ATSG reaches tentative agreement with pilots

Air Transport Services Group, Inc. (ATSG) announced late last week that its subsidiary, Air Transport International, Inc. (ATI), has reached a tentative agreement to amend the collective bargaining agreement with its more than 220 pilots, who are represented by the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA).

Terms of the tentative amended agreement were not disclosed, but ATSG said that they will be presented to the ATI pilot group “prior to holding a ratification vote.” The vote is expected to take place before the end of March.

The airline and its pilots have been negotiating amendments to the current collective bargaining agreement since May 2014. The tentative amended agreement would extend for four years from the date of ratification by the ATI pilots.

ATSG is positioning itself to be a significant part of Amazon’s growing air network, one that could require up to 100 aircraft. The deal could address a critical component of that plan – getting enough pilots to fly all those aircraft.

In late 2016, pilots for another ATSG subsidiary, ABX Air, went on strike, forcing the cancellation of 75 flights and causing delays for up to 1.5 million Amazon and DHL deliveries.

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