(AOF) – Southwest Airlines cabin crew rejected an agreement in principle on salaries: 64% of employees voted against a five-year proposal. Transportation Workers Union (TWU) Local 556, which represents nearly 19,000 flight attendants, said in a statement that “this proposed contract will not cure the disease.” They are demanding higher wages and better regulatory protection in the new collective agreement.
AOF – LEARN MORE
The end of a duopoly?
For several decades, the American Boeing and the European Airbus have shared 99% of the world market for airliners with more than 110 seats. This market is worth more than 100 billion dollars per year. However, this duopoly appears weakened in 2022 for several reasons. First, for the first time, two medium-haul single-aisle aircraft, the C919 from China’s Comac and the MC-21 from Russia’s Irkut, are preparing to enter service. Added to this is the Boeing 737 MAX crisis. With the cessation of deliveries of this aircraft between 2019 and 2021, the production balance has been disrupted. In 2021 Boeing posted 340 deliveries, with Airbus remaining well in the lead, with 611.