On July 27, 1931, 24 pilots met in secret in Chicago, Ill., to form the Air Line Pilots Association. In the 90 years that followed, our union’s effect on the airline industry and the piloting profession has been witnessed by the world.
Since that time, ALPA has grown into the world’s largest nongovernmental aviation safety organization. The labor protections afforded to airline pilots and other aviation workers under collectively bargained agreements have led to innovative and productive partnerships among regulators, management, and employees to advance safety in ways that ALPA’s founders would not have thought possible.
Together, we’ve transformed the industry’s forensic approach to safety to a data-driven, nonpunitive, risk-predictive model that has made the U.S. and Canadian air transportation systems the safest mode of transportation in the world.
As ALPA looks to our next 90 years, we continue to adamantly support the first officer qualification, training, and experience requirements in the United States that have so clearly helped make flying safe. At the same time, we are working to inspire future generations to join a diverse, equitable, and inclusive pilot workforce that’s trained for life and more than ready for the future.
On July 27, 2021, our union’s story is our strength. ALPA’s pilots are fulfilling an integral role in driving the global economy while safely transporting passengers and cargo to connect the world.