During yesterday's General Assembly of the European Cockpit Association – representing 35.000 professional pilots in Europe – an unprecedented agreement on pilot representation in Trans National Airlines (TNA) was signed. Through the "TNA Convention" the national ECA Member Associations set out to effectively represent the pilots from all European Trans National Airlines. This will offer a seamless service to pilots irrespective of where their airline company has based them in Europe.

The TNA Convention is a "roadmap" that ECA Member Associations can use to enter into specific cooperation agreements for individual companies that employ and or base their pilots in different European jurisdictions. As a prelude to the signing of the Convention, an agreement was signed on June 30 between some of Europe's largest pilot unions to effectively represent the easyJet pilots across Europe. More such agreements will follow.

ECA President Captain Martin Chalk underlined the importance of the TNA Convention: "The ECA Member Associations and ECA itself are committed to do everything in their power to effectively represent pilots working for Trans National Airlines. In the liberalised European Aviation Market, social laws are still lacking behind while Airlines have the opportunity to stretch out across borders and employ and base pilots in several countries. We will not stand by and do nothing where 'determined' employers have the possibility to split the pilot voice and play pilot groups of against each other. All of us are committed to foster social rights and quality employment for pilots in Europe. This TNA Convention makes a strong contribution to that cause."

See Press Release (PDF)