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Allied Pilots Association President Calls for “Coherent, Comprehensive National Transportation Policy”

Dépèche transmise le 7 septembre 2011 par Business Wire

Allied Pilots Association President Calls for “Coherent, Comprehensive National Transportation Policy”

FORT WORTH, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Allied Pilots Association (APA) President Captain Dave Bates emphasized the need for a “coherent, comprehensive national transportation policy” during his keynote speech at the Dahlman Rose & Company’s Fourth Annual Global Transportation Conference in New York today.

“In a recent Gallup poll, employees who are engaged in their work are about twice as likely to report that their organizations are hiring, versus those who are actively disengaged and emotionally disconnected.”

During his remarks, Bates urged Congress to approve a multi-year Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill “as an essential component of a national transportation policy.”

“An FAA reauthorization bill would provide our industry with a greater degree of certainty and predictability, and would represent a commitment to investing in the infrastructure essential to preparing the industry for a more efficient future,” Bates said.

Bates also urged policymakers to reconsider what he characterized as the “tax burden” on the airline industry.

“Right now air travel is taxed more heavily than alcohol and tobacco, which make no sense,” he said. “Aren’t ‘sin’ taxes designed as disincentives to modify consumer behavior? The last time I checked, the contract of carriage between airlines and passengers didn’t include any warnings from the Surgeon General.”

In addition to discussing various public-policy reforms, Bates also touched on ways that individual carriers can boost their chances of success.

“A quick look around our industry illustrates that employee engagement and good financial performance are closely related,” he said. “The companies that inspire employees to perform at their best are also the ones that perform better financially.

“In a recent Gallup poll, employees who are engaged in their work are about twice as likely to report that their organizations are hiring, versus those who are actively disengaged and emotionally disconnected.”

To read the full text of Captain Bates’ keynote speech, click here.

Dahlman Rose & Company, LLC is an investment bank specializing in the global natural resources supply chain.

Founded in 1963, the Allied Pilots Association—the largest independent pilot union in the U.S.—is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. APA represents the 11,000 pilots of American Airlines (NYSE: AMR), including more than 1,000 pilots not yet offered recall from furlough. The furloughs began shortly after the September 11, 2001 attacks. Also, several hundred American Airlines pilots are on full-time military leave of absence serving in the armed forces. The union’s Web site address is www.alliedpilots.org. American Airlines is the nation’s largest international passenger carrier and fifth-largest cargo carrier.