11.07.03 – (LAA) – Flight 587, Stock Options

Hello. This is George Price, APFA Communications Coordinator, with the APFA Hotline for Friday, November 7, 2003.

The APFA would like to remember the crew and passengers who died on American Airlines Flight 587 on November 12, 2001. Please take a moment on Wednesday, to remember those lost in this tragic event.

Flight Attendants eligible to receive stock options under the broad based stock option plan should be aware that in order to minimize the tax liability on the options once they are exercised, you should complete either the W8 or W9 form. When you access “AMR Stock Options” on www.retireonline.com, you will be prompted to complete this form online. Instructions on how to fill out this form can be accessed from the prompt. Flight Attendants are encouraged to read the instructions and related information prior to completing the W8 or W9 forms. Remember, you will not be taxed on your stock options until you actually exercise your options. The first third of options will not vest until April of 2004. For more information on the broad based stock option plan, please visit the Hot Topics page of the APFA Web site, Jetnet, or retireonline.com.

A technical glitch with the RetireOnline.com web site caused eligible Flight Attendant’s stock options to display “0” in the balance area. The glitch has been corrected. Flight Attendants can also access the values and amounts of their stock options by clicking on “AMR Stock Options” under the “View Your Stock Awards” on Jetnet.

The APFA continues to receive reports from Flight Attendants that have experienced problems placing prescription orders through Merck Medco. The APFA Health Department was informed that Merck has been experiencing technical problems, which they are addressing at this time. We will update you on the status of these problems on this hotline and the web site as information becomes available.

In Washington this week, House Republicans have joined the campaign begun by House and Senate Democrats to extend federal unemployment insurance for laid off workers. Representative Jennifer Dunn of Washington has introduced a bill in the House (HR 3270). This bill joins House bill HR 1652 and Senate bill S. 1708 introduced by Senator Ted Kennedy. These bills would grant 26 extra weeks of federally funded unemployment insurance to individuals who have already exhausted their state-provided benefits. All APFA members whether active or on furlough should take the time to contact their Representative and Senators and urge their support of legislation that would extend the unemployment benefits for laid off workers. Contact information for all members of Congress can be found on the Government Affairs page of the APFA Web site. Members can also contact their members in Congress through Capwiz on the Government Affairs page by simply providing their Zip Code in the required space.

Flight Attendants eligible to receive monetary awards under the settlement reached between the APFA and American on the Presidential Grievance on Article 16-Overage Leave of Absence recently received a letter from the APFA outlining the award. Processing of the awards is complete, and all eligible Flight Attendants should receive payment soon.

The APFA Hotel Department would like International Flight Attendants with layovers in Paris to be aware that use of the ATM machine in the hotel lobby will appear on your bank statement as a transaction under the name of the hotel. This is not a charge from the hotel itself. It merely identifies the location of the machine.

Flight Attendants attending recall refresher classes should be aware that they must bring two forms of picture identification to the class. Failure to do so may result in a delay in training.

A new section was incorporated into the APFA Web site this week. A “Rumor Control” page has been added to the “Information Center” on the opening page of the site. Rumor Control is dedicated to addressing rumors and questions that are circulating out on the line in an effort to supply the membership with factual information. You must be an APFA member and dues current to access this information. This section of the site will be updated frequently with information relayed to the APFA from InfoReps and members.

The APFA membership was asked to participate in a survey of cabin crews on work stress. The survey was posted on the APFA Web site for several weeks. The results of this survey were provided to the APFA this week by the University of Nottingham and posted on the APFA Web site Hot Topics and Health pages. The university and the researchers would like to extend their appreciation to all APFA members who took the time to complete the survey.

In Industry News:

In a meeting with industry analysts on Thursday, AMR CEO Gerard Arpey said that American was going on the offensive against the low- cost carriers by changing the airline’s route structure. He went on to say that, “we’re through retreating.” Although the published reports on Mr. Arpey’s comments indicated American was considering creating a low-cost carrier, American made it clear in a press release on Thursday afternoon that the Company was concentrating on the current airline rather than starting a new one. The complete text of Arpey’s comments can be found on amrcorp.com under “Investor Relations” and then “Executive Speeches.”

American Airlines announced October traffic results on Monday. The system-wide load factor rose 1.7 points to 70.2% on a capacity decrease of 4.1% from a year ago. The Domestic load factor rose 2.2 points and .3 points on international. American boarded 7.3 million passengers in October.

Delta CEO Leo Mullin this week threatened Delta Pilots with additional job cuts at that airline if they did not provide deep wage concessions. Although Mullin did not think the airline would file bankruptcy without the concessions, he did say that the airline would be a “hobbled organization in 2005 and 2006” without them.

For more aviation industry news, please visit the News and Events page of the APFA Web site.

That is it for this edition of the APFA Hotline. For more information and past editions of the hotline, please visit the APFA Web site at www.www.apfa.org.

There are 6,150 American Airlines Flight Attendants currently on furlough.