Cargolux Hotel Committee

As we bring 2024 to a close, it is a good  opportunity  to reflect on the progress and achievements we’ve made together in the Cargolux Hotel and Catering Committee. 

This year has been filled with hard work, fruitful discussions  and here are some highlights we are happy  to share:

Hotels

• We successfully renewed contracts in key stations: HKG, MEX, SGN, ICN, MIA, GYD, ASB and JFK.
• ATL: Transitioned to the JW Marriott Buckhead (at the mall) with positive feedback.
• HAN: Effective 1st JAN 2025  move to Intercontinental Westlake, a familiar and affluent area closer to downtown.
• ORD: Moving to the Sheraton Riverwalk (close to Magnificient mile) in March 2025, hopefully mitigating the numerous noise reports we received at the Omni Hotel.
• SEA: After decades at the Westin, it has been decided that a move to the Intercontinental in Bellevue is necessary for security reasons, effective 1st of March 2025
• Improvements were noted in LAX, where tweaks such as adding the choice between Avocado Toast and Omelette at breakfast have made a positive impact.

Catering
In general we appreciate the fact that our Hotel Committee had the chance to expand on the Catering topic, getting involved and having opportunities for recommendations.

The recent catering survey showed an improvement in catering satisfaction from 6.8 to 8.0. The next survey is planned for summer 2025 and will continue annually thereafter.

Ultimately we are convinced that the start of the envisaged Catering App would currently be the best solution to improve the experience while reducing waste (and costs). We are cautiously optimistic that delays  due to prioritized IT projects can be resolved.

Some of the current developements are:

• LUX: Pilots will now receive individual 300g sliced fruit boxes, instead of one common box to share. The new salads so far have been received very well, according to the first feedbacks received. Progress is being made with reusable cutlery and mugs, which have been approved by Excom. Crews will receive their first set complimentary. We will look into solutions to add those items preferably into the Crew Uniform Shop, should a replacement become necessary.
• HKG:  Meetings with a potential new catering supplier are still work in progress and are planned to take place now in Q1 of 2025.  

Collaborative Efforts
We jointly managed to further improve our work relationship with Travel Services, where Peter and Jannick showed lots of understanding for our needs and successfully forwarded and represented our inputs at higher levels. 

We managed to find acceptable solutions through honesty, transparency and consideration. 
We appreciate the fact that joint agreements are sought at all times.

We are also grateful for your, our members, continued input and support. This helps us to phrase the right recommendations and a positive feedback motivates us as well.

As we look ahead to 2025, we remain committed to enhancing the experience for all of you.

Wishing you a Merry Christmas and a successful year 2025 ahead!

In this short update we particularly have one very important topic.

After more than 5 years of service in the Hotel Committee our dear friend and colleague Jochen Ehrenfeld decided to leave Cargolux and as such also our Hotel Committee. 

Although we understand and support Jochen‘s right for pursuit of happiness we are sad to have to let him go. For sure we’ll miss our teamwork, occasional passionate discussions and his persistent strive to keep our Dropbox files nice and tidy.

All the best Jochen! We‘ll stay in touch!

We would also like to officially welcome Oliver Eichhorst as a new member of the Hotel Committee who joined us in June and already had the chance to support us by performing several hotel inspections. 

Current HC composition:

• Ingo Schuster (Chairman)
• Tobias Woll
• Jonas Hindersin
• Marcel Knapp
• Gil Jacobs
• Arnout Seynaeve
• Gerald Hulpiau
• Oliver Eichhorst
• Max Bellotto (ICV)
   

We remain committed to ensuring that adequate accommodation continues to be provided.

If you encounter any deficiencies or want to give other feedback, please file a Voyage Report and consider sending a copy to cvhotels@alpl.lu.

Despite announcing that there won’t be a Hotel Committee Members Update in August, we are pleased to share some good news:

For SIN, we will move back to the Pan Pacific Hotel. 
For DFW, we will move to the Westin Galleria Hotel.

Both contracts will commence in September, and we sincerely hope these changes are well-received.

We would like to extend our sincere thanks to Travel Services and Jannick in particular, for their dedicated efforts in reestablishing a working relationship with the Pan Pacific Hotel following the unfortunate cancellation of our contract last year.

As usual, please provide your feedback and forward your reports to cvhotels@alpl.lu.

We are pleased to provide you with the latest update from the Hotel Committee.

