Catman

Ok, so there's the possibility that Air canada's pilots will walk off their planes.

Should I consider re=booking elsewhere, buying another ticket (probably on CO) or wait it out?

See, there's this Toronto/Red Green SHOW weekend coming up in TWO WEEKS and I as the host have to be there.

ANy suggestions would be immencely appreciated from A/C and CO and UA and any Flyertalkers!

FYI: I WILL NOT DRIVE UP.

islandcub

I looked at your itinerary. Your flight up should be okay, as it's actually operated by Canadian Airlines. Your return flight is the problem.

Options for changing the return flight:

AC3538 YYZ-EWR 13:11-14:33 is operated by Canadian and should be strike proof, if you can get a seat on it. The problem is brunch Sunday

AC3548 YYZ-EWR 19:55-21:18 is also CP operated, and you won't miss brunch, but you'll get home significantly later.

back seat

Catman, I don't believe the gov't will allow the pilots to strike - during the 72 hour window the gov't will legislate them back to work.

Let us know how the Red Green show is!

AC*SE

You live in hope Back Seat, but the Standing Orders of the House of Commons are against you.

There are two byelections underway, and the House is not due to sit until 18 Sept.

The NDP will not, under any circumstances, give unanimous consent to back to work legislation--full stop.

That means the Government need three sitting days in the House, hence four working days to get it through the House and the Senate (assuming the Senate plays ball and passes all three readings in one day).

Once the pilots give notice, they will have at least two clear striking days before any back-to-work legislation has a real prospect of getting Royal Assent.

That leaves a further 3 to 4 days to get the operations back in line.

ALW

Not your first choice perhaps, but what about VIA/Amtrak from Toronto to NYC?

andrew

back seat

Its obvious that you have a much better understanding of the rules of parliament than I do !!

I still believe that the pilots will not go on strike - but what actually turns out will be seen in a couple of days.

By the way the Outhouse report is available at the Air Canada Pilot Association web site http://www.acpa.ca/breakingnews/outhouse.pdf for those who want to see it.

B1

You probably know that Jetblue flies from JFK to Buffalo, which is a couple hours from Toronto, for $49-79 each way with no advance purchase (www.jetblue.com). There is bus service from Buffalo Airport to Toronto (or there was). So you can have this alternative - probably rent a car and still pay less. If you need to go from New Jersey Shuttle America flies turbo props from Trenton to Buffalo (www.shuttleamerica.com).

airbus320

ACPA has expressed a willingness to return to the bargaining table using the mediator's report as a basis for negotiation. The situation is better with this new devopment. Perhaps you will make the Green Show on AC.

Andrew Yiu

But AC said in their Press Release:

"....The time for negotiations has passed. Enough is enough."

Andrew Yiu

AC said they want this report to be the final agreement and no more negotiation which is opposite to what the pilots want.

AC*SE

I think AC's view is that there was already a very generous offer on the table, and the mediator's recommendation is even more expensive. The pilot's should not expect to wrench out any further expenditure.

Meanwhile, I suspect that the pilot's feel that the company is steadfastly refusing to address their core issues. Realistically, the most obvious stumbling block is the "scope" of the agreement, with respect to moving the RJ's to the regional fleet, and setting up the low-cost subsidiaries.

If the pilots are still not happy with what is here, then we may be in for a long period of difficulty.

back seat

Ah AC*SE I see you understand the root of the problem - it will be very interesting to see what ACPA says tomorrow!

Shareholder

And I come back to the key point of this whole matter: just who manages AC, management or the pilots?

It's not that rationalizing the structure of the airline for a competitive future is going to break the union, is it really? Surely they can try for a takeover of the regional pilots union so as to integrate the whole pilot workforce at AC and its subsidiaries.

In any case, by AC's having accepted the mediator's report and positioned itself on the side of the travelling public, the pilots are in an extrodinarily bad position and can only come out of this having subjected the flying public to a summer of uncertainty, disruption and bad feelings. They will be legislated back to work, put AC in a more precarious financial position by depressing profits if they walk out -- profits which pilots would benefit from through airline growth and higher share prices (since they own a fair chunk of stock each) -- and be tarnished with the same reputation they have suffered since the strike of August 1998. But what can one expect from the best paid unionized workers in Canada?

I suppose the only upside in all this if the pilots do strike is there will likely be triple Q-miles through the fall again! A single return trip to the HKG would yield not a few of us Golds/Elites SuperElite next year...