Cargolux Hotel Committee

In response to the letters sent to Senior Management on 21 January and 27 January we were invited to discuss the relevant hotel matters with the CEO on 02 February.

We are happy to announce that we found an agreement that the use of COVID-Escape-Hotels, when certain infection rates are reached, has become an obsolete procedure and that we will be accommodated in our normal contracted hotels in the US. These moves will be organized over the coming weeks and it was agreed that the Hotel Committee will be an integral part in the selection as stipulated in the CWA. We appreciate your patience during the transition period.

Once the moves commence, please provide feedbacks of any shortcomings to cvhotels@alpl.lu so that we can try to resolve these directly with the relevant hotels.

Monitoring of hospital capacity will still be done to determine whether it is safe to stay at the respective destinations or areas. It is our position that it has to be ensured, in case of a crew member falling sick, he/she has to have the possibility to get the necessary medical treatments.

Not all of our contracted hotels will have the level of service that we are used to. Particularly the food outlets might be affected, therefore we agreed with the CEO that, where no breakfast can be offered, a US$25 additional allowance is granted, which would have to be claimed via IQSMS Miscellaneous Expense Report.

There will be no obligation for flight crews to stay in hotel confinement as there are no legal grounds to demand this by an employer. However, depending on current infection rates the company might recommend staying within the confinements of the crew hotel for crew protection and business continuity.

We would also like to remind all members to be vigilant about possible COVID infections: Please apply all known COVID precautions including social distancing, wearing of PPE and hygene. Apart from the associated personal risks it would be counterproductive to suffer a spike in infections prooving our approach wrong, where we suggest accepting higher area infection rates but stay in familiar, affluent surroundings in our suitable hotels.

We would like to conclude in thanking our members, for their support and feedback. Filing reports and providing us with the copies enabled us to challenge the shortcommings and to have Senior Management reconsider the abovementioned procedure.

We would hereby like to inform you that the latest hotel changes in ATL, DFW and IAH were done without the consent of the hotel committee. It is very likely that one or more of the mandatory aspects, particularly regarding noise insulation and permanent access to proper nutrition are not met.
 
For any deficiency please file the applicable reports and provide a copy to cvhotels@alpl.lu.
 
As already frequently communicated by the ALPL Divisional Board, please carefully evaluate your fitness to responsibly operate an aircraft if the quality of your rest period is insufficient due to degraded hotel standards.
 
The current list of hotels that were unilatrerally selected and are either not checked or that are seen as unsuitable by the hotel committee are:
 
ATL: Hilton Airport
DFW: Grand Hyatt DFW Airport
IAH: Sheraton North Houston Airport Hotel
JFK: Andaz Hotel
LAX: Hyatt Regency Westlake
MIA: Intercontinental at Doral
SEA: Hyatt Regency Lake Washington

Below you will find a short update on hotels at various destinations.

ANC
The feedbacks that we receive from the crews on the Alyeska resort Girdwood remain mainly positive. The challenge remains nutrition. We have discussed this issue with management and in order to avoid any confusion we would like to summarize what has been agreed on.

If there are any discrepancies to the below mentioned agreements, please file a VR and send a copy to cvhotels@alpl.lu

We have brought up the issue of the high and additional cost of delivery fees if a pilot decides to have breakfast as room service. Senior Management has agreed that they will absorb this fee. The daily allowance that was offered whilst at the Sheraton has nottransferred to Alyeska.

Senior Management has agreed that every crew member arriving at the hotel will receive a snack box to help crew members through the local night hours when there are no possibilities to obtain any nutrition. Furthermore, the food boxes in the hotel, prepared for the early departures should contain an additional bagel.

The combination of these measures should mitigate the nutrition issues to an acceptable level.

As always, for any shortcomings at this or any destination please file a Voyage Report. This is the only way we are able to correct any deficiencies.

One remaining potential problem could be the reception´s inflexibility to issue additional breakfast vouchers in case of a delay.

