Flying the Line

The fight for Capt. MacDonald's career ends with a victory for the union pilots of National Airlines after a long and hard-fought battle with National's CEO, George T. Baker. However, this was only the start of what would be a series of battles with George Baker.

In ALPA’s short history, Ted Baker, the owner of National Airlines, was one of the most unscrupulous operators Dave Behncke had to deal with. The pilots of National Airlines attempted to hold their management accountable for poor working conditions, but to no avail. This, compounded with the firing of one pilot resulted in the pilots voting to authorize a strike. Hear how the longest and costliest strike at in the history of ALPA to that point, turned out.

The pilots of TWA struck over “the four-engine pay problem” and another pilots association threatens to cross picket lines. However in the midst of all this, ALPA President Dave Behncke was rushed to the hospital with a suspected heart attack.

In the midst of the United States fighting a global war, ALPA fought to protect its pilots. With airline operators using wartime needs as an excuse to roll back flying limits, ALPA successfully navigated the tension between maintaining the safety of the aviation system, and fulfilling its patriotic duty. Hear how ALPA led its pilots to victory against the complex tapestry of patriotism and aviation safety.

Dave Behncke's path to becoming the founder and head of ALPA was not a direct one. While Behncke finally achieved the military assignment he had coveted, it was short-lived. This, along with several other setbacks in his career, convinced him that the decks were stacked against him. Learn about how his failures drove him to become a successful labor leader at the head of one of the most powerful unions of the 20th century.

The flight that killed U.S. Senator Bronson Cutting from New Mexico brought renewed scrutiny to the airline accident investigations process. Until this point, "pilot error" was a commonly cited cause for accidents. However, because a prominent politician was involved in the crash of TWA Flight 6, the U.S. Commerce Department played a large role in the fallout. Meanwhile, the management of TWA knew that they would eventually fall under increased scrutiny, and realized that the company-sponsored "TWA Pilots Association" and their opposition to an independent airline accident investigation agency proposed by ALPA and Dave Behncke would quickly be unpopular with the public at large.

Long and Harmon were essentially running a rogue airline that was refusing to abide by Decision 83, which was the National Labor Board edict that required pilots to be paid a certain amount for flying. Facing a hostile, anti-union environment, the pilots of Long & Harmon decided to fight back against their management's flagrant disregard of Decision 83. This fight set the precedent for pilot pay provisions that would eventually be cemented in future legislation.

Expert maneuvering by ALPA's first president, Capt. Dave Behncke helped propel ALPA from a small lobbying group to the most respected voice for airline pilots in Washington. Through ALPA's advocacy in the early days of the National Recovery Administration's "Code Hearings," ALPA was able to secure the foundation of the pilot compensation system in the Civil Aeronautics Act of 1938, which is still in use today.

The Century Airlines Strike of 1932 was quite the spectacle during the early days of commercial aviation. Not only was it a pivotal event in the history of commercial aviation, but it was key to positioning ALPA as a major player in the labor movement as well as the aviation industry. Learn how missteps by E.L. Cord and smart maneuvering by ALPA founder Dave Behncke led to ALPA securing higher standards for airline pilots throughout the industry.

In this episode, we hear the conclusion of the Livermore Affair and learn how this tragedy set the groundwork for ALPA's critical role in setting high standards for aviation safety, eliminating the practice of "pilot pushing," and setting the bar for aviation safety for pilots, passengers, and cargo.

The Airmail Pilots' Strike of 1919 was one of the earliest organized actions taken by pilots. This 4-day strike led to concessions by Post Office management to eliminate the practice of "weather pushing" and to increase safety for airmail pilots. The roots of modern-day pilots' unions can be traced back to this important event in aviation history.

This week, hear about the 24 "key men" who saw themselves as good "company men" but were labeled as "troublemakers" by their airline management. ALPA's Key Men faced much opposition from both management and other line pilots, but persevered in their work for labor protections, safe working conditions, and benefits, all of which are enjoyed by ALPA members today.