Delta Pilots Set to Fight for Pension

A group of retired Delta Air Lines pilots is going to court to protest the airline’s decision to stop making non-qualified pension payments.

Retired pilot Wendell Lewis’ monthly pension of $6,500 was slashed by 73 percent two weeks ago when Delta stopped paying the so-called non-qualified portion of his pension — the part that isn’t covered by federal law preventing companies from cutting basic pension payouts, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

The Atlanta-based company filed for Chapter 11 protection last month and is now trying to restructure its finances under a judge’s supervision.

DP3, a group representing about 5,800 retired pilots and dependents, will go before Delta’s New York bankruptcy judge Monday. The group argues that even if the non-qualified payments aren’t protected, they were part of a valid labor contract and can’t be cut unless the airline modifies the contract in court.

Delta’s lawyers say non-qualified payouts to about 3,500 retired pilots and 66 executives were costing the ailing airline $6.9 million a month.