APA News Digest

July 19, 2024

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In This Edition ...

You’re Cleared for Departure to Oshkosh

In last week’s edition, we asked our members (current and retired) to send us pictures of the planes they will be flying to Oshkosh. These photos were submitted by (clockwise from top left) FO Loren Marburg, FO Mike Schreiner, CA Larry Bradshaw (retired), and CA Chris Sims.

EAA AirVenture Oshkosh, the world’s largest aviation gathering, kicks off on Monday. APA’s Family Awareness Committee will host gatherings each evening, July 22-27. If you plan to attend any of these dinners or happy hours, please let us know via the RSVP links at AlliedPilots.org/Calendar.

(To see the Family Awareness events, you may need to adjust your preferences by clicking the gear icon at the top of the calendar. However, we have included direct links to each event below.)

Positive Rate Episode 27: Training Committee

In the latest episode of our “Positive Rate” podcast, Communications Committee Deputy Chair FO Melissa Monahan talks with CA Tim Martin, Training Committee Deputy Chair, about the various ways the committee serves the membership. He notes the committee has an expert for each fleet American Airlines operates, and also discusses the recently revamped Training Debrief, emphasizing how the data pilots provide with their debriefs enables the committee to effect change as needed. (All debriefs are deidentified before the committee shares them with the company.)

Each episode of “Positive Rate” features various APA leaders and the subject-matter experts working on the membership’s behalf. The podcast is available through popular streaming services, including Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, and Spotify – you can search for “Positive Rate” or “Allied Pilots Association” on your platform of choice to subscribe and download. Your first opportunity to listen will be via AlliedPilots.org/Podcasts.

We welcome your feedback on this format. If you have a question or a comment, please send it to Communications Director Gregg Overman via goverman@alliedpilots.org.

APA Medical Minute – Kidney Stones

In the latest edition of the APA Medical Minute, APA Medical Advisor Christopher Ryan provides guidance regarding kidney stones.

Good News for CDG Layovers

This is a new message from the APA Hotel Committee.

CDG layovers will continue at three airport properties through Sept. 8 due to the excessive drive times because of the Olympic-only lanes into the city. As a result of these relocations, the company has offered to reimburse pilots and flight attendants for one round-trip coach train ticket to downtown Paris. You can submit your receipt via Concur for reimbursement.

Please note that this offer, which is good through Sept. 8, applies to only one round-trip coach ticket per layover. Each of our CDG airport properties have crafted an informative welcome letter for AA crews that includes this information.

Please exercise heightened situational awareness if you choose to go into the city, as there is increased risk of crime during the Olympics.

For more information, check out the recently updated QRH – Quick Reference Hotels document. This resource answers 99 percent of all hotel, transportation, and layover questions while providing helpful solutions. Suggestion: Download this QRH document to your AA iPad for easy access in the future.

Preparing for Space Weather Storms

This is a new message from the APA Aeromedical Committee.

Dispatcher notes in your flight release may have remarks regarding space weather. Another great planning tool is located in the WSI weather app. The Space Weather storm scale legend in the top left of the application (after a route is loaded) shows “RSG,” which corresponds to R (HF radio impacts), S (solar radiation), and G (navigational impacts-GPS). There is a legend that explains RSG when clicked. Additionally, your Pilot Occupational Health Subcommittee has an alerting system for R3 /S3 . The FOM also provides guidance on space weather.

For more information, please refer to the Pilot Occupational Health Subcommittee’s webpage. If you have questions, please send to cmte-occupationalhealth@alliedpilots.org.

CIRP Volunteer of the Quarter

This is a new message from the APA Aeromedical Committee.

FO Greg Keller has been a part of the Critical Incident Response Program since 2002. He has also volunteered his time to his fellow pilots as a member of the Project Wingman Subcommittee and the ORD Safety Committee. Greg flies the 787 out of DFW these days, but he has also flown the 727, the MD-80, the 737, and the 767 during his 25 years with American. Before AA, he flew the C-5 at Dover AFB and the C-137 (B707) at Andrews AFB. He is also the Chair of the Green River Community College Advisory Council and assists with their Aeronautical Science Department. He has three grown daughters and lives in Tacoma, Wash.

