Air Canada News

Rebel · Post by **Rebel** » Mon Feb 20, 2006 3:03 pm

Air Canada News:

Robert Milton and Air Canada management team honoured for significant contribution to industry. The editors of Aviation Week & Space Technology magazine have awarded Robert Milton and the Air Canada team a prestigious Laurel for significant contributions to aviation and aerospace in 2005. Robert and the team are being recognized in the commercial air transport category for “‘breaking the mold’ and implementing a restructuring plan that is setting the standard for legacy-turned-low-cost carriers. Against industry odds following Sept.11 and outbreaks of SARS, the team became the first network carrier to emerge from creditor protection and transform into a low-fare, low-cost model, without government dollars.” The complete list of this year's Laurels appears in the magazine's Feb. 13th edition. The Laurels will be honoured on April 7th at a ceremony to be held at the Smithsonian Institute’s National Air and Space Museum's Udvar-Hazy Center near Washington.

gr8gazu · Post by **gr8gazu** » Mon Feb 20, 2006 3:49 pm

Milton is no genious and is certainly not worthy of reward.

The structuring and cost controls are the reality of the airline business in North America. The writing was on the wall. The genious just had to have someone spell it out to him.

Rebel · Post by **Rebel** » Mon Feb 20, 2006 4:08 pm

Love him or hate him AC needs a CEO of his calibre to help us stick handle our way in the new world of aviation. Compared to all the other airline genus’s out there he hasn’t done a bad job as AC is the most profitable legacy carrier in North America.

tonysoprano · Post by **tonysoprano** » Mon Feb 20, 2006 4:34 pm

I'm not happy cause Clive didn't get an award. Must be that damn press again. Always putting WJ down.

gr8gazu · Post by **gr8gazu** » Mon Feb 20, 2006 5:31 pm

Let's also remember that Milton led AC into bankruptcy in the first place. I can't give him credit until AC has a solid track record of profitability. That record should run longer than a business cycle.

Bede · Post by **Bede** » Mon Feb 20, 2006 5:47 pm

tonysoprano wrote:I'm not happy cause Clive didn't get an award. Must be that damn press again. Always putting WJ down.

... · Post by **...** » Mon Feb 20, 2006 8:01 pm

gr8gazu · Post by **gr8gazu** » Tue Feb 21, 2006 1:43 am

Outside the YHM employment office or at the airshow??

... · Post by **...** » Tue Feb 21, 2006 9:16 am

gr8gazu wrote:Outside the YHM employment office or at the airshow??

Actually, it was taken in YYZ "celebrating" Air Canada's recent (10/19/2004) emergence from bankruptcy protection by unveiling new colors Tuesday at a glitzy airport spectacle headlined by star singer Celine Dion.

There's nothing better for a company that has just turtled it's head back into the black again, to go ahead and spend all kinds of valueable money from employee wage cutbacks (over 1 Billion) and spend it on paint. Because...thats what Air Canada needed...is new paint...and the rumoured 10 million for a sovereignist anti Canada singer song writter.

gr8gazu · Post by **gr8gazu** » Tue Feb 21, 2006 10:52 am

Agreed!

Rebel · Post by **Rebel** » Wed Feb 22, 2006 12:26 am

Birddog

How do these rumors get started? Unfortunately once they get started they become self-sustaining. Celine Dion made a standard commercial barter arrangement with AC with very little money changing hands. That’s the way it’s done and has been done that way for years..

... · Post by **...** » Wed Feb 22, 2006 7:52 am

Rebel wrote:Birddog

How do these rumors get started? Unfortunately once they get started they become self-sustaining. Celine Dion made a standard commercial barter arrangement with AC with very little money changing hands. That’s the way it’s done and has been done that way for years..

First off Rebel...I love ya!

Secondly...these rumours started in your camp and I read it somewhere. If it's true or not...the perception is out there. Frankly I have seen enough spin doctors this past year to make me not really take notice of what the suits are doing at AC.

I will still fly on Air Canada though. Half of the new hire pilots are ALL my buddies!!

Air Canada #1

Rebel · Post by **Rebel** » Wed Feb 22, 2006 12:53 pm

Hey Birddog

You’re dead right perception is always stronger then the facts. Management should have issued a statement of fact when the rumor surfaced however as I hear it the agreement forbade releasing the details. How’s that for a spin?

