Flying the Line

Hank Duffy’s Executive Administrator Randy Babbitt wins the ALPA presidency in a closely contested election against Roger Hall.

Eastern’s Randy Babbit and United’s Roger Hall vie for the ALPA presidency.

Frank Lorenzo’s failure at Eastern is so complete that he, for all intents and purposes, is finished in the airline industry.

With no hope of an SOS (suspension of service), the Eastern pilots attempt a “back door” Presidential Emergency Board, which George Bush vetoes.

In response to the Eastern pilot strike, Frank Lorenzo files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

ALPA and Frank Lorenzo maneuver for the high ground at Eastern Airlines, and Lorenzo demonstrates that he has no intention of working cooperatively.

As Frank Lorenzo gains control of Eastern Airlines, ALPA President Hank Duffy prepares to take on his greatest challenge. 

ALPA President Hank Duffy struggles to keep ALPA’s larger pilot groups from going independent amid the newly deregulated airline environment.

Incumbent Hank Duffy and First Vice President Tom Ashwood angle for position in the 1986 ALPA presidential elections.

With the 1986 ALPA presidential election neck and neck, candidate Tom Ashwood challenges the union’s use of its long-standing, contracted law firm.

Following watershed strikes at Continental and United, mergers test ALPA’s strength and determination.  

A 29-day strike tests the fortitude of the United pilots and ALPA as a whole.

During the United 29-day strike in 1985, the MEC miraculously convinces 570 new pilots in training not to cross the picket line.

The United pilots’ Blue Skies honeymoon is cut short with the introduction of a two-tiered wage scale.

A Ferg-Ferris alliance and the contentious “Blue Skies” agreement lead to concerns about the United pilots’ possible secession from ALPA.

An unlikely connection between United’s CEO and the pilots’ MEC chair leads to a controversial contract proposal.

ALPA raises safety concerns as Continental continues to fly during its protracted strike.

The Bildisco decision, although temporary in its precedence, seals the Continental pilots’ fate.

Continental’s striking pilots fight back as Frank Lorenzo looks for ways to keep his airline flying.

Frank Lorenzo uses the leverage of Chapter 11 to compel Continental pilots to make even more concessions.

With ample resources hidden in Continental Airlines’ parent company, Texas Air Corporation, Lorenzo files for bankruptcy.

ALPA’s responds to the adverse effects of deregulation, recession, and the Lorenzo wars by forming a Political Action Committee. 

In this episode we look at airline deregulation and the evolving nature and influence of the Republican Party.

Hank Duffy inherits the debacle at Continental.

A rift between junior and senior Continental pilots occurs when they most desperately need to be unified.

Frank Lorenzo takes over Continental Airlines. 

Frank Lorenzo enters the industry and advances his airline ambitions.

A new breed of corporate leadership challenges the status quo in the aviation industry. 

We explore the Duffy administration's inauspicious start and the emergence of Frank Lorenzo. 

We take a look inside the transition from J.J. O’Donnell's administration to Hank Duffy's. 

We explore the experiences that led Hank Duffy to pursue the ALPA presidency. 

In this episode we follow Hank Duffy's path to Delta Air Lines. 

We learn more about the ALPA presidential election of 1982 and how labor protection provisions, or LPPs, played a role. 

We review the events and decisions leading up to the 1982 ALPA presidential election.

This episode covers the PATCO strike and its impact on ALPA, the J.J. O’Donnell administration, and airline labor.

We examine the aftermath of the Braniff debacle. 

We look at how Braniff pilots faced a crisis that no other U.S. pilot group had ever confronted.  

We examine the reasons behind Braniff’s demise. 

We explore the history of the crew compliment issue. 

We examine the administrative change from regional to executive vice president and how that changed the political landscape of the Air Line Pilots Association. 

We examine the 1981 suspension of service, codenamed “Operation USA.”

In this episode, we look at the legacy of ALPA President J.J. O’Donnell, the effects of the skyjacking phenomenon, and an impending suspension of service.

The deregulation of the airline industry makes an indelible mark on the modern profession, as politics and economics become a part of an airline pilot’s daily routine.  

In the span of one lifetime, commercial aviation has made progress that would shame the wildest flights of science fiction fancy. And yet, the basic process of flight, of readying both pilot and airplane, is eerily similar. Join us as we examined the challenges of airline flying, the evolving industry landscape, and the perception of the airline pilot in the public psyche, in our new podcast, Flying the Line, Vol. 2!

ALPA’s fight against skyjacking is taken to the next level, as an unorthodox tactic is deployed to raise public awareness in the wake of continued violence.

A surge of skyjackings tears through the industry. Armed with experience, ALPA mobilizes to halt the advancing threat despite significant pushback. 

The pilots of Eastern Airlines strike and ALPA is forced to walk a fine line with management. 

The transition of pilots and airlines to the jet age becomes a major trouble spot for all, and the rising tensions result in some pilots taking matters into their own hands with an unauthorized strike.

As ALPA enters the jet age, technological improvements open the door to progress. But much like every major leap in technological progress before, the transition to jets isn't without problems or controversy.

The pilots of American Airlines decide to chart their own future after the issue of crew complement returns to the forefront, and dissident leaders seize their chance to break away.