FORT WORTH, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Allied Pilots Association President Capt. Keith Wilson issued the following statement regarding today's letter from Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel urging the Obama administration to open consultations with Qatar and the United Arab Emirates regarding government subsidies to the three Gulf carriers.
"Mayor Emanuel is exactly right — government funding means the Gulf carriers aren't accountable to market forces, enabling them to grow at an astounding rate. As Mayor Emanuel urges, it's essential for the U.S. government to open consultations with Qatar and the United Arab Emirates to protect fair and equal competition in our skies.
"On behalf of the Allied Pilots Association leadership and the 15,000 pilots of American Airlines and US Airways we represent, I want to express my gratitude to Mayor Emanuel for his outstanding support on this issue. With 9,000 American Airlines employees in the Chicago area, we have a major stake in the community and in our airline's future there as a leading international carrier.
"We echo Mayor Emanuel in urging the Obama administration to take all necessary steps — including a freeze on new routes by the Gulf carriers while consultations proceed — to ensure that the open-skies agreements our nation has entered into are being complied with by all participating parties. Hundreds of thousands of middle-class airline employees who work hard and play by the rules expect our country's trading partners to do the same. Our livelihoods depend on it."
Founded in 1963, the Allied Pilots Association — the largest independent pilots' union in the United States — is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. APA represents the 15,000 pilots of American Airlines and US Airways, including several hundred pilots on full-time military leave of absence serving in the armed forces. The union's website is www.alliedpilots.org. American Airlines is the world's largest passenger airline.
APA is a member of the Partnership for Open and Fair Skies, which is calling on the Obama administration to open consultations under the open-skies agreements with Qatar and the United Arab Emirates to address the flow of subsidized capacity to the United States and seek a freeze on new passenger service during the consultations.