Our Recommended Reading List

This is a new message from the APA Aeromedical Committee.

In an effort to improve our members’ health, we have created a recommended reading list. Each month, we will highlight a book that has helped in the prevention of, treatment of, or recovery from an injury or illness, or has elevated a member’s education. Feel free to send your book recommendations to aeromed-committee@alliedpilots.org.

Curable

The United States is fast becoming the sickest nation in the Western world. Cancer rates continue to rise. There is an epidemic of chronic disease in children. Even with all the money and modern innovations in science, the country’s health care system is beyond broken. Clearly there is a glitch in the system. But what if the solution has been here all along, and we’ve just been too blind to see it?

In Curable, journalist and health care advocate Travis Christofferson looks at medicine through a magnifying glass and asks an important question: What if the roots of the crisis are psychological and systemic, perpetuated not just by corporate influence and the powers that be, but by you and me? It is now known that human perception is based on deeply entrenched patterns of irrational thought, which we attach ourselves to religiously. So how does this implicate the very scientific research and data that doctors rely on to successfully treat their patients?

Disclaimer: This recommendation is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute the practice of medicine or other professional health care services. Always consult with your medical provider when making health care decisions.

Pigs of the Week

APA commends American Airlines’ hardworking aircraft maintenance technicians for their outstanding work. We believe they are the best in the business. When repetitive problems do arise, they’re often due to managerial decisions that fail to properly prioritize tasks and to management’s decision to outsource a significant portion of the airline’s maintenance to offshore, third-party repair stations.

  • Since June 16, the flight deck door on A320 aircraft 647 has been written up 14 times and been out of service seven times. It most recently returned to service on July 16.

APA Welcomes Leadership Class

This is a new message from the APA Membership Committee.

Click the image for a closer look.

On July 17, the APA Membership Committee hosted a casual dinner for the following pilots who were in Fort Worth for American Airlines’ Professionalism, Leadership, and Mentoring class: Chad Coontz, Charles Coppa, Skyler Davenport, Michael Doyle, John Hagerty Jr., Korry Hamman, Colin Hendershot, Vincent Jordan, Mark Kish, Ryan Larosh, Brian Lietzke, Kareem Omar, Nathaniel Terry, Natalia Tiunova, Miriam Williams, and Riccardo Zappa.

Congratulations to Newly Upgraded Captains

This is a new message from the APA Membership Committee.

We would like to recognize and congratulate these pilots who upgraded last month. They are listed by their post-upgrade base and equipment.

CLT 737: Erik Breault, Matthew Costa, David Hegedus Jr., Jacob Muraski, and Nathaniel Terry

CLT 320: Rudy Foskuhl and Robert Martin

DCA 737: Nicholas Osburn and Andrea Themely

DFW 777: Alex Durr, Michael Galante, and Arno Knapen

DFW 787: Jennifer Palmer

DFW 737: Kenneth Bach, Richard Blagg Jr., Christopher DeLong, Michael Doyle, Colin Hendershot, Denver Hill, Kareem Omar, Casey Ronayne, Adam Shepherd, James Spencer, and Elisha Walker IV

DFW 320: Steven Cates, Korry Hamman, Emmanuel Lindsay, Robert Marsh, Joseph McBrearty, Chad Nedved, Thomas Pappas, Christopher Tredemeyer, Miriam Williams, and Brandon Witzel

LAX 737: Jeffrey Caouette, Taylor De Ley, Edmund Guerrero Jr., Brian Horeczko, Vincent Jordan, and Victor Stoeckmann

LGA 737: Zachary Balas, Robert Banks, Matthew Creed, Eric Darwin, Geoffrey Haw, Brian Lietzke, Antoine Morrison, Paul Murdock, Michael Redmon Jr., Janelle Setta, and Natalia Tiunova

MIA 777: Kim Grummitt and Christine Rupert

MIA 737: Ciro Capasso, Charles Coppa, Todd Eysenbach, Richard Goodlett, Samuel Heda, Edward Kelley, Andre Leyakatalie, Brandon McIntire, Juan Melendez, Michael O'Dea, Mircea Pamfil, and Tim Wadsworth

ORD 787: Robert Stack

ORD 737: Keith Allison, Wayne Bushmaker, Stephen Farlow, Jeffrey Fitzgerald, Joseph Lanera, Joseph Miklasz, Kyle Morris, and Shad Vinson

PHX 320: Brett Cavitt

Flight Attendants Announce Tentative Agreement

Today, the Association of Professional Flight Attendants (APFA) announced that it had reached a tentative agreement with American Airlines management.

