Release #07.DHL2
October 2, 2007

ASTAR Air Cargo Pilots Request Proffer of Arbitration from National Mediation Board

WASHINGTON, DC — After more than four years of bargaining, the pilots of ASTAR Air Cargo represented by the Air Line Pilots Association, International, announced today that they have requested a proffer of arbitration from the National Mediation Board (NMB).

ASTAR Air Cargo pilots and their management have engaged in intensive mediated bargaining since April, 2006. While most major contract issues have been agreed to, management has been stubbornly resisting a fair and equitable solution to the pilot’s scope and compensation issues. ASTAR management continues to insist that it is entitled to contractual concessions without providing any assurances concerning job security and future flying.

Management also continues to propose pay adjustments that do not offset inflation driven losses in the real income of ASTAR pilots’ compensation since contract negotiations began.

The pilots believe that the negotiations have now reached a point where mediation is no longer effective and will not result in a fair and equitable contract and so asked the NMB for a proffer. The pilots also pointed out to the Board that ASTAR management itself had requested that ALPA join it in requesting a proffer over nine months ago.

Commenting on the request for proffer, Capt. Earl Smith, chairman of the ASTAR Air Cargo unit of ALPA, said “This matter needs to be brought to a head. A bargaining process which extends over years is extraordinarily unfair to pilots suffering loss of purchasing power through the workings of inflation and loss of flying by management’s actions in circumventing our scope.”

Representing more than 60,000 pilots at 41 airlines in the U.S. and Canada, ALPA is the world’s largest pilots union. Visit the ALPA website at: http://www.alpa.org.

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ALPA CONTACT: Ron Lovas, (703) 481-4468