Executive Board Addresses Dues Return Offer, Dues Rate Reduction, and More

Members of ALPA’s Executive Board had a packed agenda for their latest meeting held May 6–7 at the Association’s McLean, Virginia, headquarters. In addition to the busy schedule, several of the issues discussed and the 17 resolutions before this union governing body represent profound changes for ALPA members and the future of the Association.

During the meeting, the assembled national officers, executive vice presidents, and master executive council (MEC) chairs discussed an offer to return millions of dollars in member dues as well as a proposal to decrease the current dues rate. The Executive Board also voted on filling a recent national officer vacancy for the remainder of the current term and heard details of a recently purchased building, which will serve as ALPA’s future headquarters. 

Officer Reports

As outlined by the Association’s Constitution and By-Laws, the meeting began with national officer reports. 

Watch the Full Reports

President

“Thank you all for being here to do the important work of our union,” said Capt. Jason Ambrosi, ALPA’s president. “As a member-driven organization, we depend on the people in this room to drive our success.” He spent a significant amount of time talking about the recent closure of Spirit Airlines and the tremendous loss felt by the Association. After showing a commemorative video, the union’s president commented, “As ALPA members, the Spirit pilot group will leave a lasting mark on our union.” 

 

Ambrosi also discussed the Jazz Aviation Flight 8646 accident on March 22 at New York’s LaGuardia Airport and the devastating loss of Capt. Antoine Forrest and F/O MacKenzie Gunther. “Every accident has causes and contributing factors, and it’s ALPA’s duty to support the investigation to find and address them,” he remarked. “Our union was founded on the fundamental truth that no one will stand up for the lives of pilots if we don’t do it ourselves.”

First Vice President

“We continue to face a complex and evolving operating environment,” said Capt. Wendy Morse, the Association’s first vice president and national safety coordinator. “From accident investigations to emerging technologies, geopolitical risks, and operational challenges, the demands on our profession continue to grow, but safety and security will always remain ALPA’s highest priorities.”

She outlined the recent work of the union’s Air Safety Organization and its various disciplines. Morse also commented on her role as ALPA-PAC treasurer and the importance of advancing the Association’s pilot-partisan agenda. “We’ve seen members of Congress step forward to support safety priorities, even when doing so required them to vote against party positions,” she noted. “Pilot partisanship works, and it continues to be one of ALPA’s greatest strengths.”

Vice President–Finance/Treasurer

Capt. Wes Clapper, the Association’s vice president–finance/treasurer and then acting vice president–administration/secretary, outlined considerations for a proposed reduction in ALPA’s dues rate from 1.85 to 1.55% of a member’s wages. With the approval of the Executive Board, the union’s Board of Directors (BOD) will make the final decision when it meets in October. “If at any point we see a very significant decrease in the total dues revenue for two years in a row, we’ve included a snap-up clause that will increase the dues rate by an equal percentage, up to a maximum of the current 1.85%,” he said. 

Clapper highlighted his work with the Structure, Services, and Finance Review Committee to take a more global look at the union’s finances, its allocation structure, and MEC and local executive council budgets. “We’ve added important new resources that benefit all pilots. We’ve increased support for our MECs, such as new ways to use the MCF in mediation or conciliation and through contract implementation grants. We’ve done it all while being responsible stewards of our pilots’ money,” he remarked.

Other Presentations

In a point of personal privilege, Ambrosi gave Capt. Sean Creed (Spirit), the Association’s former vice president–administration/secretary, the opportunity to give a final report to the Executive Board. 

In his remarks, Creed commented on the union’s efforts to better serve its pilots, noting, “We’re constantly seeking ways to improve the programs and resources our union makes available. As ALPA’s top leadership, we must always operate from the premise that there is always room for improvement.”

Creed was recently required to step down from his position as an ALPA national officer when Spirit Airlines permanently closed down on May 2. He was originally elected to serve as the Association’s vice president–administration/secretary on October 18, 2023, to fill a vacancy and that decision was ratified by the BOD on November 8, 2023.

In addition, Capt. Tim Perry, ALPA Canada president, presented his report to the Executive Board, also commenting on the Jazz Aviation Flight 8646 accident. “I’m humbled by the support we’ve received from across our great union—and on a global scale.” 

He also spoke about the current political climate in Canada, the success of the union’s Parliament Hill lobby day, and the status of collective bargaining for ALPA’s Canadian pilot groups. “Looking ahead to the rest of 2026, we’re already preparing for the opening of bargaining for WestJet and Keewatin Air. And Air Borealis, Morningstar, PAL Aerospace, and Air Canada are up in 2027,” he observed.

Third Consecutive Dues Return Offer

“We’re proud that this year we’re in the position again to offer to return dues to our members,” Ambrosi remarked to Executive Board members. The Executive Council, for a third straight year, approved an offer to return dues—this time totaling $53 million. 

Ambrosi’s administration first made the unprecedented move of extending an offer of a dues return in 2024, thanks to a surplus from the previous year. “The Landing” in the June–July 2024 issue of Air Line Pilot noted, “This return is possible thanks to conservative budgeting along with record pilot contracts and pilot pay.” The $50 million, which the Association began distributing to ALPA members late that summer, was estimated to amount to approximately 16% of each pilot’s total 2023 dues obligation.