“Our latest contract negotiations have resulted in significant benefits for our Flight Attendants,” APFA National President Julie Hedrick said in a press release. “After years of bargaining and with the assistance of the National Mediation Board, we have reached a long overdue agreement with American Airlines, which addresses our concerns in compensation, work rules, and retroactive pay. If approved, this agreement will put billions of additional dollars into compensation and work rules for our Flight Attendant workgroup.”

Domicile Events

Visit AlliedPilots.org/Calendar to RSVP for any of these upcoming domicile events:

Domicile Elections

Pilots based at CLT, LGA, and MIA will elect a Chair and Vice Chair to represent each domicile for three-year terms that will begin on Nov. 1.

The list of candidates has been updated since last week’s News Digest was published:

CLT Chair
CA Heather Ducimo Boulanger
CA Erik DeWinne
CA Casey Granger

CLT Vice Chair
CA Casey Granger
FO Hickory Ham
CA Michael Pfeifer
FO Tammy Smart

LGA Chair
CA Lawrence Cutler
CA David Hines
CA Mark Lokey
CA Jeff Kerr

LGA Vice Chair
CA David Hines
CA Michael Phelan
CA Sam Pool
CA James Scanlan
CA Robert D. White

MIA Chair
CA Thomas Copeland
CA Andrew Weingram
CA Jay Wilhelm

MIA Vice Chair
CA Scott Craig
FO Jamie Funderburk
FO Steven Mann
CA Ken Wells
CA Anne Witcher

The candidates’ resumes will be emailed (and posted on the Elections page on AlliedPilots.org) on Aug. 6.

When there are four or more candidates for a domicile position, the APA Constitution and Bylaws calls for a Nomination Round that winnows the field to three. The Nomination Round voting period will be open from 0100 Eastern on Aug. 7 until 0101 Eastern on Aug. 29. The deadline for receipt of mailed paper ballots is 1100 Eastern on Aug. 29.

For more information, visit the Elections page on AlliedPilots.org.

Week in Review

Here are some recent messages you may have missed.

Are You Willing to Serve?

Each of these national committees or subcommittees has the indicated number of vacancies:

  • Aeromedical Committee (0)
    • Disabled Pilot Awareness Subcommittee (3)
    • Human Intervention Motivation Study Subcommittee (1)
    • Pilot Occupational Health Subcommittee (2)
    • Project Wingman Subcommittee (3)
  • Captain’s Authority Committee (3)
  • Communications Committee (0)
    • National Communications Network (7)
  • Grey Eagles Liaison Committee (1)
  • Scheduling Committee (4)
  • Training Committee (5)
    • Checkmate (1 on 777)

If you would like to serve on one or more of these committees, visit the Member Engagement Portal.

Professional Standards FAQs

What records are kept for Professional Standards?
None. There are no individual case files kept, nor are there any records in an employee’s Permanent Employment History (PEH). Only non-specific, de-identified logs are kept to maintain generic trends and reliability of the program.

To read all of the FAQs, click here.

Professional Standards’ 24/7 hotline: 817-402-2181

If You’re 50, Join The Grey Eagles

Are you a pilot for American Airlines, at least age 50, active or retired? Please join The Grey Eagles for food, fun, and fellowship. We offer cruises, conventions, monthly luncheons, retirement dinners, professional mentoring, and assistance to surviving spouses – all for a one-time lifetime fee.

Pilot Job Fairs and Future Pilot Seminars

Future & Active Pilot Advisors’ next Pilot Job Fair and Future Pilot Seminar are scheduled for Aug. 23 at IAD followed by Sept. 20 at TPA. Click here for more information.

Industry News

For more about what’s happening in the industry, be sure to visit the Industry News page on AlliedPilots.org.

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