APA News Digest

Jan. 24, 2025

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In This Edition ...

Special Fini Flight Day in DFW

On Wednesday, APA and the DFW Flight Office cohosted a series of Fini Flight celebrations. In a first for APA’s Fini Flight initiative, pilots who have retired or will be retiring on LTD were among the honorees. Family and friends joined these pilots at DFW’s Terminal A Gate 34 and on board a Boeing 777-200 to celebrate their careers:

  • DFW CA Lauran Canatella
  • DFW FO Bill Dowd
  • DFW CA Terryl Friesen
  • DFW CA Francis Govednik
  • DFW CA Mike Miller
  • CLT CA Dan Powers
  • LGA CA Craig Reichold
  • DFW CA Chris Sturm
  • DFW CA John Visser

APA officials on hand for the celebrations included President FO Nick Silva (below), Vice President CA Chris Torres, DFW Domicile Chair CA Brian Smith, and LAX Domicile Vice Chair CA Tim Dick.

Congratulations and best wishes to all.

You can see more photos from the celebrations on APA’s Facebook page. We also uploaded a video of the festivities to our YouTube account.

Positive Rate Episode 41: Compass Project’s YOUnion Webinars

The APA Compass Project Committee hosts a series of YOUnion webinars to educate pilots about various stages of their careers. In the latest edition of our “Positive Rate” podcast, Communications Committee Deputy Chair FO Melissa Monahan talks to CA Derek Richardson and FO Armando Torres about how the YOUnion series was developed and what each webinar offers. You can register for the next sessions on the Member Engagement Portal of AlliedPilots.org.

Each episode of “Positive Rate” features APA 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 comment, please send it to Communications Director Gregg Overman via goverman@alliedpilots.org.

Compass Mentors’ Best Advice

American Airlines resumed new-hire classes this month. Growth in the airline, new faces in the crew room, and positive momentum in our careers is exciting for all of us. And while our new hires are undoubtedly over the moon to be starting their dream job, any new job will come with challenges.

Those challenges are the reason APA has put the Compass Project’s mentorships program into place. “We’re there to provide a pathway for success,” said CA Josh Denault, who volunteers as a Compass mentor.

Communications Committee Deputy Chair FO Shay Marchetti recently asked several Compass mentors for their best advice for new hires. This is what they said.

Winter Board Meeting to Begin Monday

The APA Board of Directors will convene at union headquarters in Fort Worth on Monday, Jan. 27, for its regularly scheduled winter meeting. You may review the agenda here.

The agenda includes a Membership and Guest Hour on the first day immediately following the APA President’s report. Policy stipulates that “Any APA member(s) in good standing or, with the consent of the Board, a guest of a member shall be allowed to address the board. Allocation of time will be 60 minutes divided by the number of members/guests desiring to speak; however, no individual will be afforded more than 10 minutes, including any questions/ answers by the Board. Members and guests must advise the meeting Chair of their desire to address the Board.”

Please email asmith@alliedpilots.org if you wish to address the Board.

The following resolutions have been submitted for consideration at this meeting:

  • R2024-50, “Executive Member and Non-Member”
  • R2024-53, “Removal of Board Recall of National Officers”
  • R2024-54, “BOD Meeting Dates”
  • R2024-56, “Safety Committee Updates”
  • R2025-01, “Domicile Officer Eligibility”
  • R2025-02, “Election Category Modifications”
  • R2025-03, “2025 POD Rate Adjustment”
  • R2025-04, “SMP 2025 Rate Adjustment”
  • R2025-05, “APA-ALPA Merger Negotiation Committee”
  • R2025-06, “Member Investigations”

American Reports 2024 Earnings

On Thursday, American’s senior management reported the company’s results for the fourth quarter of 2024 and the full year. Here are some excerpts from the Securities and Exchange Commission filing:

  • “Record fourth-quarter revenue of $13.7 billion and record full-year revenue of $54.2 billion.”
  • Adjusted pre-tax earnings for the fourth quarter were, $808 million, with full year pre-tax earnings of $1.8 billion.
  • Adjusted pre-tax margin for the fourth quarter was, 5.9%, with full year pre-tax margin, 3.4%.
  • “Achieved total debt reduction goal of $15 billion from peak levels — a full year ahead of schedule.”
  • “In 2024, American generated record free cash flow of $2.2 billion, which enabled further strengthening of its balance sheet.”
  • “American ended the year with $10.3 billion of total available liquidity, comprised of cash and short-term investments plus undrawn capacity under revolving credit and other facilities.”

2024 Fourth Quarter and Full Year Adjusted* Pre-tax Results

 

4Q Pre-tax Earnings

4Q Pre-tax Margin

Full Year Pre-tax Earnings

Full Year Pre-tax Margin

Delta

$1.6 billion

10.8%

$5.2 billion

9.1%

United

$1.4 billion

9.7%

$4.6 billion

8.1%

American

$808 million

5.9%

$1.8 billion

3.4%

*Adjusted: excludes special items

Temporary LHR Transportation Restrictions

This is a new message from the APA Hotel Committee.

