Hundreds of pilots at Alaska Air Group Inc are submitting their final votes on whether to authorize a strike over “stalled” contract negotiations, underscoring growing labor tensions in the US airline industry. The Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA), which represents over 3,000 pilots at the Seattle-based carrier, said the strike authorization vote is aimed at moving what it has describes as “stalled” negotiations forward. The ballot opened on May 9 and is due to close on Wednesday May 25. Pilots at almost all the major carriers are protesting, demanding higher pay and improvements in “fatiguing” schedules in their new contracts. The protests come at a time when the industry is grappling with a staffing shortage after letting go thousands of pilots at the height of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020. While a sharp rebound in travel demand and higher fares are projected to help major carriers surpass their pre-pandemic revenue this quarter, recruiting issues have made it harder for them to rebuild capacity and run a smooth operation. On Tuesday afternoon, ALPA President Joe DePete pushed back against the idea that there was a pilot shortage, tweeting: “Airlines were on the brink of economic disaster. We stood up and went full throttle to prepare our industry for the recovery. But some airlines failed to plan and are blaming the supply of pilots.” Alaska and its pilots have been negotiating a new contract since the summer of 2019. But ALPA has said the company has not “meaningfully” addressed its concerns related to job security and schedule flexibility. The company’s pilots have been conducting pickets, asking for a market-based contract, including higher wages and better benefits. The union said Alaska is on track to lose 180 pilots this year to other carriers as its pilot contract remains below the industry. Even if the union gets the mandate to declare a strike, Alaska pilots cannot walk off the job until the National Mediation Board grants them permission.<br/>
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The Transport Ministry is investigating the “serious” incident of a Thai AirAsia flight landing on the wrong runway in Don Mueang airport earlier this month, the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT) said on Tuesday. On May 4, Thai AirAsia flight FD3141 from Ranong to Don Mueang landed on runway 21L instead of touching down on 21R as scheduled. No injuries were reported. According to the Aeronautical Radio of Thailand (Aerothai), this incident can be considered serious under Annex 13 of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) convention. “The Transport Ministry’s Aircraft Accident and Incident Investigation Committee [AAIC] will complete the investigation within 30 days,” CAAT said. CAAT added that Aerothai, airlines and other related agencies have been instructed to submit safety management reports to the agency to prevent a repeat of such incidents.<br/>
The Vanuatu government is committed to making its struggling flag carrier Air Vanuatu profitable again, according to Finance Minister Johnny Koanapo. The Daily Post reports he made the comment on the occasion of a 210m vatu (US$1.8m) loan repayment from the Ifira Ports Development Services (IPDS), a joint venture partnership between the government and Ifira Trustees Limited (ITL) for the development of a new international multi-purpose wharf and container yard at the Lapetasi wharf in Port Vila, Vanuatu. “It is my wish that other SOEs [state-owned enterprises] which the government has heavily invested in reach a level like IPDS. One of them, Air Vanuatu, is very challenging; however, this government will be turning it profitable in the coming months and years,” he said. “It was a profitable company until people brought in began manipulating or twisting the system to a point where profits got driven out of the country,” he said. On the same occasion, Vanuatu National Provident Fund (VNPF) Chairman and Ministry of Finance and Economic Management Director-General Letlet August said the VNPF was looking to partner with the government in its strategic investments like Air Vanuatu.<br/>