LAX
Due to rising COVID numbers in the area management has decided to move crews to a different county with lower infection rates. The hotel that was chosen will be the Hyatt Regency Westlake in Ventura county. The hotel committee again did not have the chance to inspect the hotel for suitability, therefore we have to ask you again for thorough feedback as soon as layovers commence there. This will enable us to help organize any improvements regarding any deficiencies in that hotel or indicate to us the urgency to find a suitable alternative accommodation if the hotel turns out to be unacceptable.

JFK
We received reports about the reception not being staffed during night hours. As we check in and out during all times of the day it is important that this is possible without delays. Please report any such occurrences so that it can be addressed properly.

DXB
When this Hotel Committee update was published initially on 14 December 2020 we stated that the requirement to stay in the hotel in DWC during a layover was lifted.

Despite having sought clarification and asked various sources to clarify that status, we received conflicting information in this context and our statement was wrong.

Meanwhile, it has been confirmed by the responsible authorities that for crew members indeed it is still required to stay within the premises of the hotel in DWC whilst on a layover.

Thanks again for your support, the copy of reports and feedbacks that we have received so far. This helps us to identify the most urgent problems requiring our attention and it gives us adequate reasoning when addressing these items with management.

In this edition of the Hotel Committee members update we would mainly like to write about the latest developments in ANC.

Many of you have noticed a hotel change in  ANC and approached us with questions of why we moved to the Alyeska resort. Unfortunately and once again we were not consulted and therefore we were not able to provide you with any details. The CPO sent out their update on the change on 12 November 2020 with details of the hotel and what is available.
 
Pilot Representatives meet regularly with management on the current situation of changes due to COVID. In previous meetings we have requested to be informed as soon as possible to look for alternative areas with suitable hotels, when hotspots are appearing whereby the trigger points will require a change at a destination. This will ensure that facilities for proper rest and nutrition are met.
 
In the last COVID meeting, on 13 November 2020, the need to maintain the collaboration was once again restated to Senior Management, as the Hotel Committee was not consulted and as we will likely require further temporary hotel changes with the number of coronavirus cases in the US is increasing.

Regarding the hotel itself, our research shows that Alyeska resort is remotely located above the town of Girdwood. However, it is attached to the valley station of the Alyeska ski area. With the ski season expected to open in mid-December this may attract numerous guests that will likely populate the hotel and its restaurants. 
 
We understand the need to ensure the safety and health of our colleagues, nevertheless consulting the Hotel Committee as stipulated in the CWA and the Hotel and Procurement Policy must be maintained in all circumstances.

The information from the CPO and what was discussed on 13 November 2020 indicates that nutrition would be available 24/7.

Therefore we have to ask you, the members, again for your feedback regarding the quality of the hotel and whether the minimum required standards can be achieved (with the priority of cleanliness, quietness and permanent access to nutrition). In particular we would like to know what the quality of the room service is like and the food boxed items that will be made available between 21.00h – 07.00h. 
 
As we understand, there is a local doctors office in town, but the real medical facilities are still located in Anchorage which would require a transport downtown. We will research what medical services are available. 
 
Apparently, this hotel has been used in the past when we had an overflow of flights and our normal hotel was not able to accommodate us. We would like to hear from pilots who had stayed there and their thoughts.
 
ALL standards have to be well met.
 
Please file the respective Voyage Reports about any deficiencies (pictures help) and forward a copy to cvhotels@alpl.lu
  
Rest of the US
You may be aware that the number of COVID cases is dramatically increasing in the US. The following destinations are being reviewed: ORD, DFW, HSV and LCK.
 
The good news is, that the Voyage Reports you filed do make a difference. The company is about to finish signing a contract with the Hilton hotel in LCK (Columbus). This move should fix most of the noise problems that crews reported so far. Unfortunately, another change might become necessary with the above-mentioned rise in COVID numbers.
 
