American Airlines' pilots union hopes to have a new contract agreement by the end of the week as union and company negotiators continue to meet.
The Allied Pilots Association said in a message to pilots Sunday that only a "handful" of issues remained to be worked out with American, including furlough protection for pilots and allowing third-party airlines to provide regional flying for the carrier."Over the past four days, we have finalized contract language to the point that there are only a handful of open paragraphs still being worked," said the APA's negotiating committee, adding that its goal is to "present a final product to the APA Board of Directors at some point this week."Previously, American stated that it wanted a pilot agreement to be considered by the APA's board by last Thursday, but that date came and went without a deal."Our focus remains on reaching a consensual agreement that provides opportunity and security for our pilots and allows American Airlines to successfully restructure," American spokesman Bruce Hicks said last week.In September, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Sean Lane ruled that American could reject its pilots contract and impose work-rule changes that the carrier deemed necessary to restructure.Hicks said American has deferred some of those changes while the two parties continue to negotiate.The airline has made improvements to its last contract offer, which pilots rejected with a 61 percent majority in August. The last offer included pay raises and a 13.5 percent equity stake in the airline in exchange for pilots paying more for healthcare benefits and allowing more regional flying by third-party airlines.Andrea Ahles, 817-390-7631Twitter: @Sky_TalkHave more to add? News tip? Tell us