Last year, ALPA’s July 17 FastRead reported, “Earlier this week, ALPA’s Executive Council established the amount of this year’s offer to return dues at $49 million,” observing that the dues return offer would once again be funded entirely from ALPA’s Administration & Support Account, and not from MEC pilot group accounts. 

“Our ability to offer this return for a second year is a testament to the strength of our union, our team’s sound fiscal planning, and your hard work,” ALPA’s president said in a message to Association members. “Through prudent financial decision-making and your success at the negotiating table, we’re in a uniquely strong position as a union.”

Second Proposed Dues Rate Reduction in Six Years

As part of agenda Item 6, the Executive Council voted unanimously to reduce the member dues rate from 1.85 to 1.55%. The Association’s BOD will vote this October during its meeting in Chicago, Ill., on whether to ratify this decision. If approved, the rate reduction would take effect next year.

“I want to commend the Structure, Services, and Finance Review [SSAFR] Committee, and Wes for both their work on the finances of our union and for identifying how we can continue to give more to our members while taking less,” Ambrosi commented during the meeting. “This change is years in the making, and it reflects exactly the kind of responsibility we owe to our members.”

During his presentation, Clapper pointed out, “When we moved from 1.90% to 1.85% on January 1, 2020, there were a number of patches and workarounds necessary to keep things working smoothly. So when the SSAFR Committee first started exploring this reduction, we made it a priority to study and adapt the entire structure so we wouldn’t need these workarounds.” 

In voting for the 1.55% dues rate, ALPA’s governing bodies are considering three additional adjustments as part of this proposal. The first is the discontinuation of the “off-the-top” funding for the Operating Contingency Fund, the Major Contingency Fund (MCF), the ALPA Canada Board budget, and the allocation for Air Line Pilot. As part of this plan, a new funding model for the Canada Board budget will be introduced.

Allocation percentages for the spending limit account categories will also be adjusted. SSAFR determined that the allocation percentage for the Operating Contingency Fund could be reduced from 3.5% to 0.5% without affecting the services this important resource provides. Likewise, the committee concluded that ALPA could decrease its Administration & Services Account budget from 57 to 54%.

The third change requires the Association to double the number of tiers it uses to measure an MEC’s growth for funding purposes from six to 12.

National Officer Vacancy Election

On the second day of the meeting, the Executive Board elected F/O Justin “Tyler” Hawkins (United) to serve as ALPA’s vice president–administration/secretary for the balance of the current term. Hawkins ran unopposed, and board members unanimously approved his election.

In an electronic ratification process that closed on May 27, ALPA’s BOD ratified Hawkins’s election to fill the vacancy for the term ending December 31, 2026. Hawkins previously held the same position as the first Frontier pilot to serve as a national officer but resigned when he transitioned to United Airlines as an apprentice reactivated member in 2023.

During a special moment of recognition, ALPA’s Executive Board paid tribute to Creed; Capt. Andy Nelson (Spirit), the recent Group A executive vice president; and Capt. Ryan Muller (Spirit), the pilot group’s former MEC chair, for their leadership and dedication to the Spirit pilots. The three were granted a point of personal privilege by Ambrosi to address the board. In addition, the Association announced that Creed, Nelson, Muller, and F/O Douglas Erickson (Spirit) had been named custodians for the Spirit pilot group.

New ALPA Headquarters and Additional Presentations

David Krieger, ALPA general manager, announced the purchase of a 200,000-square-foot, nine-story building approximately 1.5 miles south of the union’s current headquarters. ALPA staff will move into the building in 2030, shortly before the Association’s lease expires at its current offices in McLean, Va. Renovations on the recently purchased offices are expected to begin in 2028. During a break in the meeting, Executive Board members toured the new building. 

Additional presentations included a briefing from Capt. Dana Dann-Messier (Delta), ALPA’s Strategic Planning Committee lead, who discussed the strategic planning designated for the upcoming BOD meeting and the new training materials that will be available in preparation for the meeting. 

F/O Bryan Patchen (Delta) briefed the Executive Board as ALPA’s new Aviation Safety Organization Aviation Security Group chair. He replaced Capt. Wolfgang Koch (Delta) who recently vacated the post.

During his presentation, Patchen advised the group on the status of four global security hotspots, including Haiti and the recent gang violence near the Port-au-Prince Toussaint Louverture International Airport, the recent military operations in Venezuela, the government’s efforts to curb drug-cartel activity in Mexico, and the military strikes and retaliation in Iran. He also emphasized the importance of MECs relaying their issues and concerns to the Association so that they can be addressed.

In addition, he encouraged ALPA members to use the Factal app when flying into locations that may pose security threats. Factal provides users with information they can use to contact their carriers to help enable “quick proactive decisions when faced with crisis and uncertainty.”

The remaining agenda items addressed proposed changes to the union’s Constitution and By-Laws and Administrative Manual, as well as the award of MCF grants to several pilot groups in contract negotiations.

The next regular meeting of ALPA’s Executive Board is planned for September 23–25 at the Association’s headquarters in McLean, Virginia.