Once we have discussed all of these hotspots and Senior Management wishes to continue layovers there, however, we will look at what areas are suitable to possibly make a hotel change. We appreciate suggestions from your side.

Thanks a lot for your support!

We would like to follow up on the latest changes in our hotel network sharing the implications of recent changes and provide some background information. 
 
Once again, we would like to thank all the colleagues who helped us with their reports bringing deficiencies to our attention and to provide feedback (both positive and negative) to changes made regarding our accommodation. These are a valuable contribution to our work particularly as we don´t always get the opportunities to suggest hotels to the company before a move is decided.
 
There are regular meetings with Senior Management to assess where the next COVID risks are, and these are held at least two weeks before moves are made. We are still expecting that we are part of the process to suggest all hotels in a collaborative approach predominantly because we are the end users of hotels.
 
Nutrition has been a real concern at many of the hotels. Location of hotels is therefore important where restaurants are open, even for pick up or delivery service. 
 
Please continue to provide reports on hotels and meal deficiencies via a Voyage Report on iQSMS as this information is passed on to Senior Management at regular COVID meetings to make the remedial changes. 
 
USA General
Due to the ongoing COVID crisis in parts of the US and the associated risks, Flight Operations Management has had to react in such a dynamic situation. This includes the suspension of layovers in certain destinations or, when risks are acceptable in certain states, to relocate hotel accommodation to safer areas such as in Texas. Many hotels still have limited inhouse restaurant facilities especially for breakfast where we see substandard quantity and quality.
 
IAH
The Westin Woodlands hotel in Montgomery County was selected without the consent of the hotel committee, however, after having checked it and after having received positive feedback from numerous flight crews the hotel committee has agreed to this temporary accommodation. The breakfast was far below what is considered a minimum nutrition value and once advising management the hotel will provide inhouse room dining between 07.00 and 09.00 local time.
 
DFW
The Embassy Suites in Denton was also unilaterally selected by the company without consulting the Hotel Committee. We are particularly concerned about the lack of (proper) nutrition as the restaurants in walking distance are fast food restaurants only. We would appreciate feedback from the crews whether the hotel and its surroundings are acceptable or not. As usual, please file a Voyage Report and send a copy to cvhotels@alpl.lu
 
HKG
Just as we were about to publish this update indicating that HKG layovers were being avoided, there has been a change. We are still determining what the situation will be at the hotel nominated by the authorities. As you will have noticed this is now the third destination where in room confinement is now mandated. Again any updated reports on the hotel would be appreciated.
 
BKK
It is very unfortunate that at this time the restrictions have been further tightened. We are still forced to stay at the Novotel airport hotel. The permission to leave the room and to visit the courtyard Thai Garden to alleviate total isolation in room confinements has been revoked.
 
We have to self-quarantine in the room and are not allowed to leave it unless it is for the next flight duty. Smokers can, however, request a smoking room. We would appreciate reports on quality of room service if it has changed. 
 
ICN
We are glad to announce that we will change hotels and return to the JW Marriott in the near future. We would like to take this opportunity to thank all colleagues who filed numerous reports to ensure that the CWA non compliances of the previous hotel accommodation could be challenged.
 
MEX
While we are happy to have returned to the Hyatt hotel, we unfortunately received reports about an unsatisfactory breakfast situation. The buffet is closed and instead crew members were only allowed to consume up to 400 Pesos (US$18) on the a la carte breakfast, which was not sufficient. 
 
We addressed this with management, and this has now been rectified with the following breakfast: “freshly squeezed orange, grapefruit or green juice or sliced fruit with plain yogurt, two eggs any style with hash brown and protein of your choice: turkey ham, bacon or country sausages, freshly baked pastries from “Amado” (two pieces) or whole wheat or white toast (two slices) American Coffee or tea”.
 