CanadaEH · Post by **CanadaEH** » Wed Feb 22, 2006 4:23 pm

Celine Dion had to have been paid well. Rumor has it that it was $10M+.

tonysoprano · Post by **tonysoprano** » Thu Feb 23, 2006 5:20 pm

See, the thing is even with Milton and Celine's big bonuses and our cuts, our salaries are now almost low enough to be compared with others. Almost but not quite.

tellyourkidstogetarealjob · Fri Feb 24, 2006 6:16 am

If you're one of the laid-off your salary would be whatever EI pays (if you bothered to claim it).

Awards should go to people who avoid bankruptcy. Not to those who shaft suppliers (which ultimately, gets paid for by the whole industry) and lay off workers while retaining the same management that helped run it into the ground in the first place (there were eleven vice-presidents three years ago, only one was booted while a quarter of the staff were let go).

disco · Post by **disco** » Fri Feb 24, 2006 9:08 am

GR8GAZU,

I would argue that it was our government's actions including the Air Canada Act (Air Canada was prohibited from selling seats below cost while WJ and Jetsgo et al were selling them for $1) that forced Air Canada into bankruptcy. Where else could they go in that predicament?

Bankruptcy absolved Air Canada of the ridiculous Air Canada Act.

Please don't construe this to mean I am a blind Milton advocate. I just wanted to weigh in on who to blame for that chapter.

gr8gazu · Post by **gr8gazu** » Fri Feb 24, 2006 3:34 pm

It is impossible to blame only one person or one circumstance for the failure of AC. Pevious failures have been both systemic and poor business decisions but the hangovers you speak of are from the "crown monopoly" days. Now that Westjet is a viable alternate, AC will have to make a go of it on its own fiscal merit. No more bailouts.......

Hadji Ramjet · Post by **Hadji Ramjet** » Fri Feb 24, 2006 3:46 pm

Disco,

You might want to consider that the Air Canada Act was created in part to prevent a private entity from taking over an asset that the Government of Canada had tossed a pot of money into during privatization. the subsequent history of AC versus CAIL was used during the privatization of CN as an example of what not to be allowed. If you doubt that (Rebel you putz?) search out the hansard record of Myron Thompson.

confuzed · Post by **confuzed** » Fri Feb 24, 2006 7:57 pm

gr8gazu wrote:No more bailouts.......

AC's had bailouts?? really?? I must've missed it....I could be wrong of course....

Trickkles · Post by **Trickkles** » Fri Feb 24, 2006 8:49 pm

Maybe Clive should get the award for having a business plan involving throwing four national carriers into bankruptcy and a little bit of corporate spying and final a Hitler ideology about power (get rid of anyone in the executive that opposes you, eg. Tim).

Got my vote for Business Man of the Year.

gr8gazu · Post by **gr8gazu** » Fri Feb 24, 2006 9:30 pm

Trickkles wrote:Maybe Clive should get the award for having a business plan involving throwing four national carriers into bankruptcy and a little bit of corporate spying and final a Hitler ideology about power (get rid of anyone in the executive that opposes you, eg. Tim).

Huh?? Surely you don't include Jetsgone in that group?? Ah..Cantjet??
He certainly had no effect on Canadian.. What 4 "national carriers" or maybe.. what nation is a better question?

Of course, AC would never resort to corporate espionage of any sort...Nor would they even consider predatory pricing

Why the Hitler reference?? You must have gotten your historical reference mixed up. Perhaps you meant Machiavelli (the end justifies the means).

I don't work for nor do I have any sentiment for either but maybe you should open your eyes just a little to reality.

International Harvester · Sat Feb 25, 2006 10:27 pm

You truly are a pretty good Gazu, you would fit well into the new Western Canadian Confederacy I am building. Expect a job offer.

Trickkles · Post by **Trickkles** » Sun Feb 26, 2006 9:40 am

I worked for Westjet. And yes, my eyes were opened to reality. I quit after 5 years.

When you walk into Clive's office with all the smoke (yes, he chains smokes in is office at the hangar) and talk to him - he talks like a man with one thing on his mind - POWER WITH WORLD DOMINATION.

gr8gazu · Post by **gr8gazu** » Sun Feb 26, 2006 11:25 am

Trickkles wrote: When you walk into Clive's office with all the smoke (yes, he chains smokes in is office at the hangar) and talk to him - he talks like a man with one thing on his mind - POWER WITH WORLD DOMINATION.

I personally have never met him and don't anticipate the need to do so. I have never worked for him or for his company, nor am I looking to, so am not able to comment on his personal habits.

What you have briefly described though is classic entrepreneurial behavior. I have worked for a few of them and have been thankful for that drive. It provides a lot of jobs for people like you and I to retain or quit.

As for the smoking, I have known quite a few CEO/Chairman types that do similar. I don't see the connection to the arguement though.