Fwd: Mesaba Flights Back On in Waterloo

--- Colleen Turner <colleenturner@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
wrote:
> Date: Sun, 11 Jan 2004 23:56:52 -0800 (PST)
> From: Colleen Turner <colleenturner@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Subject: Mesaba Flights Back On in Waterloo
> To: airport@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> 
> January 11, 2004
> 
> Mesaba Flights Back On in Waterloo
> Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier, IA
> 
> 
> WATERLOO --- All Mesaba Airline flights out of
> Waterloo, which were canceled Saturday despite
> continued contract negotiations between the pilots
> and
> administration, were back on this morning after the
> airline and its pilots reached agreement on a
> tentative contract.
> 
> The agreement came early today after talks had
> stretched mor than a day past a strike deadline. No
> details were released.
> 
> Brad Hagen, director of aviation at the Waterloo
> Regional Airport, said cancellations were on a
> day-to-day basis until a deal was struck. Waterloo
> airport officials announced this morning that Sunday
> flights were on schedule.
> 
>  
> Mesaba operates 600 daily flights under contract
> with
> Northwest, including four daily flights out of the
> Waterloo Regional Airport on Saab turboprops.
> 
> The Waterloo airport also has one flight on a
> 50-seat
> regional jet, which is operated by Pinnacle
> Airlines.
> Hagen said the jet usually operates at close to full
> capacity and will likely see even more passengers if
> the cancellations continue.
> 
> Northwest was allowing passengers with tickets for
> travel on Mesaba from Jan. 9-17 to rebook those
> flights on Northwest or Pinnacle with no change
> fees.
> 
> Pay has been a key issue in the negotiations, which
> started in June 2001.
> 
> The Air Line Pilots Association has said about half
> of
> Mesaba's pilots earn less than $35,000 for full-time
> work.
> 
> Association spokesman Dave Ricci had said Mesaba
> earlier offered a 1 percent raise for captains and 5
> percent for first officers. But he said the airline
> also proposed cutting the flight hours guaranteed to
> pilots from 75 to 70, which would result in a net
> pay
> cut.
> 
>  
>  
> 
> 
> 
> 

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