HSV
On 2 August we commenced flights to Huntsville. The hotel is the Westin Huntsville and is located in an area with plenty of restaurants that are open for business. As per the Hotel Policy two other hotels were also viewed so that tenders can be requested for a permanent contract. The Westin will be maintained for three months and has the following benefits:
 
Breakfast is open 07.00 to 09.00 local time and has an a la carte menu where a coupon is provided at check in. Currently no room service is available, however the restaurant is open in the evenings.

With this newsletter, we would like to give you a little overview of the Voyage Reports on Hotel deficiencies you sent us over the year 2019 and show you the statistic that highlights some of the events and trends we picked up.

A staggering amount of 77 Voyage Reports was received as pdf-copies and we would like to thank you for not only sharing your reports with us, the Hotel Committee, but also taking the effort to put it into writing. This allows us to follow up with Senior Management on deficiencies, unsuitable hotels and directly getting in contact with hotel management, even if that station received a single report over the entire year!

40 reports were directly related to “Crew Rest Disturbance”, where some of them are simply the consequence to no updated bookings and the common calls from housekeeping/reception to check on the booking status with the crew member directly. Unfortunately, not all Voyage Reports are being properly investigated as they don’t always end up with the right department. Crew rest disturbances has also been brought up at the FSAG when you have filed ASRs after having delayed a flight.

Your reports are well received and enable us to show the trends and highlights to Senior Management, address omissions to OM-A/CWA requirements and provide proof to flawed bookings procedures etc. It also highlighted to the company that certain hotels were well below standard (e.g. GIG airport hotel) thus enabling us to address the issues with them and to subsequently move to approved and inspected hotels by the Hotel Committee like in Almaty, New York, Seoul and of course Anchorage. In Columbus our recommended hotel was disregarded and we were forced to move to the current hotel that still receives Voyage Reports.

Below we broke down a few highlights in more details such as:

ANCHORAGE
The highlight and biggest issue in the last year was quite obviously the Anchorage Hilton with 26 reports alone and these reports were received within roughly 3 months! We sometimes received multimedia attachments to demonstrate the unacceptable outside noise level, got shown pictures of technical deficiencies in bathrooms, broken window handles and frames etc.

Various reasons led to this spike and in summary we can say that the vast amount of reports could have been avoided if we had either been able to stay at the Marriott or if we had been able to move quicker to the Sheraton. Unfortunately, the Marriott canceled the contract with Cargolux and forced us to the Hilton, were unfortunately the agreed renovated rooms were not always reserved for us as initially agreed by the hotel.

HONG KONG
The reports we received for Hong Kong were only related to the airport hotels booked during the social unrest, the Regal and the Marriott. After being consulted again for the recent and temporary move to the airport, the Marriott SkyCity was selected. We clearly communicated to Senior Management our concerns due to the previous Voyage Reports we received, mostly related to aircraft and construction noise next door. We recommended the Novotel Hong Kong Citygate in Tung Chung, which was inspected by us in October 2019 with enough proximity to the airport and the Citygate Outlets in walking distance, with its many food and shopping options as well as the adjacent MTR station. The argument against it was, that social distancing in the Novotel Crew transport could not be guaranteed. 

INCHEON
The move from the JW Marriott was only supposed to be a temporary measure whilst the hotel underwent renovations. We were never consulted nor allowed to provide suitable alternatives whilst the renovations took place, and we were forced to move to the Sheraton. Most complaints were related to the inability to control the room temperature and noise complaints. We hope to have a suitable alternative soon that we are actively working on. 

LUXEMBOURG
During B2B operation we had seen a few cases were crews were booked in a B&B style hotel in Trier-Igel which was neither inspected nor would have ever been approved by us, as it was not fulfilling the basic requirements. In one case, a crew member had to report unfit for duty due to the inability to blackout the light. Similar cases were reported in the NH, which was used quite often on B2B operations, where the complaints mostly related to the lack of temperature control.

SUMMARY
Many deficiencies occur when suitable hotels are not selected. This occurs as costs are the determining factor. The same cost cutting approach has caused cancellations of contracts by hotel managements at various destinations.