JFK

In order to follow the Procurement and Hotel Policy we have reviewed five hotel options in Manhattan for our stays in JFK. After careful consideration and discussions with the company, it was decided to continue staying at the Intercontinental near Times Square. This decision ensures continuity and comfort for our crew members.

There are currently some more requirements for tenders upcoming, like DFW and ORD. Further stations like NLU, GDL and SEA will follow. We would like to emphasize the fact that even when there are no communicated hotel changes it doesn’t mean that your Hotel Committee doesn’t put effort and work into our mutual objective to ensure suitable accommodation.

CGK

Due to the upcoming elections, the current Orange Security Level would normally mandate an airport hotel. Despite of this fact, the company agreed to a move to a better hotel, considering the excellent security measures in place. Starting August, we will be staying at the Shangri-La. Please remain aware of security concerns and exercise caution during your stay. We are confident that the move is well received.

Catering

HKG 

We have received several reports regarding the lack of variety and quality issues with the catering in Hong Kong. A tasting session with a local provider is envisaged after the summer to offer a different variety of dishes and find some alternatives. Until then, it is the objective to limit uplifts ex HKG when feasible. As a temporary measure we will utilize catering from NRT, HAN and SGN, which have all been appreciated so far.

CGO

Due to a high number of occurrences of low catering quality ex CGO it was decided for the time being to try to avoid uplifts at CGO whenever possible. Instead, uplifts are planned to occur in GYD and ASB, respecting storage limitations. Please note in that context that GYD catering has already been improved as well. 

More stations are under review and will be tackled step by step.

Travel Services

We are pleased to announce that more airlines have been added to MyID Travel. We extend our gratitude to the Travel Services team for their dedication and efforts.

What else to expect

Uber Business is planned to become available in LUX for crews on duty.

Reusable cutlery and branded coffee mugs will be purchased and distributed to all flight crew members to reduce waste and unnecessary catering costs.

Please note, there will be no members update in August. We look forward to continuing our work in September serving the pilot community to ensure adequate accommodation and more catering improvements.

As always, please send copies of your Voyage Reports to cvhotels@alpl.lu.

The Hotel Committee would like to share the following information:

General
In the last CPO update, Travel Services as well as the Hotel Committee were thanked for their efforts and collaboration, which was well received. 

We would like to take the opportunity to also express our appreciation for the cooperation and efforts undertaken by Travel Services and CPO to ensure adequate accommodation is provided and catering standards are improved.

Furthermore we see improvements and efforts undertaken in respect to our travel rights. DWC has lifted most of their restrictions allowing us to travel to and through Dubai now. Unfortunately, for the time being the CAO restriction still applies. Also, flights between DWC and China and to the US are not possible. In addition to that, Travel Services is also working on improving My-ID travel. The latest improvement was to also allow Travel Partners. Further details can be found on the Cargolux Intranet page.

Having a mutual understanding of each other’s needs and a transparent process to find viable solutions contributes to a trustful and efficient relationship. As we see this as a success story we hope to be able to expand this way of collaboration to other areas within the company for the benefit of all of us. 

Breakfast in the US
We are aware of the fact that having an adequate breakfast can be a challenge in various stations in the US. We apologize for the inconvenience and rest assured that we try to resolve the deficiencies as soon as they surface with the help of travel services. Unfortunately some hotels keep changing their procedures without notice which makes it important that you notify us via a copy of your filed Voyage Report whenever you experience such a deficiency.

LAX
So far we received mainly positive feedback on the move to Marina del Rey, however, one justified aspect of criticism was an insufficient quality of the breakfast buffet. We are happy to inform you that as of now you should receive a breakfast voucher, which, in addition to the provided buffet, entitles you to have an Omelette, one fresh Orange Juice and a fruit bowl. We hope that this helps to mitigate the reported short comming.

UBER green
As already published in the CPO update from 10APR2024 it was requested to use „UBER green“. The Hotel Committee would like to promote the idea and encourage you to use it whenever the potential additional waiting times are acceptable to you.

Although it might seem exaggerated, sustainability is an increasing requirement and as the percentage of carbon free transfers is registered, it comes with a positive impact.

We also made an enquiry regarding potential insufficient accident insurance by Uber. We received the response that Cargolux has it’s own accident insurance for employees on duty thus providing the full coverage.

Meanwhile please provide us with feedback and copies of your reports to cvcatering@alpl.lu and cvhotels@alpl.lu.

