges, probably what they would obtain is keep Iberia growing and not externalizing production.

:D:D

I'm all for strike action if it's done properly. I don't agree with Iberia taxiing at 5 knots for 20 mins to the active runway, this has a safety issue for them and all the aircraft they're back up (35 deg OAT constantly apply brakes all the way to the holding point- would definitely effect RTO performance) and it's completely unprofessional to 'screw' fellow pilots and passengers.

What I hate is they clearly want to screw other companies too, as they increase speed if another aircraft is given a different taxi route to overtake. No other way to describe this other then childish.

It's for reasons like this, that I've no sympathy what so ever to any Iberia pilot - I find them to be a bit of a joke in all honesty. Always saying, 'buen service' (good service) to the USELESS spanish ATC controllers, but never saying it once to any ATC in London. VEry strange that........

When I eventually leave Spain, these are two sets of overpaid and underworked morons I'll be glad to see the back of!

@alexander

Spot on, you hit the nail on the head:ok:

Blimey Alex - that was strong for someone whose posts are normally quite reserved and diplomatic! Have you left your computer logged in and unattended for a while or something?! :p

(Edit... for the avoidance of confusion, post referred to has been removed!)

Dunno, Iberia was able to be profitable continously from 1995 until 2008, had a loss in 2009 like many other airlines and was profitable in 2010 again. That is not bad considering other major airlines in the same timeframe, including Big Airlines. It certainly was not a black hole like Sabena or Olympic were, although it never was as profitable as lufthansa either.

I'm all for keeping good working conditions, there are enough P2F idiots in the lowcost airlines already that actively ruin the whole profession, we do not need that in the major ones.

Zippy - you are quite right as I was briefly overcome with a strange an inexplicable antagonism towards Iberia. I am now back in my right mind and have removed the post!

VJW

"buen servicio" means "have a good duty shift".
it doesn't mean that you are happy with the service


Iberia pilots terms and conditions are equilvalent to those of British Airways, Air France, Lufthansa, etc... So why the complaints?

I tell you why. In Spain we always tend to attack spanish things, while in the rest of the world people defend their countries. So it always seems Spain is a bad place.

Well, as it happens, Spain is a bad place with a lot of ridiculous and stupid problems and stupid people... Just as the UK is, or France or Germany.

Microbust Terms at Iberia are far beyond other major EU airlines, no just in salary, also in other stupid privileges, pilots are just that pilots and no managers. And I believe it's important to mention that even salaries are higher, life cost and taxes are lower than in other EU countries so overall package is incredible.

I'm not jealous, nobody forced to the old management to sign those terms and conditions, wrong move. Good for pilots, I would like to be at your side. BUT NOT COMPLAIN that IB is not growing and routes are being flight by other operators. It's simple you're very expensive, Vueling, AirNostrum, Gestair are much cheaper. Even British Airways!!!

Put your foot back on earth.... or IB pilots change their mind or IB as we use to know it is over!!!

Cheers

EVERYBODY should be overpaid. Nobody should be underpaid like in Ryanair, Vueling, Wizzair, Air Berlin and all those rubbish airlines.

Oh well, thanks for your kind words about my union work...:\

Anyway, one of those airlines already runs code shares with iberia and will join oneworld in 7 months or so, and works within OCCC for over a year now.

Of all the many airlines I have used on a regular and frequent basis, Iberia is without rival the worst. It appears to be run purely for the convenience of its staff and their friends and families. The older employees are sitting waiting for retirement, knowing they are untouchable, the younger ones have an arrogance and an ignorance which is without comparison, and the attitude to fare paying customers is despicable.

I am convinced that they run an academy somewhere in Castilla y Leon for the normally polite and civil Spanish people to be trained in rudeness and hostility.

The word 'servicio' in Spanish translates as a service, a toilet, or as an act of sexual intercourse. Iberia don't achieve much in the way of the first!

And before anyone jumps down my throat and accuses me of being anti-Spanish, I am not. Apart from the fact that they torture bulls as a spectator 'sport', they are a fine and proud nation, but their national carrier is a disgrace.

Iberia lost my suitcase last month on my holidays, and it still hasn´t turned up. They seem to usually delay the delivery of some of my luggage on every trip, but so does BA, so I guess it is a good matchup.

VARIG
 

I have very close friends who dedicated their careers working for one of the best airlines in the world.
IBERIA folks, the developping story have a lot in common on what eventually happen to Varig. The company was let bleed until die. The awarded Lula (from Workers Party!) government criminally crossed their arms and the final result was sad: thousands of workers lost their jobs, fund pension (100%), salaries due, legal end of services money, medical assistance etc. It was a political agenda!
There was a significant number who died, divorces and even suicides.
Get united and took IMMEDIATE action before is too late! Do whatever necessary to secure your rights, consider every alternative, NOW!

Having lived in spain, having worked in the spanish aviation sector it does not surprise me at all.

Although they got huge amounts of money from the EU when they joined the EU, their thinking/mentality is still from the 1970´s -80´s
Especially the pilots AND sepla..:ugh:

They ran the show, and now they are angry because some old, close to retirement captains (sepla again!) fear for their (huge) pension.

iberia-sepla years ago demanded 4 engined a/c to go to south-america, in stead of -330 or 777´s.

Now they are complaining..........

Maybe they can PLAN their descent (via fms) but they have no clue how to plan/adjust/accept the current situation in aviation.:=

Maybe in a few years there is a future for me in spanish aviation, when its all cleaned-up.

Till then, i stay away........

Iberia are a dinosaur in a modern world. Look what happened to the dinosaurs.........

My goodness, such vitriol and short sightedness. Iberia pilots enjoy some of the best T & Cs yet they have remained profitable for most of the last decade. Some of you cannot wait for them to be knocked off their perch. Can you not see that when the top earners are removed the game would just simply move down one step. Someone else will become the top earner also to be knocked down and continue the race to the bottom. You must be soooo keen to get to the point where all pilots are employed at the lowest grade and have absolutely no autonomy to make any decisions.:ugh::ugh::ugh::ugh::ugh:

Most of you seem to have very little knowledge of the commercial reality of Iberia (pretty good btw), the politics of IAG or even that IB pilots took a 20% pay cut several years back to help balance the books. It is so much easier to just go for the cliches and stereotypes isn´t it?

I have to admit that as nice as individual IB pilots are, I don't think that SEPLA has had the smartest strategy for the past few years. Quite simply, they have priced themselves out of the Market.
In addition, the "macho" attitude of IB management hasn't helped. Iberia has its reputation for a reason. Sadly it isn't a good reputation (fairly or unfairly)
One of the reasons that Ryanair and Easyjet set up in Spain as it was recognised that virtually any competition would take revenue off IB if the pax were given choice. IB management recognise that they have to up their game, however I fear my colleagues in SEPLA have yet to.