On Thursday the Company announced US Airways will start service this spring to Milan, Italy; Stockholm Sweden and Lisbon, Portugal and also announced a confirmed order for 25 Embraer 190 aircraft. On Friday the Company issued a press release announcing a pilot recall.
NEW EUROPEAN FLYING AND ADDITIONAL B757 AIRCRAFT ADDED TO THE FLEET
PHL-MXP (Milan) will commence on May 31, 2006 and be operated using B767 aircraft. Although it is anticipated this service will be seasonal there was no announced end date for the service. PHL- ARN (Stockholm) is scheduled June 3, 2006 through October 8, 2006 and will be operated with B767 aircraft. PHL-LIS (Lisbon) is scheduled June 7, 2006 through October 28, 2006. PHL-LIS will be operated with B757 aircraft. The company has signed a deal to acquire three additional B757-200 aircraft through Boeing. These aircraft were returned to Boeing from ATA.
The three newly acquired B757 aircraft will be placed under the US Airways operating certificate and flown by US Airways "East" pilots and flight attendants.
One B757 has been dedicated to PHL-LIS. With the addition of MXP and ARN B767 service it is presumed the remaining two aircraft will replace the seasonal service usually flown by B767 aircraft to SNN, DUB or GLA. Current timetables on US Airways.com do not reflect this change but it would seem to be the logical result.
The aircraft will be configured with 8 "Premium" seats and 180 coach seats.
There will be no Envoy class or service on these aircraft. The "Premium" seat product will be just that﾿a bigger seat with no additional service. I have been told this decision is driven by competition but we will be questioning the decision to offer two different European products.
The service product and procedures have not been discussed with the Company. The Union expects to be consulted regarding both the product and the procedures.
Staffing will be five (5) flight attendants. LOD/O staffing has not been discussed to date. If LOD/Os are used the staffing would be four flight attendants and an additional LOD/O flight attendant. If no LOD/O is staffed there will still be five flight attendant positions.
Three reclining and curtained crew rest seats will be provided.
Additional safety training for these aircraft is unlikely as the aircraft are similar to the current B757 aircraft flown by US Airways.
The Union was not given notification prior to the announcement of the new flying or aircraft therefore these are all the details available. The Union notified the Company of the required contractual provisions necessary when new aircraft are acquired or new international routes are awarded.
EMBRAER 190 AIRCRAFT ORDER
The Company announced an order to acquire 25 EMB 190 aircraft beginning in November of 2006. This order was an adjustment to the previous US Airways order for up to 57 EMB 170 aircraft. The remaining 32 aircraft will be converted to an EMB 190 order subject to confirmation by US Airways. According to an EMBRAER press release, US Airways has an option for up to 50 additional aircraft. The EMB 190 has a range of between 1500 and 2150 nm depending on load and other factors.
The EMB 190 will be operated under the US Airways operating certificate and flown by mainline US Airways "East" pilots and flight attendants.
Initial deliveries will begin in November (two aircraft) and December (one aircraft). Revenue service will begin in early January. The future delivery schedule is not known.
The aircraft will be configured with 11 First Class/88 Coach. Seems odd this airplane will have First Class service and some European flying will not.
The Transition Agreement between AFA and the Company locked in mainline rates of pay for the EMB 190. The Union will have further discussion regarding service requirements and staffing decisions.
The Company has not indicated where the aircraft will be based or what routes the aircraft will fly.
Training will have to take place on the EMB 190.
The Union was not given prior notification to this announcement and discussions with the Company will be scheduled regarding the EMB 190 flying.
NEW EUROPEAN FLYING AND ADDITIONAL B757 AIRCRAFT ADDED TO THE FLEET
PHL-MXP (Milan) will commence on May 31, 2006 and be operated using B767 aircraft. Although it is anticipated this service will be seasonal there was no announced end date for the service. PHL- ARN (Stockholm) is scheduled June 3, 2006 through October 8, 2006 and will be operated with B767 aircraft. PHL-LIS (Lisbon) is scheduled June 7, 2006 through October 28, 2006. PHL-LIS will be operated with B757 aircraft. The company has signed a deal to acquire three additional B757-200 aircraft through Boeing. These aircraft were returned to Boeing from ATA.
The three newly acquired B757 aircraft will be placed under the US Airways operating certificate and flown by US Airways "East" pilots and flight attendants.
One B757 has been dedicated to PHL-LIS. With the addition of MXP and ARN B767 service it is presumed the remaining two aircraft will replace the seasonal service usually flown by B767 aircraft to SNN, DUB or GLA. Current timetables on US Airways.com do not reflect this change but it would seem to be the logical result.
The aircraft will be configured with 8 "Premium" seats and 180 coach seats.
There will be no Envoy class or service on these aircraft. The "Premium" seat product will be just that﾿a bigger seat with no additional service. I have been told this decision is driven by competition but we will be questioning the decision to offer two different European products.
The service product and procedures have not been discussed with the Company. The Union expects to be consulted regarding both the product and the procedures.
Staffing will be five (5) flight attendants. LOD/O staffing has not been discussed to date. If LOD/Os are used the staffing would be four flight attendants and an additional LOD/O flight attendant. If no LOD/O is staffed there will still be five flight attendant positions.
Three reclining and curtained crew rest seats will be provided.
Additional safety training for these aircraft is unlikely as the aircraft are similar to the current B757 aircraft flown by US Airways.
The Union was not given notification prior to the announcement of the new flying or aircraft therefore these are all the details available. The Union notified the Company of the required contractual provisions necessary when new aircraft are acquired or new international routes are awarded.
EMBRAER 190 AIRCRAFT ORDER
The Company announced an order to acquire 25 EMB 190 aircraft beginning in November of 2006. This order was an adjustment to the previous US Airways order for up to 57 EMB 170 aircraft. The remaining 32 aircraft will be converted to an EMB 190 order subject to confirmation by US Airways. According to an EMBRAER press release, US Airways has an option for up to 50 additional aircraft. The EMB 190 has a range of between 1500 and 2150 nm depending on load and other factors.
The EMB 190 will be operated under the US Airways operating certificate and flown by mainline US Airways "East" pilots and flight attendants.
Initial deliveries will begin in November (two aircraft) and December (one aircraft). Revenue service will begin in early January. The future delivery schedule is not known.
The aircraft will be configured with 11 First Class/88 Coach. Seems odd this airplane will have First Class service and some European flying will not.
The Transition Agreement between AFA and the Company locked in mainline rates of pay for the EMB 190. The Union will have further discussion regarding service requirements and staffing decisions.
The Company has not indicated where the aircraft will be based or what routes the aircraft will fly.
Training will have to take place on the EMB 190.
The Union was not given prior notification to this announcement and discussions with the Company will be scheduled regarding the EMB 190 flying.