October 2015 Air STATE OF THE AIRLINE INDUSTRY: Line Where Are We, PilOt & What’s Next? page 20 Official Journal of the Air Line Pilots Association, International ALSO IN THIS ISSUE: » UAS Update page 26 » McCullough Q&A page 36 » Who to Call for Medical Advice page 32 ALPA Remembers 9/11 page 28 Follow us on Twitter PRINTED IN THE U.S.A. @wearealpa ADP81726-00_I21413_1a.ai ADP81726-00-x1a-OP.pdf 09.08.14 I21413x01A_3u.tif Epson Bleed: 8.5 x 11.125 HP Trim: 8.25 x 10.875 ISO 12647-7 Digital Control Strip 2009 3% A 100 60 100 70 30 100 60 100 70 30 100 60 100 70 30 100 40 40 100 40 100 40 70 40 70 40 40 40 70 40 40 70 40 70 40 40 3 10 25 50 75 90 100 B 100 100 60 100 100 70 70 30 30 100 100 60 100 100 70 70 30 30 100 100 60 100 100 70 70 30 30 100 40 100 40 40 100 10 40 40 20 70 70 70 70 40 70 40 40 0 0 0 0 3.1 2.2 2.2 10.2 7.4 7.4 25 19 19 50 40 40 75 66 66 100 100 100 80 70 70 100 OCTOBER2015CONTENTS VOLUME 84, NUMBER 8 COMMENTARY 28 5 OUR UNION ALPA’s Individual Enterprise 6 PILOT COMMENTARY Doing Our Part to Help ‘Green’ Airlines Stay Safe and in the Black FEATURES 20 NORTH AMERICAN AIRLINE INDUSTRY CONTINUES ON PROFITABLE PATH, BUT ABOUT THE COVER THREATS PERSIST A Delta MD-88 parked on the ramp at Piedmont Triad Inter- 26 WHEN YOU FLY... DEPARTMENTS national Airport in Greensboro, WE CAN’T 7 PREFLIGHT 34 OPINIONS N.C. Photo taken by F/O Kyle 28 ALPA PILOTS, STAFF A Zero-Carbon Aviation Future Tomeny (Delta). 30 ALPA@WORK HONOR 9/11 VICTIMS, The Inner Workings of ALPA’s 35 RECENTLY RETIRED Download a QR reader CONTINUE PLEDGE TO Air Safety Organization See Who’s on the List to your smartphone, NEVER FORGET 32 HEALTH WATCH 36 THE LANDING scan the code, and read the magazine. Career-Saving Advice When ‘A Manmade Miracle’ You Need It 38 WE ARE ALPA Air Line Pilot (ISSN 0002-242X) is pub lished 33 OUR STORIES ALPA Resources and monthly except for combined January/Feb- Retired Spirit Pilot Receives Contact Numbers ruary and June/July issues by the Air Line Pilots Association, Inter national, affiliated Hall of Fame Honors with AFL-CIO, CLC. Editorial Offices: 535 Herndon Parkway, PO Box 1169, Herndon, VA 20172-1169. Telephone: 703-481-4460. 36 Fax: 703-464-2114. 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Box 2601, 6915 Dixie Rd, Mississauga, ON L4T 0A9. 20 October 2015 Air Line Pilot » 3 ADP81726-00_I21413_1a.ai ADP81726-00-x1a-OP.pdf 09.08.14 I21413x01A_3u.tif Epson Bleed: 8.5 x 11.125 HP Trim: 8.25 x 10.875 ISO 12647-7 Digital Control Strip 2009 3% A 100 60 100 70 30 100 60 100 70 30 100 60 100 70 30 100 40 40 100 40 100 40 70 40 70 40 40 40 70 40 40 70 40 70 40 40 3 10 25 50 75 90 100 B 100 100 60 100 100 70 70 30 30 100 100 60 100 100 70 70 30 30 100 100 60 100 100 70 70 30 30 100 40 100 40 40 100 10 40 40 20 70 70 70 70 40 70 40 40 0 0 0 0 3.1 2.2 2.2 10.2 7.4 7.4 25 19 19 50 40 40 75 66 66 100 100 100 80 70 70 100 Air LineBeyond Pilot Feature Article the » TITLE Page HERE 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. 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A member service of Air Line Pilot. 4 » Air Line Pilot October 2015 OurUnion ALPA’s Individual Enterprise t is the lone worker who makes the first International Civil Aviation Organization. advance in a subject; the details may be » Making certain the current pilot pay shortage worked out by a team, but the prime idea “I is seen for what it is and that important safety is due to the enterprise, thought, and perception improvements remain in place. While certain of an individual,” said Alexander Fleming, the airlines have attempted to link improvements pharmacologist who revolutionized medicine by in pilot training and qualifications and fatigue discovering the world’s first antibiotic. prevention to a fabricated pilot shortage, the Our union’s success rests on the enterprise, facts show that qualified pilots are not only thought, and engagement of each of our members. applying to but are also staying at those airlines It’s true that collective action forms the heart of that have offered fair pay and benefits as well unionism, but every collective action begins with as a path for career advancement. ALPA is com- an individual act. As individual members, our municating to Congress that these safety regu- pilots play an integral role in choosing our leaders, lations have significantly improved the safety ratifying contracts, determining priorities, and of our industry and must remain in place. advancing our union’s goals. As you will read in our state of the industry ar- » Installing secondary cockpit barriers on all ticle (see page 20), our industry and our profession passenger airline cockpits. In 2001, Congress are encountering profound challenges but also mandated that reinforced flight deck doors be striking opportunities. This climate means only installed on airliners, but the cockpit remains the most enterprising effort will move us forward. vulnerable when the door is opened during It is each ALPA pilot’s readiness to engage in the flight. The secondary cockpit barrier is a sometimes difficult but essential action that gives light-weight, low-cost, and high-impact layer our union the ability to stand out in its numbers of aviation security that would safeguard the but also to stand up for what is right. cockpit during these times. ALPA believes that One such challenge is ensuring the safe integra- Congress must enact legislation to require that tion of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS). ALPA all passenger airliners be equipped. recognizes the societal and economic benefits they » Repealing the health-care excise tax. Across offer, but UAS must meet the safety standards cur- the United States, 40 percent of employers rently required of every other airspace user (see page expect that at least one of their health-care 26). Each ALPA member has a responsibility to act plans will be affected during the first year that by reporting potential UAS collisions. This is a call to the Affordable Care Act excise tax is imposed action for every pilot, because each report provides beginning in 2018. The group health plan tax critical data to make the airspace safer for all of us. will drive up costs for U.S. employers and may Similarly, our union’s pilots are converging on prompt them to reduce employees’ benefits or Capitol Hill and Parliament Hill—literally and to negotiate for plan reductions. ALPA is call- through e-mails—in calls to action on critical safe- ing to repeal the tax. ty, security, and professional issues that demand lawmakers’ attention and response. As Canadian ALPA fuses individual enterprise with collec- pilots recently did in opposition to temporary tive engagement to the benefit of our members foreign workers, now every U.S.-based member is and all who depend on air transportation. needed to make a difference in four priority areas: Every time an ALPA member answers the call » Improving the safety of shipping lithium bat- to act, our union moves another step forward in teries by air. New international policy that ALPA realizing the change that will revolutionize our helped drive makes shipping lithium batteries industry and our profession. by air safer, but more work must be done. Our union is asking Congress to give the Department of Transportation secretary the authority to issue lithium battery safety regulations and not be limited by international standards set by the Capt.