Comair Reaches Tentative Deal with Unhappy Pilots
While details have not been released pending ratification, Comair and the Air Line Pilots Association, which represents the carrier’s 1,600 pilots, reached a tentative agreement Monday after 15 months of protracted, bitter negotiations. The deal was set as the promise Comair made not to impose its proposed $15.8 million in concessions was close to expiring. Union Chair J.C. Lawson characterized the deal as the best they could do in the current circumstances. After extending its promise not to impose its own conditions until March 4, Comar said pilots have until then ratify the agreement
As if Comair didn’t have enough on its plate, a radar glitch forced the cancellation of 50 flights out of Cincinnati last Wednesday. The incident impacted about 12 percent of its 400 flights. While FAA was able to fix the radar component but, at press time, it was still working on fixing a defective cable on the Instrument Landing System on the newest runway, 36L.

New Horizon Approach Pays Dividends
Horizon Air operated 33 percent more flights fromWenatchee in the last two months than during the same period a year earlier. The airline credits the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) approval last November for Horizon to use the airport's Special Instrument Landing System for the dramatic improvement in its ability to get flights in and out of Wenatchee Valley's Pangborn Memorial Airport. Its passenger boardings at the airport jumped nearly 50 percent from December to January. Additionally, with more flights able to land and depart in poor weather, Horizon experienced a nearly 50 percent increase in passenger traffic in December and January compared to the year-ago period. With the new approach system, Horizon planes are landing when pilots can see a mile in front of the aircraft and clouds are as low as 300 feet above the ground, as opposed to the one mile of visibility and 560 foot cloud ceilings required for the former Microwave Landing System approach procedure in Wenatchee.

Midwest Debuts New Inflight Mag
MyMidwest will go into all Midwest Airlines (MEH) flights on March 1, offering a larger magazine. The name reflects the “unique ownership the airline’s customers fleel for the brand,” according to Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer Scott Dickson.

SkyWest Names Midwest Connect Boss
SkyWest Airlines (SKYW), named Casey Madsen to the new position of Midwest Connect regional director, responsible for spooling up the new operation and directing all ground operations activities. He serves at the central liaison for coordinating successful station operations which begins April 1. He joined SkyWest in 2004, responsible for preparing and opening the Burbank and Long Beach, Calif. Delta Connection station operations. Prior to his station manager assignments, Casey served as a supervisor at SkyWest's Salt Lake City hub operation. He gained additional airline experience in his three years at Delta Air Lines (DALRQ), where he specialized in reservation call center supervision and irregular and emergency operations planning.

American Eagle Recruiting, Adds New Service
American Eagle held recruiting sessions last week at the 18th Annual International Women in Aviation conference in Florida in the hopes of adding pilots. In addition it held sessions at the Florida Institute of Technology. American, of course, touted its benefits including a newly awarded benefit – the flexibility in domicile choice with confirmation prior to training. Eagle domiciles are in Boston, Chicago, Dallas/Fort Worth, Los Angeles, Miami, New York City and San Juan, P.R. Using the Embraer (ERJ) 145 aircraft, Eagle is also inaugurating a single roundtrip daily between Shreveport and Chicago service April 10. It is the fourth new route for the carrier in the past 18 months, according to President Peter Bowler.
The carrier also adds service between Halifax, Nova Scotia and Chicago with a single roundtrip on weekend days using the 70-seat CRJ 700. The new route builds on the success of its Halifax-New York service, said Bowler, a graduate of St. Francis Xavier Univeristy in Nova Scotia. The route includes pre-clearance for U.S. customers and Immigration in Halifax.