All pilots departing the LHR station through mid-April: Please be advised that your guests will NOT be able to take the crew transportation from the hotel back to the airport. This is due to security checkpoint closures in place until mid-April. During this time, some crews will be directed to a facility that is not near a terminal. This change is effective immediately. We have been informed pilots will receive a targeted CCI message prior to any LHR layover.

For more information, check out the 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.

APA Welcomes New Pilots

This is a new message from the APA Membership Committee.

a group of pilots in a lobby

Click the image for a closer look.

On Jan. 21, the APA Membership Committee hosted a casual dinner for the following new-hire pilots: Summer Allen, Kevin Alsbro, Leovardo Bahena, Fernando Balsalobre Reynaldo, Ward Bissey II, Kyle Boyd, Ryan Breed, Timothy Burke, Paul Chapin, Alyssa Ciardiello, Karyn Clark, Kirtes Cook, Clinton Daniel, Kevin Dennis, David Evangelista, Michele Franciosa, Daniel Gallo Corredor, Jonathan Gobrial, Patrick Halpin, Elizabeth Hartzendorf, Ryan Hays, Christopher Jackson, Craig Jimenez, Brandon Johnson, Brian Jones, Anthony Koselke, Peter Lee, John Lopez, Matthew Major, Kevin Meeks, Scott Millington III, David Otero, Mila Pustel, Timothy Reece, Michael Reid, Kristen Rosser, David Schiessl, Ian Sciford, Keith Shelley, Cody Smith, Peyton Sutton, John Taliaferro, Matthew Thompson, Jaime Tolosa Velez, Quentin Vaughn, John Welborn, and Brendon Wepplo.

APA Welcomes Leadership Class

This is a new message from the APA Membership Committee.

a group of pilots in a lobby

On Jan. 22, 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: Aaron Duff, Matthew Johnson, Patti Martin, Roger Mason, Stephen Rogers, Anthony Romah, and Bradley Stadelmeier.

APA Medical Minute – Coronary Artery Disease

In the latest edition of the APA Medical Minute, APA Medical Advisor Kathy Parr discusses coronary artery disease necessitating intervention, and what the FAA requires for clearance.

You can watch previous Medical Minute videos on APA’s YouTube channel.

National Election

Members in good standing will elect a President, Vice President, and Secretary-Treasurer to serve from July 1, 2025, until June 30, 2028.

Pilots can submit themselves or others for nomination until 0001 Central on Jan. 30. Here’s where things stood at 1200 Central today:

President
31 pilots’ names had been submitted, with CA Bill Evans, FO Alex Gutierrez, and FO Nick Silva officially seeking nomination.

Vice President
10 pilots’ names had been submitted, with FO Scott Yancy officially seeking nomination.

Secretary-Treasurer
Six pilots’ names had been submitted, with CA Clint Early and CA Andrew O’Hara officially seeking nomination.

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

Concourse Conversations at LAX

APA’s National Communications Network will host Concourse Conversations at LAX from 0800 to 1100 and from 1500 to 1700 on Feb. 17. If you will be at the airport in those timeframes, please stop by to chat. These events allow union leadership to hear directly from line pilots and vice versa.

Domicile Events

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

Are You Willing to Serve?

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

  • Aeromedical Committee (0)
    • Critical Incident Response Program Subcommittee (1)
    • Disabled Pilot Awareness Subcommittee (3)
    • Human Intervention Motivational Study Subcommittee (1)
    • Pilot Occupational Health Subcommittee (2)
    • Project Wingman Subcommittee (3)
  • Captain’s Authority Committee (2)
  • Communications Committee (0)
    • National Communications Network (2)
  • Economic and Financial Analysis Committee (1)
  • Grey Eagles Liaison Committee (1)
  • Professional Standards Committee (1)
  • Retirement and Benefits Committee (1)*
  • Training Committee (1)
    • Checkmate (1 on 777)

* Seeking volunteer with financial services experience and possible AIF®, CFP®, or related designations.

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

Week in Review

Here are some recent messages you may have missed.

Professional Standards FAQs

Will Professional Standards handle issues with Crew Schedule/Crew Tracking?
Absolutely! As you should be well aware, every call to Crew Schedule/Crew Tracking (CS/CT) is recorded from the time you are connected until you hang up – even when you are on hold. While cases with CS/CT are rare, they do occur. There is a protocol for handling issues that arise with our colleagues in CS/CT: Conversations are reviewed jointly by Professional Standards and the CS/CT manager for resolution.

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

The Future & Active Pilot Alliance’s next Pilot Job Fair and Future Pilot Seminar are scheduled for Feb. 21 at DFW followed by March 14 at SAN. 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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