September 2018 ALSO IN THIS ISSUE: » Oshkosh » Recently Retired » Our Stories page 28 page 35 page 34 THE 64TH Official Journal of the Air Line Pilots Association, International AIR SAFETY FORUM page 16 PILOT AVIATION ASSISTANCE JUMPSEAT AWARD AWARD Capt. Jerry F/O James McDermott Berzon United United AVIATION SECURITY AWARD Capt. Eric Herman Sun Country AIR SAFETY AWARD Capt. Scott Hammond Delta FACEBOOK facebook.com/WeAreALPA TWITTER twitter.com/wearealpa INSTAGRAM instagram.com/we_are_alpa PRINTED IN THE U.S.A. 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(0618-8HN4) (05/18) MKT102892-00 / 00213355 STS18_018790 ALP8_25x10_875_TradePants.indd 1 6/29/18 11:13 AM SEPTEMBER 2018 Contents VOLUME 87, NUMBER 7 ABOUT THE COVER Honoring pilot excellence: from left, Capt. Eric Herman (Sun Country), Aviation Security Award honoree; Capt. Jerry McDermott (United), Pilot Assistance Award recipient; F/O James Berzon (United), Aviation Jump- seat Award honoree; and Capt. Scott Ham- mond (Delta), Air Safety Award recipient. Photo by Chris Weaver Air Line Pilot (ISSN 0002-242X) is pub lished monthly except for combined January/Feb- ruary and June/July issues by the Air Line Pilots Association, Inter national, affiliated with AFL-CIO, CLC. Editorial Offices: 535 Herndon Parkway, Herndon, VA 20170. Telephone: 703-481-4460. Fax: 703-464- 2114. Copyright © 2018―Air Line Pilots As- sociation, Inter national, all rights reserved. Publica tion in any form without permission is prohibited. Air Line Pilot and the ALPA logo Reg. U.S. Pat. and T.M. Office. 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Box 2601, 6915 Dixie Rd, Mississauga, ON COMMENTARY FEATURES L4T 0A9. 5 OUR UNION 16 Making News and Ahead of the Curve Taking Action at ALPA’s 6 WEIGHING IN Air Safety Forum Expanding Our Horizons 7 GUEST COMMENTARY 24 Air Safety Forum A Way of Life Awards Banquet Celebrates Pilot 16 Excellence 28 Oshkosh Showcases ALPA Pilot Involvement 34 in Aviation 31 When We Flew Again: DEPARTMENTS Memories from Sept. 8 PREFLIGHT 36 THE LANDING 14, 2001 34 OUR STORIES Double Take FedEx Pilot Wows Crowds 38 WE ARE ALPA as World-Class Aerobatic ALPA Resources and Performer Contact Numbers 35 RECENTLY RETIRED Sees Who’s on the List September 2018 Air Line Pilot » 3 BEYOND THE PAGE Look for these icons throughout the magazine to get access to even more information, including additional content, videos, and audio clips―or to get feedback on a question. READ WEB VIDEO AUDIO E-MAIL MORE ADDRESS LINK LINK ADDRESS This is the only aisle we care about. 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A member service of Air Line Pilot. 4 » Air Line Pilot September 2018 Our Union Ahead of the Curve irline pilots fully recognize the danger of let- in collective bargaining as well as safety, security, ting an aircraft slip to the back side of the pow- jumpseat, and pilot assistance. A er curve. While it happens only rarely, most As I stated recently in The Wall Street Journal, our importantly if you’re flying low and slow, a plane industry is experiencing one of the largest hiring can lose altitude fast, even at full power. Factors cycles for airline pilots in history. ALPA’s Education like temperature and pressure altitude may mean Committee outreach to new audiences is bolder varying responses, but avoiding the back side of and broader than ever as we focus our efforts the power curve in the first place is fundamental. to reach our Association’s strategic goals for the This same commitment to staying ahead of future of the profession. the curve has been part of ALPA’s work as we’ve Similarly, we’re no less committed to staying pursued for decades securing a robust supply of ahead of the curve when it comes to airline pilots’ qualified airline pilots for our industry. While wellness. It’s true that our profession is one of the the recent spate of low starting salaries at some most highly vetted careers today. But that doesn’t regional airlines has driven some would-be pilots stop us from aggressively pursuing greater sup- to choose other professions, the situation today is port for airline pilots and proactively advancing only one example of many ebbs and flows in the aviation safety while maintaining a healthy work North American pilot supply. Through it all, ALPA environment for our members. has worked to win over and welcome new and Throughout our careers, U.S. pilots are continu- diverse talent into our ranks. ously evaluated through training, medical exams, More than 30 years ago, ALPA’s Board of Direc- and programs such as the Line Operations Safety tors created the Aviation Community Relations Audit, as well as by the airline and during random Committee and charged it with a two-pronged pur- flight checks by the FAA. Flight and cabin crew- pose: foster collaboration with the general aviation members also monitor and evaluate each other community and provide information for pilots and while on duty, and procedures exist to respond future pilots about our union and its goals. Later should a concern arise. renamed ALPA’s Education Committee, this key Despite these proven methods to keep pilots and body guided our union’s nascent Pilot Information the flying and shipping public safe, ALPA is never Program, which was designed for and targeted to satisfied; we’re constantly looking for more ways to reach high school and college students as well as support our pilots and enhance the safety of our in- other aviation enthusiasts. dustry. At this year’s Air Safety Forum, for example, “The seeds for future aviation safety accomplish- we discussed the newest tool in ALPA Pilot Assis- ments have been planted when the students reach tance work: Pilot Peer Support (see page 16). Under their jobs in government or industry,” said Capt. the auspices of the Air Safety Organization and its Frank Mayne (Delta), chair of ALPA’s Education Aeromedical Group, the soon-to-be-implemented Committee, when speaking of the committee’s program will provide U.S. ALPA members with work in September 1996. But F/O Mark Haley (Unit- access to peers who are trained to assist in taking ed), ALPA’s current Education Committee chair- on nonwork-related stress. man, could well make this same statement today. Along ALPA’s route to helping create the safest From the Pilot Information Program of the 1990s, mode of transportation, we’ve encountered our our work has evolved and expanded to include share of curves to be sure. But thanks to our mem- ALPA’s participation in many national and interna- bers’ dedication, we’re staying ahead of the power tional events such as AirVenture Oshkosh (see page curve in confronting these challenges. 28) and our outreach to more than 15,000 elemen- tary, middle, and high school students during the 2017–18 academic year.