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Today's SWAPA Number is 4. That's the number of different generations in Southwest cockpits on any given day around the system. Today we're sitting down with Jon Ross, Chair of the Professional Standards Committee, to talk about how we can keep conflict resolution at the lowest level and safety at the highest. If you have any feedback for us at all, please drop us a line at [email protected] or tap here to send us a text. Follow us online: Twitter - https://twitter.com/swapapilots Fa...
This week, Communications Committee member Tony Mulhare updates the membership on the Market Based Cash Balance Plan as well as the upcoming transfer window from Empower to Schwab accounts. He also continues the deep dive into vacation shifts and the timing required for those shifts. Several pilot questions about Legal Duty, Ground Transportation in lieu of a double deadhead as well as a recurring question on LRO vs LCO are also discussed. If you have any feedback for us at all, please drop us a...
Today's SWAPA Number is 15. That is the size of the expanded Southwest Airlines Board of Directors, Now that Rakesh Gangwal, a familiar name to those in our ranks with US Air history was added to the board. Two weeks ago, we released a SWAPA Number podcast about Elliot Investment Management's initial 12% equity position in Southwest. But it's been a busy couple of weeks with several headlines, so today, we're back in the studio with SWAPA President Casey Murray, 2nd Vice Pres...
This week, Captain Matt McCants tells the membership what to look forward to during third quarter implementation. The landscape of the duty day will look different whether you are on reserve or a line holder, so listen in to hear the details and timelines with the coming changes. He also does a deep dive into vacation shifts. From how much more TFP pilots have seen so far, changes in the blank lines, and multiple secondary advantages that are built into a shift, pilots of all seniority types can...
Today's SWAPA Number is 12. That's the approximate percentage of Southwest Airlines shares that Elliott Investment Management took hold of in early June, challenging the leadership landscape of the company and bringing some uncertainty as to what the future of the airline holds. Today we're sitting down with your SWAPA executive officers, along with economics and financial analysis chair, Erich Schnitzler, to discuss what's transpired since then, address some of the questions...
This week, guest host Ella Ziober reviews the most recent versions of the CBA source documents as we near the end of the second quarter. With Q3 around the corner, take a listen to hear about the mountain of IT work being done for the next phase of implementation. The Q&A has something for everyone this week. Whether you’re contemplating a Nashville move, have some reserve scheduling questions, or just need a recap on overrides and their differences, make sure you tune in to re-hack those cu...
Today's SWAPA Number is 26. That's 26 fatigue calls per 10,000 duty periods, which is our current fatigue rate. That's less than half of what it was a year ago and one of the lowest since the start of the pandemic. So today on the show, we're going to talk with SWAPA Safety and FSAC member Scott Hutchinson about recent fatigue trends, what's new in Contract 2020, and what our pilots can do to help manage the process. If you have any feedback for us at all, please drop us...
This week, guest host Alexis Thomas reviews the recent Empower accounts merger, and points to all the resources that Pilots have at their disposal when the ability to move funds to the Schwab 401k becomes available. It was a big tech week for SWAPA as the Scheduling and Analytics Committee presented at the Flight Ops IT kickoff, and the revamped SWAPA App reached several key milestones. Tune in to find out how the Company and SAC collaboration is shaping up, and what's coming your way as ne...
Today's SWAPA Number is 16. That's the section of the contract that covers hotel standards. So on today's episode, we spoke to Hotels SME, Seth Kornblum, about the Crew Accommodations Board, hotel language, and some of the issues that have arisen since the ratification of the CBA. If you have any feedback for us at all, please drop us a line at [email protected] or tap here to send us a text. Follow us online: Twitter - https://twitter.com/swapapilots Facebook - https://www.facebook....
This week, Casey Casteel from SWAPA Communications discusses upcoming implementation items like the training elections form that will go live soon as well as several items that were clarified or added in Side Letter One to the CBA, including open time pay multiples, open time alert timelines, and document-based training. If you’ve ever had a question on how day rooms and Ground Time Override interplay, you’ll want to listen for Casey’s detailed discussion for an explanation on how that issue dif...
