Aritcle about history of financing the merger click below.
It was up to Luth, the US Airways adviser
article of CLT mec
Liquidation
We want to address the shrill rhetoric coming from the West about liquidation.
Let’s put a stake in the heart of this monster.
Had you attended the Nicolau hearings you would have noticed that the “one note song†sung by the West was thaUSAirways would have liquidated without the merger. The East pilots argue that America West was also in financial straits and would have filed bankruptcy in short order without the merger.
The East merger committee put lots of evidence into the record about a multitude of issues and we did not bang the “America West was going bankrupt†drum. Financial differences between merging companies is not part of the ALPA merger policy.
Frankly, we are all sick of hearing this “liquidation†song. For us to be arguing who was in greater danger is stupid and silly. Neither USAirways nor America West had the resources to consummate any merger. Without the investment of outside resources there would be no merger. USAirways and America West were in bad shape following 9/11 and the prospects for both (independently) were dismal.
So, let’s look at an objective perspective that was agreed upon by both merger committees.
Since the West merger committee insisted on singing the “liquidation song†throughout the arbitration, the East committee felt obliged to counter that assertion during the rebuttal phase of the hearings. We attended this part of the hearing and this is what was presented to the arbitrator.
The East merger committee hired Simat Helliesen & Eichner, Inc. (SH&E) (http://www.sh-e.com/index.htm) to analyze the financial condition of both America West and USAirways at the time of the merger.[1] Timothy Phelan testified on behalf of SH&E. (Mr. Phelan’s resume is at the end of this document)
SH&E created over 100 pages of testimony which was entered into the record. The West merger counsel challenged and accepted the qualifications of Mr. Phelan to testify. Sixteen pages of charts were excerpted from the written testimony of SH&E.
The upshot of Mr. Phelan’s testimony was that, at the time of the merger, USAirways had 90 days of cash on hand. The 90 days are important because they relate to covenants that USAirways had from its investors (like the ATSB) to maintain that amount of cash to remain in business.
Mr. Phelan also testified that America West had 30 (THIRTY) days of cash on hand at merger time.
Mr. Phelan also testified that any carrier with less than 90 (ninety) days of cash on hand is a sure candidate for LIQUIDATION. Mr. Phelan testified that he had never seen a carrier with less than 90 (ninety) days of cash which was not bankrupt.
When asked about his characterization of the merger between USAirways and America West, Mr. Phelan said that USAirways was a “white knight†who rode into town to save the dying America West.
The response from the West merger counsel was to ask for a three hour recess.
In general, the counsel from the West merger committee did not challenge our committee’s data or submission to the arbitrator other than to sing the “liquidation song.†They have sung it long enough that some people believe it to be true. Look at the facts. The facts speak louder than any song.
In the end, who cares? If this union is going to mete out the jobs in an arbitration based on the financial performance of the partners, perhaps we need to question the value of unionism. Neither the West nor the East chose their respective management and therefore should not be held to account for management behavior.
Suffice it to say that neither the West nor the East was any financial powerhouse at merger time and that without this merger each would be in trouble. For the pot to be calling the kettle black at this stage is counterproductive. We have important work to do.
It was up to Luth, the US Airways adviser
article of CLT mec
Liquidation
We want to address the shrill rhetoric coming from the West about liquidation.
Let’s put a stake in the heart of this monster.
Had you attended the Nicolau hearings you would have noticed that the “one note song†sung by the West was thaUSAirways would have liquidated without the merger. The East pilots argue that America West was also in financial straits and would have filed bankruptcy in short order without the merger.
The East merger committee put lots of evidence into the record about a multitude of issues and we did not bang the “America West was going bankrupt†drum. Financial differences between merging companies is not part of the ALPA merger policy.
Frankly, we are all sick of hearing this “liquidation†song. For us to be arguing who was in greater danger is stupid and silly. Neither USAirways nor America West had the resources to consummate any merger. Without the investment of outside resources there would be no merger. USAirways and America West were in bad shape following 9/11 and the prospects for both (independently) were dismal.
So, let’s look at an objective perspective that was agreed upon by both merger committees.
Since the West merger committee insisted on singing the “liquidation song†throughout the arbitration, the East committee felt obliged to counter that assertion during the rebuttal phase of the hearings. We attended this part of the hearing and this is what was presented to the arbitrator.
The East merger committee hired Simat Helliesen & Eichner, Inc. (SH&E) (http://www.sh-e.com/index.htm) to analyze the financial condition of both America West and USAirways at the time of the merger.[1] Timothy Phelan testified on behalf of SH&E. (Mr. Phelan’s resume is at the end of this document)
SH&E created over 100 pages of testimony which was entered into the record. The West merger counsel challenged and accepted the qualifications of Mr. Phelan to testify. Sixteen pages of charts were excerpted from the written testimony of SH&E.
The upshot of Mr. Phelan’s testimony was that, at the time of the merger, USAirways had 90 days of cash on hand. The 90 days are important because they relate to covenants that USAirways had from its investors (like the ATSB) to maintain that amount of cash to remain in business.
Mr. Phelan also testified that America West had 30 (THIRTY) days of cash on hand at merger time.
Mr. Phelan also testified that any carrier with less than 90 (ninety) days of cash on hand is a sure candidate for LIQUIDATION. Mr. Phelan testified that he had never seen a carrier with less than 90 (ninety) days of cash which was not bankrupt.
When asked about his characterization of the merger between USAirways and America West, Mr. Phelan said that USAirways was a “white knight†who rode into town to save the dying America West.
The response from the West merger counsel was to ask for a three hour recess.
In general, the counsel from the West merger committee did not challenge our committee’s data or submission to the arbitrator other than to sing the “liquidation song.†They have sung it long enough that some people believe it to be true. Look at the facts. The facts speak louder than any song.
In the end, who cares? If this union is going to mete out the jobs in an arbitration based on the financial performance of the partners, perhaps we need to question the value of unionism. Neither the West nor the East chose their respective management and therefore should not be held to account for management behavior.
Suffice it to say that neither the West nor the East was any financial powerhouse at merger time and that without this merger each would be in trouble. For the pot to be calling the kettle black at this stage is counterproductive. We have important work to do.