The detailed items show in the statistic, that your single report is vital in order for us to act and address issues with Senior Management and with hotels directly. The statistic also reveals the weakness of Cargolux’s booking system and process, mainly for Area 1 (North America), as the majority of Voyage Reports are addressing issues in the US (47). These issues are mostly linked to delays and schedule changes, that are not updated or being unnoticed due to the non-existing 24/7 coverage of A1 travel office.

As long as these issues are not eliminated, we still expect “Crew Rest Disturbances”, “No Bookings upon Arrival” to be happening in the future and we therefore would like to emphasize again every one of you to be vigilant and keep us sending your Voyage Reports, also during COVID-19 operations and social unrest. We have to maintain our minimum hotel standards, our first gate to maintain flight safety!

Stay safe and keep reporting!

Please find below another update on the current situation of our hotels.

CWB
As explained in the last ALPL Members Update in May, due to the increase in COVID-19 cases in Sao Paolo and Rio, there will be no layovers in VCP. The Hotel Committee was asked what recommended hotel could be used.

We normally stayed at the Pestana Hotel but due to the crisis it is closed. We contacted the Bourbon Curitiba Convention Hotel who advised that they were open for business and would provide breakfast and dinner from their restaurant.

We ask that you please provide any reports to the Hotel Committee at cvhotels@alpl.lu as this decision was done fairly quickly and we have not had a chance to view the hotel.

KUL
The Malaysian Health Ministry has relaxed the lockdown procedures and we have moved out of the Sama Sama airport hotel. Our normal hotel JW Marriott is still closed due to the crisis and they have arranged to move crew layovers at their partner hotel Ritz Carlton.

We were advised that breakfast may be available, but we need some feedback on what is the current situation.

SIN/BKK
The lockdown continues in these two cities. We are advised that SIN will continue the lockdown as late as September 2020. BKK has not indicated any timeline at this point in time.

Senior Management has agreed that when layovers in SIN are 2 nights/3 days a suite will be booked for those layovers to alleviate the harsh lockdown procedures imposed by the local authorities.

HKG
The recent events from the Chinese central government on new legislation that may be imposed on HKG has restarted the demonstrations in HKG. We ask that you pay attention what areas you venture into. Please ask the front desk or concierge what information they have on where the demonstrations may occur and avoid them.

On days where the demonstrations may hinder the area towards Kowloon (TST), we have recommended that the Novotel Tung Chung near the airport should be used for layovers.

Conclusions
If there are any deficiencies or recommendations, you would like us to address please send an email to cvhotels@alpl.lu

We regularly update the document of our current hotels for your information. Please click here to have a look.

The Hotel Committee will now have its own dedicated newsletter on the current situation of our hotels.

At Cargolux it has been calculated that we spend up to 75 days (calculated in hours) away from our family and friends per year that a “normal 9 to 5” employee has. Moreover, as has been communicated by the ALPL Board, the quality of hotels must meet the requirements so that we as pilots are able to obtain the best possible rest to conduct our duties safely and that appropriate nutrition is readily available. Therefore, the standards (link) of our hotels must be maintained.

ORD
The recent situation in ORD at the Courtyard Wood Dale, is an example, where neither we as Hotel Committee nor any ALPL Board Member or Delegate were involved in making the decision  which failed miserably. Senior Management informed us at 16.00h on Tuesday 05 May 2020 that due to the COVID risk in the Cook County we were to move from Chicago downtown. We asked to hold off until we could find a suitable alternative. At 21.40h on the same evening the Chief Pilot was asked by Senior Management to send the information that we were moving.

The information that Senior Management provided to the CPO was also inconsistent stating that it was in a residential area and had a mini mart. The fact was that the hotel is located in an industrial area, the mini mart is nothing more than a shelf of crisps, chocolate bars and sodas, nothing close to nutrition and there are no nearby places to obtain any food. The noise from departing aircraft from O’Hare and other factors forced a crew to delay the flight due to not being able to obtain adequate sleep before the wakeup call. Nearly every crew that has had a layover there has written a Voyage Report.