Today's SWAPA Number is 4,200. That's how many Southwest pilots will retire by 2035. We may have stopped hiring for now, but those 4,200 pilots will need to be replaced and trained. Today we'll be talking with SWAPA President, Captain Casey Murray, and Training and Standards Committee Chair, Captain Greg Bowen, about how things are going in the training environment, what can be better, and what's around the corner. If you have any feedback for us at all, please drop us a line...
Today's SWAPA Number is 17.A.2. That's the section of our new CBA that deals with VPTO, or Voluntary Paid Time Off. On this special episode of The SWAPA Number, we are welcoming NC Chair Jody Reven, EFA Committee Chair Erich Schnitzler, Committee Member Greg Auld, and Scheduling Research Committee Chair, Scott Plyler, to discuss a voluntary paid time off program being offered to the membership by Southwest Airlines. If you have any feedback for us at all, please drop us a line at comm@...
This week, host Captain Matt McCants gives us the high points of the newly released Scheduling Handbook – a must have in a Pilot’s tool box to resume own navigation through the new CBA. He also covers how much error pay and fixed audit pay have been recovered by SWAPA since date of ratification. The Q&A this week has topics ranging from online legality changes to some great techniques to maximize your opportunities in Open Time Priority and Vacation Overlap. How can you boost your TFP? Take ...
Today's SWAPA Number is 231 million. That's the net loss for Southwest Airlines in the first quarter of 2024. Today, we're sitting down with Eric Schnitzler and Greg Auld of the Economic and Financial Analysis Committee to shed some light on the industry as a whole, as well as the financial outlook of Southwest Airlines, given some recent events. If you have any feedback for us at all, please drop us a line at [email protected] or tap here to send us a text. Follow us online: Twitter...
This week, guest host and Communications Director Amy Robinson walks us through the newest expansion of Trip Trade Giveaway and ELITT. If you’ve ever wanted to pick up or trade with the company over a non-fly or vacation event, you’ll want to listen in and understand how that works. If you have any feedback for us at all, please drop us a line at [email protected] Follow us online: Twitter - https://twitter.com/swapapilots Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/swapa737 If you have any feedback for us...
Today's SWAPA Number is 4,452. That's the peak number of flights per day in the revised June schedule. That's just over 6% more than last year. So today we're going to speak with SRC supervisor, Meagan Nealon, SRC committee member, Dan O'Connor and SRC Chair, Scott Plyler about where the network schedule stands for the summer season, as well as discuss what's upcoming as far as implementation. If you have any feedback for us at all, please drop us a line at comm@swa...
This week, host First Officer Tony Mulhare from SWAPA Communications discusses a potential shift in position by the Company regarding early morning crew meals. This week's Contract Admin Q&A covers several topics, including bereavement leave and why overfly credit can sometimes be absorbed by daily rigs. If you have any feedback for us at all, please drop us a line at [email protected] or tap here to send us a text. Follow us online: Twitter - https://twitter.com/swapapilots Facebook - htt...
This week, host Captain Matt McCants from SWAPA Communications outlines the next high points in April’s implementation schedule. He also plugs the upcoming SWAPA polling event, and gives the membership a look into active debates, including a grievance between SWAPA and the Company. If you have been part of an online reroute, you’ll want to listen in to this week’s Q&A, which covers a number of common and some not-so-common reroute scenarios, as well as how overrides come into play with the J...
In this episode, host First Officer Tony Mulhare from SWAPA Communications discusses frequently asked questions about STD and LTD and the special open enrollment period, which closes April 12. He gives an update on implementation items for April, including sick trip accrual and the reduction in the ELITT Umbra, otherwise known as the gray bar, and covers several questions from our Contract Adminteam regarding special qualifications and Ground Time Override. - If you have any feedback for us at a...