We would like to share some updates on:

Catering
We are happy to announce that Cargolux Senior Management has approved the purchase of a Catering App! This App will allow us to individually order meals and set preferences before flights. Once implemented we will start to use it ex LUX.

We were also able to change the catering provider in CGO to increase food quality. Catering was tested and reviewed in LUX resulting in bigger hot meals with different variety. The lids on the hot meals can be used in our ovens and are heat certified. They are made of a biodegradable material and not plastic. We hope that you perceive those changes as an improvement and if you feel to send us your feedback, please include the meal no. in the Voyage Report.

The current onboard catering expiry time of 18 hours triggered some unnecessary catering uplifts on stations with poor food quality. We therefore try to extend the limit to 24 hours after certain conditions are met.

We were also able to convince the company to replace the unpopular bamboo cutlery sets. They will be replaced as soon as the items are out of stock.

Last but not least, we are negotiating with TPE, NRT and GYD station to improve catering quality with more to come. 

In general, we are very happy to have improved the dialogue with our colleagues in the Travel Services Department.  

Hotels
LAX 
Unfortunately, we are facing a change to our well-liked Hotel in Redondo Beach. The new corporate management of the Sonesta has significantly increased the rate for a contract extension/continuation proposal. An attempt for a dialogue and a compromise with the Sonesta hotel management remained unsuccessful.  We were therefore forced to start a new tender process for new hotels starting from of 1^st Jan 2025. 

We surveyed more than 30 hotels, did 5 on-side inspections and recommended to move to the Courtyard Marriott in Marina Del Rey, which we find a very suitable alternative.

Beginning 01MAY 2024, the Courtyard Marina Del Rey confirmed to host us as our new crew hotel including the following benefits exclusively for Cargolux:

• 20% off outlets (excluding bottles of wine)
• Complimentary bike rentals
• 50% discount on Kayaks & SUPs.
• A „water-taxi-shuttle-service“ in the vicinity for 2 USD p.p.,
• A shuttle bus in the vicinity, available via an app and complimentary.

Considering these extensive benefits plus the location we are optimistic that you will appreciate the new hotel and its location in walking distance to Venice Beach.

TPE 
With a similar situation as in LAX, the Hotel Committee had to perform a tender process in TPE, also resulting in a move: As of the 01JUN2024 the Shangri La Hotel is planned to accommodate us. While the direct area around is not as lively as what we are used to in the Grand Hyatt, it is only 20 minutes walking distance away from the familiar area around the Taipei 101. 

CGK 
It is planned to recommence layovers in Jakarta and the Hotel Committee is in a dialogue with Travel Services Department about the hotel selection. The previous Mercure crew hotel was not received very well and therefore we will inform you as soon we have additional info.

In the meantime, we continue to ask you to provide us with feedback and copies of your reports to cvcatering@alpl.lu and cvhotels@alpl.lu.

We would like to share the latest Hotel Committee developments:

Catering
We are happy to let you know that the Hotel Committee adopted the tasks of the temporarily vacant Catering Committee. As our company counterparts organizing the catering are the same colleagues who do Travel and Hotel Procurement it was decided that it makes sense to keep a short communication line on the Pilot Representatives side as well. We are confident to be able to participate in improving the current catering situation in terms of quality and waste in synergy with cost efficiency. 

You can reach us via e-mail to: cvcatering@alpl.lu

Hotel Committee composition
After many years of service in the Hotel Committee, George Karambilas decided to step down as the Hotel Committee chairman. The rest of the Hotel Committee would like to thank George for his dedication in the committee work, his knowledge and experience in the diversified internal and external tasks required as a Hotel Committee member and last but not least for his patience with us. 

Furthermore, we are happy to announce that, in our effort to strengthen our relationship with our colleagues from Cargolux Italia, Massimilano (Max) Bellotto from ICV joined the Hotel Committee. Max will help us in our Committee work to ensure that adequate accommodation is continuously provided.

Current members working on the Hotel and Catering Committee and serving to ensure we all enjoy a suitable accommodation enroute are:

Ingo Schuster (Chairman)
Jochen Ehrenfeld
Tobias Woll
Jonas Hindersin
Marcel Knapp
Arnout Seynaeve
Gil Jacobs
Gerald Hulpiau
Max Bellotto

If you want to get in touch with us on any related hotel and accommodation issues or you’d like to share copies of your Voyage Reports you can do so via cvhotels@alpl.lu

The Hotel Committee wishes you Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas! 

We are pleased to share the latest hotel developments in our network.

