PHOENIX, AZ – July 13, 2017 – Mesa Airlines announced Wednesday that its pilots, represented by
the Air Line Pilots Association, International (ALPA), ratified a new four-year collective bargaining
agreement. The agreement will be implemented in coordination with ALPA.
"We are delighted to come to a long term collective bargaining agreement with our pilot group," said
Jonathan Ornstein, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Mesa Airlines. "The agreement is the result
of a truly cooperative effort by both parties to achieve a fair and equitable contract while protecting the
long term future of the company and its ability to effectively compete in the marketplace. We are
especially pleased that throughout the process, all parties maintained a professional, open, and friendly
relationship. The new agreement provides Mesa the tools to both attract and retain qualified and
widely sought after professional pilots that we will need to remain one of the top performing and fastest
expanding regional airlines in the country. It is our strong belief that there are a number of significant
new opportunities for Mesa to explore now that this agreement has been put in place. I would like to
thank the dedicated members of the ALPA negotiating committee, the members of the Master Executive
Council, Chairman and Captain Andy Hughes, as well as the professionals at ALPA for their critical role in
achieving this landmark agreement. Most of all, I'd like to thank our pilots not only for passing this new
collective bargaining agreement, but for the tremendous work they do every day providing safe and
reliable transportation to millions of passengers every month and their much appreciated support of
Mesa Airlines."
Over the last four years, Mesa has doubled in size and has hired over 1,000 pilots, more than any
other regional airline. The new agreement will solidify the Company’s ability to support the
expansion of its partnership with United Airlines, which is scheduled to add 12 new Embraer 175
aircraft in 2017 bringing the total number of aircraft operated as United Express to 80. Mesa also
operates 64 aircraft under the American Eagle brand in partnership with American Airlines.
The delivery of the additional aircraft will create more than 500 new commercial aviation career
opportunities. For more information, visit www.mesa-air.com.
About Mesa Airlines
A multiple-time recipient of Air Transport World’s Regional Airline of the Year Award, Phoenix-based
Mesa Airlines operates as American Eagle from Phoenix and Dallas/Fort Worth and as United
Express from Washington Dulles and Houston. Founded on a mesa in New Mexico in 1982 by Larry
and Janie Risley, Mesa currently operates 136 aircraft, with more than 600 daily system departures
to 124 cities, 38 states, the District of Columbia, Canada, Mexico, and The Bahamas. The company
has approximately 3,100 employees and plans to hire an additional 1,000 in the next two years. For
more information, go to www.mesa-air.com or find Mesa on Facebook.