The SWAPA Number

By SWAPABusiness

The SWAPA Number episodes

April 11, 2025 The SWAPA Ride Report: ELITT Direct Drop & Pick Up, MBCBP and more
In this week’s edition, Communications Manager Casey Casteel takes the membership through the latest contract implementation item: ELITT direct drop and pick up and a few highlights for using that new tool.
Casey gives a recap of the latest news on the Market Based Cash Balance Plan, and an update from the settlement of grievance 2024-004. Contract Q&A this week covers several questions concerning LRO vs LCO and future implementation of unscheduled overnights not counting toward the CAP. She wraps up this week’s podcast with questions on trading a reserve-assigned pairing after selecting Release Until Check In and a question about pay for DOT testing at the end of a pairing.
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9 min
March 31, 2025 13 (Safety, Gary Niemann, Craig Jakubowski)
Today's SWAPA Number is 13. That's the number of pilots on staff at SWAPA Safety. This includes investigations, the Aviation Safety Action Program or ASAP and Air Traffic Services to name a few. Safety covers a lot of topics and is at the core of what we do on every flight. So today we're sitting down with SWAPA Safety chair, Gary Niemann and SWAPA investigation specialist, Craig Jakubowski to talk all things flight safety.
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43 min
March 28, 2025 The SWAPA Ride Report: Grievance settlement, more displacements, and Reserve Release Until Check In
In this week’s edition, Multimedia Manager Jason Davis, from the SWAPA Communications staff, discusses the settlement of grievance 2024-004, latest vacancy results and the additional displacements that resulted, and the move up of implementation for 100% Domicile Right of Return (DRR).
Jason also updates the membership on the roll out of Reserve Release Until Check In and the temporary manual work around due to automation difficulties. He closes with a Q&A section from Contract Admin, including questions on deadhead versus must-ride travel, open time trips in Trip Trade/Give Away, and release from deadhead while still on a Reserve duty period.
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8 min
March 17, 2025 1.1% (Profit Sharing, Mike Haynes, Damian Jennette)
Today's SWAPA number is 1.1. That's the percentage of pay that Southwest will distribute in profit sharing from 2024.

So today, we're sitting down to talk with NC member and retirement and benefits subject matter expert Damian Jennette, and 401(k) and investments director Mike Haynes about profit sharing and updates on other items that affect pilot retirement accounts in 2025.
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29 min
March 14, 2025 The SWAPA Ride Report: A Lap Around the Scheduling Pattern
In this week’s scheduling-centric edition, SWAPA Communications staff member Alexis Thomas updates the membership on all things displacements and Domicile Right of Return for the May vacancy. There are a lot of moving parts here, so take a listen to understand the options on the table and continue to reference the Displacement Resources page.
She also gives the membership a status update on Release Until Check In, ELITT enhancements like direct drop and direct pickup, separate bid lines, and the shift in east coast RAPs. The Contract Q&A also has scheduling touches that the most senior captains and junior first officers will likely see.
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9 min
March 03, 2025 18 (The Way Forward, Jody Reven)
Today's SWAPA Number is 18. That's the number of SWAPA presidents that we've had since SWAPA's inception in 1978. So in today's episode, we sat down with SWAPA President, Jody Reven. With the first board meeting of the year in the rear view mirror, and a lot of Company news of late, it's time to look down the road and see what's in store for SWAPA in 2025.
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29 min
February 28, 2025 The SWAPA Ride Report: Displacements Update, FAA Denial Letters Update, and Contract Q&A
In this week’s edition, SWAPA Communications staff member Ella Ziober updates the membership on the displacements that resulted from the April vacancy and important eligibility requirements for having Domicile Right of Return (DRR). There are currently 141 Pilots across the system in both seats who have a DRR.
She also highlights a few points from our Benefits & Aeromedical Committee and Government Affairs Committee, including the recent FAA decision to indefinitely delay the implementation of denial letters for airmen required to submit for information on a medical certificate application. She quickly touches on the first meetings between SWAPA and the Company on its partnership with Icelandair before diving into this week’s top five questions from Contract Admin. This week’s Q&A includes questions about pay on vacation month-to-month overlap, training travel pay, and JA versus an unscheduled overnight. The podcast notes provide links to the relevant sections of the Contract and the Scheduling Handbook for easy reference.
Displacement Resources page
Airline Partnerships - Section 1 video
Section 15.C.7.b.5 - Hotel Accommodations
Section 2.T - Vacation Pay
Scheduling Handbook
Section 2.K.3 - On-line Scheduled Pay
Section 14.E - Vacation Adjustments
Section 9.K.4.m - Monthly Overlap Correction
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10 min
February 14, 2025 The SWAPA Ride Report: BOD Meetings Recap
In this week’s edition, Communications Committee Chair Matt McCants summarizes this week’s Board of Directors meetings. From the Scheduling & Analytics Committee highlights to the Q&A session with Southwest Airlines CEO Bob Jordan, this episode covers all the briefings that your domicile representatives received.
Your Board of Directors will have more details on these briefings, including links to useful resources on the material presented. Be on the lookout for their email!
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12 min
February 10, 2025 86% (APA/SWAPA Communications, Andrea Hoover, Amy Robinson)
Today's SWAPA number is 86%. That's the percentage of pilots who open each email SWAPA sends out to the membership, but that doesn't tell the whole story. There's a lot of data that we gather on the comm channels, and now's a good time to dive into those numbers and what they mean.

Today we're joined by American Airlines Captain Andrea Hoover, Communications chair at the Allied Pilots Association, along with our own Communications director, Amy Robinson, to compare some notes on comm data, talk about what's working, and what we can improve on in 2025.
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34 min
January 31, 2025 The SWAPA Ride Report: Displacement info, Open Time Priority Range, and Contract Admin Q&A
In this week’s edition, Captain Tony Mulhare points to resources for recently displaced pilots that have been produced by the Scheduling Analytics Committee, how to find your Open Time Priority Range in CWA, and newly implemented limitations on RAP changes.
He also covers several high frequency questions fielded by our Contract Admin staff this week on topics including Domicile Right of Return (DRR), POT before Reserve, and the upcoming end of eligibility for paid moves to Nashville.
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8 min

About The SWAPA Number

From the publisher's feed

In each podcast we explore a number that will help us explain an issue that matters to our Pilots. This might be a scheduling metric, a Company financial number that impacts us, or anything else that…