Today's SWAPA Number is 134. That's the number of cases that the Critical Incident Response Team, which we refer to as CIRT, has handled in 2024 alone. Today we're going to talk to SWAPA CIRT Chair, Captain Dave West, about what his team does and how you might interact with CIRT during your time here at Southwest. If you have any feedback for us at all, please drop us a line at [email protected] or tap here to send us a text. Follow us online: Twitter - https://twitter.com/swapapilot...
As we wrap up Contract 2020, frequent friend of the show, Damian Jennette, will give us some highlights including some never before heard clips that will give you, our listeners, some insight into the process it takes to bring you information directly from the source- our SWAPA subject matter experts and leaders - throughout this last year. If you have any feedback for us at all, please drop us a line at [email protected] or tap here to send us a text. Follow us online: Twitter - https://twitter.co...
In this episode, host Captain Matt McCants from SWAPA Communications discusses the three education products available to Pilots that explain changes in the new Short-Term and Long-Term Disability Plans, and the actions Pilots may need to take. He also covers some very common scheduling and pay scenarios, along with some great Q&As that Contract Administration has fielded from the line. If you're considering ELITT for a trip that falls on April 1, you'll want to listen to this week&...
Today's SWAPA Number is 50%. That's the percentage of monthly base earnings a SWAPA pilot will receive while on disability under our new contract. That benefit begins 60 days and lasts until FAA retirement age, if necessary. This major improvement from our old LOL plan was a key pillar of Contract 2020, but that begs the question, do we even need a SWAPA disability plan anymore? So today on the show we're talking with frequent guest and NC member Damian Jennette, along with Benefi...
In this episode, host First Officer Tony Mulhare from SWAPA Communications discusses the upcoming open enrollment period for the newly negotiated MetLife disability plans and some associated questions. He also goes over several unique Contract scenarios, including ones pertaining to split-to-cover reserve assignments, the SWAPA Pay Audit tool, and Ground Time Overrides. If you have any feedback for us at all, please drop us a line at [email protected] or tap here to send us a text. Follow us online...
In this episode, host Captain Matt McCants from SWAPA Communications discusses the road ahead for the new disability plans and the education that will help inform pilots about the changes. He also answers several unique contract questions, including ones with March scheduling and pay provisions. With Spring Break flying ramping up, you won’t want to miss this week’s content. If you have any feedback for us at all, please drop us a line at [email protected] or tap here to send us a text. Follow us o...
Today's SWAPA Number is 12. That's how many domiciles Southwest will have once we open Nashville in May of this year. So on today's show, we're going to talk with SRC chair Scott Plyler and SRC member Dan O'Connor about what that means for our pilots and our network. Amy's out sick today so joining me as host is the third member of SRC 3, Meagan Nelan. If you have any feedback for us at all, please drop us a line at [email protected] or tap here to send us a text. Foll...
This is the SWAPA Ride Report for Friday, March 8th, 2024. In this episode, host First Officer Tony Mulhare from SWAPA Communications discusses some common questions about Ground Time Override and how to find overrides on your payroll report. Tony also provides a brief update on the current open enrollment period for the company provided life insurance benefit as well as some frequently asked questions regarding uniform accounts and per diem. Check back every Friday for the next edition of The S...
This is the SWAPA Ride Report for Friday, March 1st, 2024. In this episode, host Captain Matt McCants from SWAPA Communications discusses some common concerns about the short-term and long-term disability plans on the horizon. Matt also provides a brief update on what can be expected in the new versions of the Annotated CBA, the big-ticket scheduling items being implemented in March, how to shift vacation block bids, and some guidance on the preboarding policy while on deadhead duty. If you have...
Today's SWAPA Number is 1.5%. That's the 2023 profit sharing percentage that Southwest will be paying its employees this year. So today on the show, we're going to talk with NC member Damian Jennette about how that number was derived, how it compares to the industry, and how it fits into our pilot's retirement planning. If you have any feedback for us at all, please drop us a line at [email protected] or tap here to send us a text. Follow us online: Twitter - https://twitter.com...
