The Continental negotiations team will meet with the company next week under the auspices of the National Mediations Board in Washington DC.  The committee would like to thank everyone for your continued support during these difficult sessions.

The Grand Lodge has announced the 2006 Scholarship Competition and brochures and applications are available from you Local Lodge.  The competition is open to all IAM members and their dependents.  Please contact your Local Lodge for information.  All applications must be postmarked no later than February 24, 2006.

Southwest Airlines will encounter new challenges when it starts flying from Denver early next year. It will face competition from United Airlines and discounter Frontier Airlines. Some experts say launching flights from Denver is a risk for Southwest and note costs are higher there than at other airports where Southwest operates.

A strike by Delta Air Lines' pilots would devastate the company, Delta’s Chief Financial Officer told a bankruptcy court Monday. He said the company must cut costs by $3 billion a year to stay afloat. The airline wants to cut pay for its pilots by $325 million a year and has asked the court to void its current contract with the pilots. Delta may sell some of its jets and reject the lease on an Atlanta office, a bankruptcy court judge ruled Monday. An expert witness testifying at Monday's hearing said competition from discount airlines and lower ticket prices available through the Internet have hurt Delta.

Northwest Airlines may reject the leases on 15 planes held by Well Fargo & Co., a bankruptcy judge ruled. Northwest wants to reject leases on up to 200 aircraft. The airline filed for bankruptcy protection in September.

Continental has entered into an agreement with Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines to allow travelers to use each other's airport lounges. The airlines will offer club members about 90 lounges worldwide. Fliers will have access to the lounges starting December 1.

JetBlue and US Airways are planning cuts to their winter schedules. JetBlue in January will suspend indefinitely its daily flight from Washington Dulles to Sacramento because of weak demand. The airline will drop a few other flights in its network. US Airways said it will suspend flights between Las Vegas and several markets and also make some capacity cuts in Phoenix.

Flu shots will be available at the onsite Whole Health Clinics at IAH, CLE and EWR, beginning Wednesday, Nov. 9, during normal clinic hours. At IAH and EWR the Whole Health Clinic is open from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m., seven days a week. The CLE Whole Health Clinic is open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday through Friday. The cost for a flu shot is $15, payable by check or cash. The flu shots are available on a first come, first served basis, while supplies last.

On the lighter side, Continental is flying a stowaway house cat home from Paris. In late September, the cat escaped from her house in Appleton, Wisconsin. It wandered to a distribution center and ended up on a sea container bound for Belgium. The cat will fly in business class.

Due to the Holidays, the Local Lodge meetings for Houston and have been changed to December 14, 2005.

We would like to encourage all members to attend your Local Lodge business meeting. Each base must have a quorum to conduct business. The following is a schedule for upcoming meetings:  

: Tuesday, December 13, 3:00 p.m. at the Wyndam Hotel.

Cleveland: Thursday, December 8, 4:00 pm at 669 North Rocky River Drive;

Guam: Wednesday, December 14, 4:00 p.m. at the Airport Conference Room;

Houston: Wednesday, December 14, 1:00 p.m. at 15710 JFK Blvd;