American Airlines Virtual

Please join me in congratulating Jeff Jett, our new KORD hub manager. Jeff replaces Bert Rivera who has earned our thanks and gratitude for his long service to AAVirtual and his hub. As Jeff takes over, Bert will retire to the KPSP hub and enjoy the desert sunshine.

Jeff, you've got big shoes to fill, but we've got confidence in you. Suggest you lock away the coffee pot until after Bert's departure.

Bert ... retiring? Not likely. Forgotten? Never. His name will be on the maintenance chief's lips everytime he's called out to inspect the nose gear after a "hard" wheelbarrow landing.

Now, Bert is an excellent pilot ... one of the best ... but those bean tacos he'd bring in his pilot bag and consume in flight were the real problem. Well, more accurately it was the inevitible gastrointestinal product of those beans and Bert's inclination to time the sharing of that right at touchdown. One of the last times he flew with me, I let him do the landing and noticed the small unintended control input (left rudder and forward yoke) as a result of leaning just a smidge forward and lifing the left cheek to clear a little space with the seat. Ever wonder why Bert usually landed with the nose just a little left of centerline when flying as copilot and right when pilot? Now you know.

Seriously, Bert, we'll miss you in the airways, but surely for just a short time.

Congratulations and thanks Jeff for your support to AAV.

Cheers

Arturo Carvajal

Congrats on taking KORD over again. I know it's probably a huge mess after Bert's leadership. I'm kidding. If you need any assistance, let me know.