Awesome! Thanks for providing it.
This isn’t secret information. Operating handbooks and procedures are commonly made public, even in private industry. It would not be hard to get similar documentation for an airline. I’m sure it was a hassle to get this info, but not because the government was reluctant to release it. The hassle was waiting the time it takes for everything to be approved for release.
I'm a little surprised the guide was released in it's entirety... I would think they'd have an interest in keeping some of the security information confidential.
I'm also surprised that they did not black out some of the information. Such as the phone numbers in chapter 13. Some of those are public numbers, but others are dispatch, division & OBS desks, managers, crew bases, the Administrative Assistant for the legal department. Yes, someone could probably find many of these numbers with a search, but it puts all of these phone numbers in one place which might lead to crank or angry phone calls that should be handled by the public help number.
Sure, there is information in any organization that is sensitive and confidential. But, that information is not usually published in standard operating procedure handbooks, which is what this document is. Now, things such as security bulletins or Amtrak Police directives would be detrimental if released publicly, but still would qualify for release once sensitive information has been redacted.
George B makes a good point about not flogging the crew members with the rule book. Policy manuals are not static documents and change over time. All the crew member has to say is the policy has changed, truth or not.
The airline that I worked for required ALL employees in all departments to periodically sign a confidentiality and business ethics agreement. I was in passenger services, and our company which was in intense and fierce competition with other carriers considered things that outsiders might consider mundane, to be confidential.
That's the difference between working in private industry and in a government corporation covered by the FOIA.
I agree. But, very little that goes on inside the cabin is considered confidential information. The comment that all employees are now required to sign confidentiality agreements I guess doesn’t surprise me, as I see how flight crews can be routinely exposed to “trade secrets” doing ground work . A reservation system, route planning, fare structure, maintenance schedules, supply control and distribution, and other resource management procedures are proprietary, but how the flight crew operates the aircraft, or how the cabin crew attends to their responsibilities are not confidential. I can get a flight manual for every aircraft an airline operates, and each airline does write their own flight manuals. Aircraft operating procedures have to be on file with the FAA.