AMM 
After having received a number of complaints regarding the current crew hotel, the „Le Royal“, we inspected some other options and are happy to announce that starting JAN 2024 we will move to the „Rotana“ hotel. In this context we would like to let you know that we deliberately suggested a non-western hotel chain as a risk mitigating strategy against potential terrorist attacks such as the 2005 series of hotel bombings in AMM. Nevertheless we are confident that the location and quality of the „Rotana“ hotel appeals to you.

KWI
Also starting JAN 2024 we will move to the Hilton Garden Inn. The overall quality as well as the location should be an improvement. 

As always we would like to encourage you to send your feedback and copies of any Voyage Reports at any stations to cvhotels@alpl.lu

We would like to give you an update on the latest hotel related developments.

GYD
We are still working on a solution there. Whilst it is our recommendation to move to another hotel, the “Park Hyatt” is putting a lot of effort into mitigating the effects of the construction works that are taking place at this time. Unfortunately, there will be additional renovations inside the hotel building that will follow at the end of this year or at the beginning of next year. With that in mind we are encouraged to go ahead with our recommendation to move at least temporarily. Good alternatives have been inspected and communicated to the Cargolux management.

CWB
We are happy to announce a hotel change from the “Bourbon“ to the “NH hotel“. We are confident that you will perceive the change as an improvement in your rest quality.

SIN
We have been very busy trying to find another crew hotel as the “Pan Pacific” does not want to host our crews any longer despite credible efforts undertaken from Cargolux management to extend the contract.

These facts in mind, the Hotel Committee performed already a number of hotel reviews in the familiar Suntec City area. Some of the inspected hotels had either some deficiencies in our mandatory requirements, others haven’t been interested in hosting us at all.

This short notice termination of contract by the “Pan Pacific” management has forced us to go on a trial period with a non-inspected hotel. For now, crews will be accommodated in “The Pullman“ hotel on Orchard road until we had the chance to set up a proper alternative for Singapore.

Your feedback and suggestions on the new hotel are highly appreciated.

For this or any other hotel related matter, including copies of Voyage Reports the contact is cvhotels@alpl.lu.

The Hotel Committee would like to share the following latest hotel related developments:

BAH 
We are happy to announce that after having received a number of Voyage Reports on the “Intercontinental” hotel the company accepted an alternative suggestion from the Hotel Committee, “The Art Hotel”, as our new crew hotel as of 01 April 2023. 

We are confident that you will be able to enjoy adequate rest in this beach resort, already hosting some other airlines like Lufthansa and KLM.

PEN 
We have been approached by hotel procurement that layover will commence in PEN as of next month. We are currently looking into options for accommodation and appreciate feedback for a preliminary selection until we’ll get the opportunity to perform hotel inspections and to find a final solution.

CGO 
We expect CGO layovers to also starting next month. Already in Pre Covid times our crew hotel had a significant deficiency regarding the functioning of the temperature control resulting in hotel rooms being far too warm. This fact in combination with a significant price increase while at the same time lowering the crew benefits triggered our initiative.

We suggested to use the “Hilton” hotel instead of the “JW Marriott” in the future based on an inspection done in the past. The Hotel Committee would appreciate feedback particularly on whether the temperature control adequately works. 

JNB
We received reports from our members about planned rotations through JNB and NBO.

Regarding JNB, at the time of drafting this member update, there is only a limited amount of layovers planned. Although the Hotel Committee did not inspect the current crew hotel we enquired with our colleagues from Cargolux Italia who are very happy with the accommodation. Please note that the former “Intercontinental” hotel in Sandton was rebranded. The “Sandton Sun”, our current crew hotel, is just across the street from the former “Interconti” and should provide adequate rest.

NBO 
Due to security reasons some airlines currently stay at airport hotels. Because the “Sheraton” hotel at the airport seems inadequate based on reports we received from ICV crews (mainly due to recent low food quality) and due to planned extended layovers (3-4 days flying LUX-JNB-NBO with a double crew) we forwarded this information to the ALPL Board to address the issue with the responsible stakeholder.

In summary it is our position that rest must be adequate and if the security situation is questionable, layovers should be avoided or at least as short as possible.

The Hotel Committee recommends to carefully evaluate the ability to operate an aircraft when rest was inadequate and your ability to safely operate an aircraft is in question, even if it is leading to potential delays or in extreme cases the necessity to position out of a destination. 

Please also, as usual, forward your hotel related reports to cvhotels@alpl.lu