Why Union?
The mission of the Air Line Pilots Association is to promote and champion all aspects of aviation safety throughout all segments of the aviation community; to represent, in both specific and general respects, the collective interests of all pilots in commercial aviation; to assist in collective bargaining activities on behalf of all pilots represented by the Association; to promote the health and welfare of the members of the Association before all governmental agencies; to be a strong, forceful advocate of the airline piloting profession, through all forms of media, and with the public at large; and to be the ultimate guardian and defender of the rights and privileges of the professional pilots who are members of the Association.
—ALPA Board of Directors, October 1992
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ALPA's History
ALPA’s history is steeped in our commitment to advancing the piloting profession and to ensuring that airline travel grows even safer. As the world’s largest pilots’ union, ALPA has advanced the piloting profession since 1931. Throughout its more than 75 years, ALPA’s safety experts have contributed to remarkable achievements in aviation safety. ALPA pilots have led the way in making aviation the world's safest mode of transportation today.
1930s
The '30s was a decade of great significance for airline pilots across the United States, Canada, and beyond. It was the decade when a professional union of pilots was born to protect the interests of airmen during a decade marked by "pilot pushing," horribly unsafe flying conditions, and a company mentality that pilots were an expendable commodity. Fly at all costs, under all conditions; just make sure that the mail is delivered on time.
1940s
During the 1940s, many ALPA pilots joined the fight to preserve democracy, as we know it, during the second World War. It also was a decade when ALPA first began advocating for the formation of an independent aviation safety board, and one marked by greater pilot cooperation across national boarders through the creation of the International Federation of Air Line Pilots' Associations (IFALPA).
1950s
In the 1950s, the concept of the modern jet transport moved from blueprint to reality. The advent of the jet kicked off a revolutionary new means of transporting people and cargo. ALPA's air safety structure also was devised, and the framework established in 1951 has evolved into the largest nongovernmental safety structure in the world. In the '50s, the issue of crew fatigue and rest requirements, which continues to be an unresolved item on ALPA's safety agenda today, also became an increasing concern to pilots.
1960s
Although the late 1950s marked the birth of the jet transport, the 1960s marked the first widespread use of this revolutionary new form of transportation, which created a whole new set of safety concerns. During this decade, the NTSB was created under the new Department of Transportation (DOT) to investigate accidents ─ an idea ALPA strongly advocated for many years. (The agency severed its organizational ties to DOT in 1975.) And, in the '60s, ALPA led the way to improved regulations covering aircraft emergency evacuations ─ the culmination of decades of work spearheaded by a dedicated ALPA safety volunteer, Capt. Vic Hewes of Delta Air Lines.
1970s
The 1970s marked a difficult time for the U.S. airline industry. The threats of skyjacking became realities and hit closer to home. Despite the difficulties, the decade did contain some success stories in the area of aviation safety: ALPA's Safe Transportation of People (S.T.O.P.) campaign was victorious, the FAA established the first airport certification requirements after nearly three decades of pressure by ALPA, and NASA launched the Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASRS) ─ an airline incident database that ALPA helped pioneer. ALPA also initiated the first studies of the role of windshear in airline accidents.
1980s
The 1980s meant one word to anyone involved in the airline industry: deregulation. The Airline Deregulation Act of 1978 forever changed the landscape of the airline industry in the United States. During the process, three of the "powerhouse" airlines ─ Eastern, Braniff, and the original Pan Am ─ went out of business, along with other major consequences of this reinventing of the U.S. aviation economy. Deregulation also created a whole new wave of safety concerns. However, the '80s also provided ALPA with some long-fought-for safety victories: traffic alert and collision avoidance system (TCAS) requirements for Part 121 operations, passenger "fasten seatbelt" signs in airplanes, adoption of the Association's anti-skyjacking strategy by federal regulators, and federal approval of crew resource management (CRM) training, to name just a few.
1990's
During the 1990s, the airline industry had to deal with the aftershocks of deregulation. It also was the decade of several major airline tragedies. However, some of these accidents led to aviation safety enhancements, including the redesign of the B-737 rudder control system, improvements to the ATR-42/72 wingboots, and changes in pilot training on aircraft performance in icing conditions. The crown jewel of ALPA's safety work during this era was our successful campaign for One Level of Safety, to bring Part 135 operations with more than nine passengers up to the same standards as Part 121 operations. The FAA adopted this standard in 1995.
2000s
Several decades-long safety concerns continue to be prominent on ALPA's agenda in this new century: reserve rest requirements, collision avoidance systems, long-range operations, development of a nonpunitive safety reporting system with guaranteed pilot immunity, and runway incursions ─ to name a few. The era began on a high note with ALPA's successful land-and-hold-short-operations (LAHSO) campaign (although the work in Canada to make simultaneous intersecting runway operations [SIRO] safe remains ongoing).
The 9/11 terrorist attacks had a devastating impact on the airline industry. As a result, aviation security issues have been at the forefront of much of ALPA's activities over the last six years. In response to the terrorist attacks, ALPA has been a leader in developing, lobbying for, and helping to implement numerous security-enhancing initiatives in the United States and Canada. Reflecting on the lessons learned since 9/11, ALPA continues to address areas that are still vulnerable in airline security.
Click on the timeline below to view a chronicle of the pilot labor movement.
Click on the Seventy Years of Safety timeline below to find out more.
