It appears that US Airways President Doug Parker has made a huge move towards acquiring American Airlines! Rather than negotiate with American Airlines CEO Tome Horton, US Airways went straight to the employees with their negotiations. Seems like a very smart move especially considering that the three major unions at American have seats on the unsecured creditors committee. Last Friday all three major unions at American announced their full support for a merger with US Airways. In addition the APA representing the pilot of American Airlines have agreed to the basic framework of contract terms for the combined carrier.
The APA reported to their pilots the terms of a six year contract. Should the merger go through as planned, American Airlines pilots will be among the most highly compensated of the Legacy Carriers and provide a large boost in pay for the US Airways pilots. Proposed pay for a narrow body Narrowbody Captain are as follows:
• Date of Signing Pay Rate: $172.44
• 3% annual increase for years 2-6
• Year 2: $177.61
• Year 3: $182.94
• Year 4: $188.43
• Year 5: $194.08
• Year 6: $199.90
• Parity with UAL/DAL average at the end of the contract if those companies average is higher than our pay rate
• F/O pay rate 68% of Captain rate.
We believe that a merger with American and US Airways will not only be a win-win for the pilots involved but for all pilots in the industry! There will no longer be a large spread in pay from one Legacy Carrier to the next. This should help the airlines to compete while also raising the bar for all future pilot contract negotiations at all airlines!
We invite you to please discuss the American Airlines and US Airways merger on our pilot forums.
The FAA has finally published their new rest and duty rules! You can download your copy here: 
Are you visiting our website because you are interested in becoming a pilot or already a pilot and looking to add to your ratings? If so, visit our 
The difference between the left and right seat is only a few feet, but it is many miles difference in terms of responsibility. As a new captain of a regional aircraft you will most likely feel that the fourth stripe is a pass to the good ol’ boys club, you are in charge now, you get to set the tone, you get to call the shots; as the saying goes, it is good to be the king. However, because training is being cut to the FAA minimum you might feel a bit overwhelmed when everyone is looking to you for every little answer, I am here to say this is normal. If you are reading this then you are probably looking to make yourself a better leader/captain; no matter what, your experience level may be, that is a good thing.
Spirit Airlines pilots have ratified their new tentative agreement with 74% of the votes in favor with 96% of the pilots voting.
I had many responses to my previous article about obtaining as much experience as possible while waiting for hiring to resume. Many of the responses were similar in nature so this is an attempt to answer your concerns. For those who missed my earlier article, I encouraged those who are stuck in the regionals or at a corporate job to try to pick up another type rating to make themselves more attractive to the hiring managers. I explained that the competition will be quite fierce once the majors start hiring again. It is important to separate yourself as much as possible from everyone else and one way to do that is to gain as much experience as you can.
