AirTran Airways' CEO Addresses Georgia Labor Management Conference.

Business Editors/Travel Writers

ORLANDO, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 10, 2002

AirTran Airways' Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Joe Leonard today addressed labor and business leaders at the Georgia Labor Management Conference regarding the state of labor relations in the airline industry. Leonard discussed issues related to the collective bargaining process as it applies to the industry and the restructuring of the Railway Labor Act enacted in 1926.

Following are excerpts from Leonard's June 10th speech. The entire speech is accessible via a link on AirTran Airways' Web site at http://www.airtran.com.

"Labor/Management relations in our nation have undergone fundamental changes not only in the airline industry but also across all sectors of our economy."

"Whether dealing with organized or non-organized employees, I believe that management must act in an open, candid way to develop trust and respect with employees and their representatives. That approach has served us well at AirTran Airways."

"It is our common understanding of an objective developed in an atmosphere of trust and respect that allowed us to do what seems unprecedented in today's airline environment - to reach agreement without Government intervention."

"The air transportation system is a vital and critical engine for our economy. Right now that engine is quickly moving into a stall mode for many different reasons, not the least of which is the inability of labor and management to effectively address the labor cost component in a fast changing air transportation marketplace."

"Traditional compensation programs, long-standing work rules and habits all have to be open for discussion as each [carrier] in one way or another [grows] out of an airline business platform that is literally changing day-by-day. That is a reality that must be recognized but recent bargaining patterns are not encouraging."

Leonard noted that the so-called "baseball arbitration" solution proposed by some airline management is little more than a "kind of save us from ourselves approach to collective bargaining".

"As a public policy matter, the nation can no longer afford the Railway Labor Act and what it drives in the way of contract settlement."

"One recent study revealed that during the period from 1984 through 2001, Government mediation was required in almost 60% of all air carrier contract negotiations with an average negotiation lasting over 17 months."

"At AirTran Airways, the Railway Labor Act did not intrude itself into our negotiations because we had a platform of good faith and trust from which to negotiate. We did it ourselves."

"AirTran Airways and the other new low fare carriers are not going to go away. Our business model works and is taking the industry in a new direction. But so too is our labor model working and the largest airlines can learn from both models."

"The collective bargaining process in the airline industry has to become as dynamic as the marketplace. Just as all carriers are re-thinking the business model so too must the collective bargaining process become a part of and not an impediment to change."

AirTran Airways provides affordable air travel with 388 flights a day to 37 cities throughout the eastern United States. The airline's hub is at Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport, the world's busiest airport (by passenger volume), where it is the second largest carrier operating 151 flights a day. AirTran Airways is a subsidiary of AirTran Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:AAI).

Unlike other airlines, AirTran Airways never requires a roundtrip purchase or Saturday night stay. The airline offers a Business Class any business can afford, all-assigned seating, a generous frequent flier program, and a corporate program called A2B. For more information and reservations, visit http://www.airtran.com (America Online Keyword: AirTran), call your travel agent or AirTran Airways at 1-800-AIRTRAN (800-247-8726) or 770-994-8258 in Atlanta. En espanol, 1-877-581-9842.