We are pleased to announce that once we took the lead in obtaining a suitable accommodation we will move to the Marriott Naperville (link). We would like to thank a crew who visited the hotel and with our guidance checked all the standards required. Certainly, in these times some items will not be up and running but we have provided a copy of nearby walking distance restaurants (link) of what is available with regard to nutrition.

OVB
This destination has become a hub as Cargolux is shuttling back and forth from Mainland China. There have been reports that social distancing is not being respected. We approached the manager at the hotel, who is grateful to have us there as only cargo crews are keeping it open, to further create a space to enable more social distancing on the 10^th Floor. We believe that this will help, and we ask that you please respect each other.

The manger has had to furlough some of his staff and the remaining have had to take a salary cut. We have created a ‘tip’ box. If you can find a way to support these staff who provide us with all services to make our stay safe, it is for sure appreciated.

SIN
The lockdown continues due to the local health authorities’ requirements. After Senior Management was informed by us that this could potentially have problems with crew being confined in rooms for long periods of time, they agreed to book suites. Unfortunately, we recently found out via your reports that the suites are only available for stays of three (3) nights or longer. We ask what is the difference between 2 nights or 3 nights? We also pointed out that the breakfast allowance also does not adequately meet a minimum nutritional level. We suggested to allocate suites for a duration of 2 nights and longer and we stipulated the allowance (currently SIN $20) to be cumulative. Managements answer is still pending.

Armchair decision making has clearly demonstrated that hotel standards are not provided for. It is vitally important that the standards of hotels are maintained. This can only be achieved with your assistance/support together with the Hotel Committee to select and maintain the most suitable hotel without costs being the determining factor.

Voyage Reports are important, without them, Senior Management will only advise us that there is no problem! Remember to forward your reports to the Hotel Committee.

Please view the document (link) that we have prepared to give you updates on all our current destinations. If there are any omissions or errors, please email them to cvhotels@alpl.lu

Thank you to all of you who are filing the Voyage Reports (VR) on the deficiencies in some of the hotels we are currently staying at. As the Hotel Committee we estimate that 80% of all VR are directly dealing with hotel issues. This is quite an alarming statistic as 3 years ago we might have received one or 2 a month. Sadly, the reasons for the increase is self-evident; The company no longer grants the Hotel Committee members the responsibility to ensure hotels are up to the required standard. Instead, management look at this as a cost item and not as a vital link of the “Safety Chain” that allows us to do our jobs correctly.

Hotels are an intricate part of ensuring we as pilots are well rested before duties. The important components of being rested are being able to control the temperature, lighting and that the noise is managed so that sleep is not disturbed. Other elements such as security and access to nutrition are also part of choosing hotels.

Please click here to see the full list of criteria, which now also is part of the CWA 2020-2022 and must be respected by the company when selecting hotels. If you observe any deficiencies  according to this list, please file a VR. 

In the Secure Content Locker of our iPads, Section 7, the Station Information of approved hotels should have been updated with the hotel benefits. In our regular meetings with management the Hotel Committee has urged that this data is up to date. If you see deficiencies/errors or omissions, please file a VR.

Generally, you will see that there a very few hotels situated at or in the vicinity of airports for one very obvious reason, noise. Exceptions are due to security reasons e.g. currently in HKG. If you are confronted with a last-minute change and sent to an airport hotel, please enforce the guidelines and politely ask to be taken to our normal hotel or a similar standard away from the airport.

The company has also tried to move crews to new hotels in a couple of destinations like KUL without any consultation of the Hotel Committee, which in our opinion is a violation of the Hotel Policy and also has been communicated to management as such. The Hotel Committee is currently trying to remedy these errors to ensure the hotels are up to standard.

