AirTran; Pilots Reach a Deal

AirTran Airways and its pilots union reached a tentative agreement for a four-year labor contract after more than two years of negotiations.

The Orlando-based discount carrier said the pact will take effect in July if it is later ratified by the union's leaders and 1,519 pilots.

"We are very pleased that we have reached a tentative agreement and we hope the pilots will ratify it and we can continue to build this great airline," said AirTran Vice President Tad Hutcheson.

But neither side was revealing much before the union's leaders begin deliberating today in the union's Atlanta headquarters over whether to accept the deal.

The airline and union did not disclose terms of the proposed agreement, which would not come up for renewal again until July 2011.

A National Pilots Association spokesman said the union's six-member board has not had a chance to study the tentative pact signed by its negotiating team Saturday.

"There is a lot for them to chew on," said union spokesman Brian Gaudet. "It's now up to the board to decide whether this is good enough to bring out to the membership."

AirTran --- the second-largest airline at Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport --- has had a hit-or-miss record in reaching contracts with its unionized workers in recent years. Most of its 8,500 employees are based in Atlanta.

AirTran's flight attendants voted down the first deal their union reached with the carrier before ratifying a second one in 2005 after 30 months of talks.

AirTran and its pilots began haggling over work rules and other issues before the contract became amendable in April 2005. The union turned to supervision from the National Mediation Board almost two years ago to kick-start stalled talks.

The tentative pact with the pilots could resolve one challenge as AirTran continues to pursue its hostile buyout bid for Midwest Airlines.

AirTran last week extended its $15-a-share cash and stock offer for the Milwaukee-based carrier to June 8. AirTran said a majority of Midwest's shareholders took up AirTran's tender offer, but the bid still faces substantial legal and "poison pill" defenses.

In another develop-ment, AirTran said Monday that it was awarded landing and takeoff rights to add a daily nonstop flight between Atlanta and Washington's Reagan National Airport starting July 10.

With the addition, AirTran will have five daily flights from Atlanta to the close-in D.C. airport favored by business travelers.

News stories provided by third parties are not edited by "Site Publication" staff. For suggestions and comments, please click the Contact link at the bottom of this page.