Release #08.CMR
January 29, 2008

Comair Pilots Elect ALPA Union Officers

ERLANGER, Ky. — Leaders of the Comair unit of the Air Line Pilots Association, Int’l (ALPA) have elected a new MEC Chairman to serve, effective immediately. After a vote of the Master Executive Council (MEC), the union's governing body, Capt. Mark Cirksena was elected chairman. Capt. Paul Denke, serving as interim chairman, will continue as the MEC Vice Chairman. Capt. Gwen Alletag will continue to serve as Secretary Treasurer.

Capt. Cirksena has served as a Comair pilot for 22 years. A CL-700 pilot, he has held numerous ALPA positions through the years, serving as Cincinnati Picketing Coordinator during the 2001 Comair strike. He also served as vice chairman for the union’s Strike Preparedness Committee during the 2006 Delta/Comair bankruptcy proceedings. Capt. Cirksena currently serves on ALPA’s Strategic Planning and Strike Committee.

Capt. Paul Denke joined Comair in 1999 and is also a CL-700 pilot. Prior to serving as interim MEC Chairman, Capt. Denke held the position of communications chairman for the pilot group and was the MEC’s national news media spokesperson during the 2006 bankruptcy proceedings.

“I look forward to working with the pilot group,” said Capt. Cirksena, “and I know that with their help we can better the profession here at Comair. We have a fantastic group of volunteers who are dedicated to that goal.”

The Air Line Pilots Association, Int’l, is the bargaining agent for the more than 1,500 pilots at Comair. Founded in 1931, ALPA is the world's largest pilot union, representing more than 60,000 pilots at 43 airlines in the U.S. and Canada. Visit the ALPA website at www.alpa.org.

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