I haven't ever heard my co-works state "title 2 ruined it". The industrial unions love to plant the seeds of hate: "the AMFA guys don't want you" and "they think you guys are ....." (fill in the blank).
....This is what the passengers looked like looking out the window.. 
...How embarrassing ..Da what does dis lever do?
And you wonder why this airline scares me?Today was not a good day for NWA Scab Maintenance. The morning started out fine till about eight o'clock then the shet hit the fan. Hub Work Control lit up with ACARS Messages and MCO orders. This is usually no big deal till we got reports of three possible lightning strikes all coming to the same zone. I didn't think that was a big deal either till I pulled the AMM. That is one extensive inspection to perform. We buckled down for a hectic morning. The first bird went really smooth, we found the strike right off and there were weather radar issues that were related to the strike. We called plane change and sent the aircraft off to the hanger. The next two were a different story. We couldn't find any evidence at all of a strike nor were there any status messages that we could point the finger at as a result of a strike. Called MC to tell them the aircraft were fine but that we were unable to inspect the upper fuselage and the vertical stab. They wanted these areas checked but the problem was we didn't have any equipment that would reach that high. A call to the hangar resulted in a contraption I learned was called a SkyWalker and three additional men. They managed to bring the thing to us but none had a clue as how to operate it. This is where things really got interesting and very slow. Keep in mind that these aircraft are now boarded. This SkyWalker contraption is the clumsiest most ridiculous looking and operating piece of equipment I have ever seen, to do such a simple function as lift a man in the air. I don’t know who NWA's procurement officer is that thought this would be a nice piece of equipment for NWA to own but he really does need to be fired. It is a piece of junk. Have you guys ever operated an unfamiliar piece of equipment in freezing rain and close proximity to an aircraft? It’s very very spooky. Needless to say we took some very serious delays today. Not just on those three aircraft but others as well. This has probably been our worst day since around October. NWA should really consider investing in some Genie 60 or 80 ft. manlifts. These inspections would have gone off without a hitch.
We laugh about it now but it wasn't funny at all at the time.
PhxMama, There is no reason for you or anyone else to be scared of this airline. These aircraft are in the best shape and hands than they have ever been in. The way the lines are run now are phenomenal. If there is a problem with an aircraft instead of one mechanic struggling to fix the problem if he doesn't know what the problem is additional manpower is instantly dispatched to address the issue. There is no "That’s not my gate." attitude here. There has been a few instances of that but the problem was quickly resolved. We hit the gate when the aircraft hits the gate to perform our own walk arounds and service the aircraft instead of sitting in the breakroom waiting for the pilots to call in problems. AOS aircraft are at a all time low and MEL's are at an all time low. I don't see what your problem is. I really do not believe that you are as ignorant as a certain poster on this board and honestly believe that being union makes you a good mechanic.
"There is no reason for you or anyone else to be scared of this airline."
Hey PTO,
When have you seen the pilots support anybody? Obviously that's why they are flying around in junk.
Of course they break at the out stations. It is not at all unusual to have an MC Order to pull a log page and enter it in sceptre when maintenance was performed at an outstation. The maintenance is performed by a variety of local maintenance facilities that are local to that particular airport. Most items that I have seen repaired were minor items or simply deferred. I do not know what they do if there is a major problem with an aircraft. That is why I think they should track their non-rev mechanics. For example there was a DC-9 flight cancelled at an out station because of a tire. There was a non-rev mechanic there that could have deferred the tire had he known of the situation and the flight could have continued on. There are glitches in the system that need to be worked out to prevent this from happening.
I am not exactly sure what you mean by farmers but there are contract houses to perform line maintenance at the more heavily flown outstations but it is apparent that there is no overnight work being performed.
No they are not. As far as I know the pilots and F/A's make their log entries as soon as a problem arises. I have seen nothing that would indicate otherwise. I did conduct a little experiment where I put the parts required to clear an MEL in the AOG boxes of the aircraft. None were cleared at any of the outstations during their RONs there. All MELs were cleared at DTW or MSP. I might add that they were cleared well within their time constraints. I am sure it is tough for planning to keep up with the aircraft with MELs and make sure they have sufficient time at the maintenance facilities for repair.
You are taking what I said out of context. I do not think that the mechanic should be required to repair anything on his days off. However a simple call and request with a few perks wouldn't hurt anything. For example a four hour minimum pay with a confirmed flight back would get my attention real quick.Great idea with regards to non rev mechanics!!! The company should go a little further though, find out where they live or are traveling, i.e. Atlanta, Dallas, Charlotte, ect....if they plane breaks at a station with no maintenence, require them to be on call and go out and fix it!!!!
A great cost saver, when Cohen starts an Employee Suggestion Program, be sure and send it in!!!
