Pilots' Union Rejects Contract At American Eagle
FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM/AP) — The CEO of American Eagle says the American Airlines regional affiliate will be a different outfit that does less flying after leaders of the pilots' union rejected a contract offer.
Eagle wanted the pilots to make labor cost concessions in exchange for letting them fly new, larger planes. Leaders of the local Air Line Pilots Association chapter rejected the offer without sending it to members for a vote. The union said management demanded cuts that would lock in lower wages than pilots earn at other regional airlines.
Union officials said company negotiators warned repeatedly that without a deal, they would keep shrinking the airline until it's small enough to liquidate.
CEO Pedro Fabregas told employees Thursday that the airline would not shut down but would shift more to performing ground operations for other airlines.
Fabregas said American Airlines Group Inc. will begin looking for other airlines to fly 60 Embraer jets that it ordered in December, and the company might take away the largest planes already in Eagle's fleet. The 76-seat Embraers would have replaced some of Eagle's fleet of mostly 44- and 50-seat planes, which have been falling out of favor at current high fuel prices.
Fort Worth-based American has tried unsuccessfully to sell Eagle in recent years, and it began outsourcing some of its regional flying to other companies such as SkyWest Inc. to reduce costs.
As of December, Eagle had about 12,600 full-time and part-time employees, compared to about 63,000 at American.
(©2014 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
Latest News:
Top Trending:
- Azle Residents Take Quake Concerns To Austin
- Cowboys' Romo Update: Complication In Back Surgery
- TCU Students Demand Higher Quality Toilet Paper
- Norovirus May Have Sickened Hundreds At School
- McKinney Native Busts Through Sochi Hotel Door
- PHOTOS: Your Pet Pictures