CAE Inc T.CAE

MESABA NEED 33 REGIONAL JETS....May be more..

[JABombardier]

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ Eagan-based Mesaba, which flies regional flights for Northwest Airlines, operates a fleet of 33 Avro jets and 67 Saab turboprops. Northwest is considering removing the Avros from Mesaba's fleet and replacing them with more cost-efficient regional jets, but that decision has been postponed until February. $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ Mesaba, pilots set new talks for Jan. 5 Liz Fedor, Star Tribune Published December 23, 2003 MESA23 Mesaba Airlines and its pilots will return to the bargaining table Jan. 5, but the airline already has distributed furlough notices to employees who would lose their jobs if a strike occurs late on Jan. 9. A mechanics union leader said Monday that his members have received furlough notices, and union officials will meet with Mesaba management today to discuss how the airplanes will be maintained if a strike begins. "You don't fly airplanes in and expect every one of them to be in perfect condition," said Jim Atkinson, president of Local 33 of the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association. "Our assumption is that they would want that repaired while the fleet is down, so once the strike is over you are ready to go." Eagan-based Mesaba, which flies regional flights for Northwest Airlines, operates a fleet of 33 Avro jets and 67 Saab turboprops. Northwest is considering removing the Avros from Mesaba's fleet and replacing them with more cost-efficient regional jets, but that decision has been postponed until February. Mesaba's 844 pilots have been in contract talks with management since June 2001. The parties failed to reach agreement during federal mediation, and the union rejected binding arbitration. A strike could occur only after the federally mandated 30-day cooling-off period expires at 11:01 p.m. CST on Jan. 9. When talks broke down, several major issues were unresolved -- compensation, job security, retirement and work rules. "The pilot negotiations are critical to our future," said Mesaba President John Spanjers in a message to employees. "We believe that if Mesaba can manage its costs and continue to deliver outstanding performance that we will be in a position to take on future regional jet flying with Northwest." The pilots and Mesaba management have decided to wait until the last five days of a 30-day cooling off period to go back to the negotiating table to make a final attempt at reaching a contract settlement. "We would have to see a dynamic turnaround in the way that Mesaba management approaches the negotiation process to be hopeful for an agreement before the [strike] deadline," said Kris Pierson, a spokesman for the Mesaba unit of the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA). Although both sides have said they want to avoid a strike, both are gearing up for a work stoppage. The pilots union has opened strike centers in Mesaba's Twin Cities, Detroit and Memphis hubs. Meanwhile, Mesaba is explaining its strike contingency plans to employees. Spanjers said that human resources staff will "discuss the extension of benefits for employees who would be furloughed" during a strike. Mesaba flies about 600 daily flights for Northwest and employs about 3,500 people. Liz Fedor is at [e-mail].