United Airlines Pilots Turn LAX Parking Lot Into 'Ghetto' Where They Sleep Between Flights

By Simone Wilson Wed., May 23 2012 at 12:20 PM

@lindseymastis

View from the ghetto.

While the Tom Bradley Terminal at LAX undergoes a much-Tweeted-about $1.7 billion supermakeover, a sort of slum is forming in the employee parking lots, says a group of pilots from United Airlines.

The pilots claim that their plummeting salaries and benefits have forced them to camp out for weeks at a time in mobile homes that they keep parked in the lot -- an effort "to save time and money so we can get to our jobs."

And Google Maps can attest:

View Larger Map

Welcome to the "LAX ghetto" in Employee Parking Lot E! Only positive looks to be that the famous Proud Bird watering hole is located on the other end of the lot, so pilots can drown memories of their little loved ones waiting at home.

If you want a more intimate peek at the ghetto, an official ghetto tour will take place tomorrow, Thursday, at 11 a.m.

And special for United Airlines management -- who have "drastically increased" their own paychecks amid the pilot furloughs and paycuts, according to an open letter to CEO Jeffery Smisek -- some kindly pilots have "offered to give up their pillow and bed for the evening so that United executives can spend the night."

Dave Kelly, a PIO for the Air Line Pilots Association, says that the group who wrote the open letter (calling themselves "The Unfriendly Skies") is "part of our union."

Makes sense. The union has been at United's throat ever since 9/11, when, ironically, major pay cuts began to roll out. And just last week, ALPA encouraged its members to hold a strike vote after two years of frustrating non-negotiations with management.

Sounds pretty rough -- but nowhere near as treacherous as the storied Lot E shantytown, where legend goes that "large aircraft land over our heads all hours of the night and morning." (Sort of like living in Westchester!) Sadly, too, United recently merged with Continental -- read our glowing Continental obit here -- so the ghetto has likely grown in the last year to include all those displaced plane people, as well.

We've contacted Unfriendly Skies to see if we can't get any photos or campfire stories from the Lot E encampment, pre-tour. As of now, its reputation certainly precedes itself.

[@simone_electra / swilson@laweekly.com / @LAWeeklyNews]

Tags:

Employee Parking Lot E, LAX ghetto, parking lot, Proud Bird, United Airlines

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Suzana Gligorich

Shame of United !!!

Jon Novak

any long time airline employee knows some one who lives this way , due to lay offs, being bumped from their domicile, station.,at least they can afford a good size rv. i know mechanics and rampies living in there cars, and at least one guy at ORD living in the hangars for 6 monthsbe careful with this issue because local airport management can put an end to "storage of rv's at the employee lots , along with the cars, trailer and motor cycles among other things left in the lot. living in a 100,000 dollar RV is not living in a getto. most every airport has free employee lot parking and the same rv problems.(cheap storage,right guys?) this is part of the airline life style and not due to recent pilot and management problems

Rusty777

Jon Novak,I flew with a new hire First Officer at Tower Air in the 80's who was absolutely worthless as a pilot.He could not fly to save his miserable life nor make a simple radio call! He became a SCAB at United during the strike of 1985. You wouldn't be the same guy by any chance, would you?Your sure sound a lot like him!Captain Ross "Rusty" AimerUAL Ret.

Michou316

You are wrong. They are not $100,000 RVs. I have seen them.

Jon Novak

not all are,but the point is that working for an airline is a work in flux, until you get the kind of seniority to hold a route, a station, you are at risk because flight routes change, loads change, stations open and close.( see oakland ca.) every airport has some one living in the parking lot. airline personal that "choose" to live else , dead head to their domicle to begin their day. main line united pilots make alot more that the regional pilot partners. part of the problem here is that united pilots allow 70 seat aircraft to operated by pilots who make way less working for regional carriers under the united name, where as continetial draws the line at 50 seat aircraft. un like most union jobs where once you make full rate ( journeyman) you can move to other employers and keep your pay rate the same, the airlines make you start over at the incoming rate,. after 28 years as a mechanic at ual, working along side flight crews, if there was a cheaper way to live , these guys would find it.lol...... try living in chicago or newark in a rv ........these guys also stash cars at the airports so they can visit there girl friends when they are in town on lay over .(i have spent many hours in the lots airing up tires,jump starting, un locking these cars)

Dave Kelly

To address the following passage in this blog piece: "Dave Kelly, a PIO for the Air Line Pilots Association, says that the group who wrote the open letter (calling themselves "The Unfriendly Skies") is "part of our union." "

Just to clarify, I said the PILOTS who are staying in the "LAX Ghetto" are in all likelihood a part of our union. I did NOT state that "The Unfriendly Skies" is part of our union.