As already communicated by your ALPL Cargolux Divisional Board, always apply a very high and professional standard when determining your capability to safely operate your next duty or series of duties!  A high quality of rest in our hotels definitely is a prerequisite for that! 

Again, if there are any deficiencies please send a VR via the iQSMS and also send a copy to cvhotels@alpl.lu. We as Hotel Committee cannot track problematic issues or make changes at hotels without having knowledge of your report. Thank you for your cooperation!

Please click here to read about updates in regard to some of our hotels.

First of all, we would like to thank all the members for taking the time to write the Voyage Reports (VR) highlighting the deficiencies at some of our current hotels. These reports are highly valuable as they provide us with evidence data when approaching both management and the individual hotels.

To further expand on issues you may have encountered, such as food poisoning, disturbances, room issues etc. that affect you, please notify the relevant hotel manager, be polite in your approach and follow it up with a VR, providing a copy to the Hotel Committee (HC). It is very difficult to address certain issues dating back by 3 months after the complaint!

As ANC is one our more frequently visited destinations you may have noticed the change to the Hilton hotel. The contract at the Marriott had been cancelled at short notice and we are currently investigating the main reason for this abrupt decision. Unfortunately, the Hilton is not providing us with the suitable rooms and many complaints are being filed. Cargolux management have been assessing the situation and we are waiting for a response to their visit with a prompt improvement in service.

We are still working on a few other hotels accumulating a higher than normal number of complaints, ICN being one of them. Although adequate offers from competitive hotels have been forwarded to management, they still do not see a reason to move us back to our old hotel the JW Marriott due to costs.

One of the arguments heard repeatedly is that a hotel “satisfies the hotel policy”. Therefore, it is important that if you write a voyage report you should always ask yourself, if this is really the case. Following the wording of an in-house policy is a required, but by far not sufficient prerequisite for selecting a suitable crew-accommodation. We should never forget the aim that any hotel-selection, anywhere, needs to provide an undisturbed pre- and postflight rest. Any other aspect such as budget or location are of secondary importance. We will elaborate later in this text on how to react when facing grievances.

LCK; we have been informed that a move is imminent, but management´s definition of imminent seems sometimes different from ours.

ALA; we are pleased to announce that a new contract has been signed with the Intercontinental, which some of you will remember.

JFK; rumors of closure are still floating around, but we have been assured that a suitable vendor for the property has not yet been found. Therefore, a short-term change seems to be unlikely, however we continue to assess this situation.

CGK is a new destination on our network with one frequency per week. The hotel committee has looked at the Shangri-La in town, which meets all the requirements including security. It was the intention that the hotel will be assessed for three months, but despite all the preparatory work unfortunately for the time being still the Mercure hotel is being planned. We will continue to work with management to ensure that the Shangri-La will be booked in the future.

There is still an issue where crews are not informed of hotels changes in a timely fashion as it used to be a few years ago. We have requested an improved communication procedure between Procurement Department and Flt Ops Management in order to avoid surprises and disruption to crew rest. We await an outcome to their meeting.

We continue to address hotel issues with our management, but this is only possible with you taking the time to write a VR and copying in cvhotels@alpl.lu in order for us to monitor any negative trends. 

As mentioned above, hotels have to be suitable, so that we as crew members are able to obtain undisturbed rest (meaning a quiet part of the hotel), where we can control the temperature and lighting. Should this not be the case a room change must be requested. Please explain to the hotel management in a polite way that you as a crew member are responsible to be fit for duty and if proper rest is not achieved, one consequence may be to delay the flight until such time as the required rest is achieved.

This is the first update since we asked our members to join the Hotel Committee to actively support those who are already part of it. We would like to thank the following new members joining David Wainwright and George Karambilas in their effort to improve and maintain the quality of hotels:

• Tim Garnich
• Jochen Ehrenfeld
• Jonas Hindersin
• Ingo Schuster
• Tobias Woll