The Civil Aviation Pilots Union (SPAC) reaffirmed yesterday in a statement that it has been warning since September last year about “serious and recurring failures in the operation of SATA Azores Airlines,” considering that “some of these failures have a direct impact on operational safety, waste of public resources, and the confidence of workers and passengers.”

According to the union, “disorganization in crew planning, poor slot management, and growing dependence on ACMI aircraft and crews are just some of the symptoms of a management model that insists on relying on old practices and customs, whose inefficiency is, unfortunately, evident.”

The union warns of the “insistence on a supposed HUB in Ponta Delgada without adequate technical and logistical capacity on site, such as for carrying out maintenance on aircraft in a timely manner.”

It considers that appointments to management and other technical positions in Flight Operations and Training and Education “continue to be made without objective criteria, let alone transparency, giving rise to perceptions of favoritism and nepotism that undermine confidence in internal leadership.”

It emphasizes that “the recurring use of invitations to fly on days off, the unequal distribution of work, and the opacity of professional advancement processes, among other common practices, generate demotivation and instability.”

It stresses that “the silence of the Administration in the face of the union’s repeated warnings over the last nine months is contributing to a decline in trust between the parties.”

At a time when the privatization process of Azores Airlines is underway, the union hopes that the Regional Government of the Azores will “verify and validate, as announced, the technical, financial, and labor suitability of the Newtour/MS Aviation consortium.”

For the union, labor suitability is “an essential condition for protecting workers and ensuring that the operation continues to meet the highest standards of quality and respect for labor rights.”

It considers that “the failure to publish the consolidated accounts for 2024 to date only adds to the doubts about the company’s real financial situation and undermines the transparency of the process, with unpredictable and undesirable consequences.”

The SPAC says it will remain firm in defending its members and the sustainability of Azores Airlines’ operations.”

“We will remain vigilant and will not hesitate to use all legal and institutional means at our disposal to this end,” it concludes.

In Correio dos Açores, Natalino Viveiros-director

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