Contract pilots pose a significant threat

摘要

Many of the Log readers might question what relevance EU bilateral negotiations hold to their profession or daily activity. Since deregulation, which commenced in the US in 1978 and has culminated in the recent EU/US Open Skies agreement, a significant threat has been quietly engineered that is only now coming on most pilots'radars.The announcement recently by Aer Lingus and United Airlines to operate Madrid/Washington Route using contract non-unionised pilot employees is the result.The EU Commission has recently negotiated similar arrangements with Canada and is embarking on a series of further negotiations with many countries around the world, breaking down the barriers to any carrier from any country operating in a second or third country.