Pfizer blocks tracking of Mary McLeod's helicopter trips!

Pharma Law Blog ^ | Friday, July 18, 2008 | Peter Rost, M.D.

[xDGx]

So people at Pfizer are pretty upset about what's going on with their Sr VP HR and her frequent helicopter trips to her cozy cottage in Maryland.

And since I dug up some information about Pfizer's infamous party jet back in 2006, I figured I'd use this data to find out how often Mary had been hopping back and forth between her private home and Pfizer's offices on Manhattan

Here they are the N numbers for Pfizer's airplanes (see FAA to verify this info.):

(more)

[xDGx]

The guy who wrote this was a former Pfizer Marketing VP - Pfizer has had some rough goings as of late, and some are pointing to the leadership as being spendthrifts. In particular, an HR VP has been accused of using one of the corporate planes/helos to commute from her digs in MD to the office in NYC. Shades of the Tyco mentality.

My interest in this is as a Pfizer consumer, w/o Rx insurance who paid thousands for meds over the past couple of years. Corporate abuses like this really tick me off.

This Rost guy scratched the surface, and he may be on to something.

[durasell]

My interest in this is as a Pfizer consumer, w/o Rx insurance who paid thousands for meds over the past couple of years.

---

Did you expect them to donate the profits to charity? Shareholders are the ones who should be ticked off...

[nwrep]

I don’t see what is wrong with what she is doing with the Corporate jets. It could be part of her compensation and perks. I am sorry about your situation, but I think this is a separate matter.

[xDGx]

I spent a half hour poking around and found a bunch more Pfizer planes and subsidiaries, ALL of which have been blocked from tracking on FlightAware.

This runs counter to a sunshine policy, and makes one wonder just how much Pfizer is covering.

When you join FlightAware you can track not only current flights but also histories for the past few months for free. You can pay and get histories going back several years.

What is really interesting when looking at corporate flights is when a couple of company jets wind up at the same place and there is no official reason for them to be there. Little “Midnight at the Oasis” rendezvouses and the like. Not that I am insinuating that is what is happening here. We don't know what is happening here, because Pfizer and their subs have pulled permission for their flight histories to be displayed.

Things that make you go hmmmm....

[xDGx]

I run a company, and no I don’t expect profits to be donated to charity.

I do expect assets to be utilized properly, and not above and beyond what is considered reasonable.

If you read the links, you will note that the VP has been asked to repay the company $300,000 in excess usage fees of the helos & planes.

The investors are, to put it mildly, NOT happy. PFE’s performance has been considerably worse than the S&P.

[xDGx]

The point is it is well beyond official perks (which allocate up to 20 hrs per year usage)

Let’s take a look at Pfizer’s Jets:

N4CP

Go to Flightaware and, uh oh!

“CHARLIE PAPA OPERATIONS LLC (WEST TRENTON NJ)
This flight is not available for tracking per request from the owner/operator”

And who is “CHARLIE PAPA OPERATIONS LLC”?

Why a subsidiary of Pfizer!

http://sec.edgar-online.com/2007/03/01/0000930413-07-001807/Section49.asp

hmmm, let’s see what else they are fielding…

CHARLIE PAPA OPERATIONS LLC , SIKORSKY S-76C
SIKORSKY | S-76C | EWING | rotor craft | CHARLIE PAPA OPERATIONS LLC
Serial number: 760530
N-number: 22CP
Cerificate issued: Friday, August 22, 2003
Manufactured year: 2002
CHARLIE PAPA OPERATIONS LLC , SIKORSKY S-76C
SIKORSKY | S-76C | EWING | rotor craft | CHARLIE PAPA OPERATIONS LLC
Serial number: 760532
N-number: 66CP
Cerificate issued: Thursday, November 06, 2003
Manufactured year: 2002

CHARLIE PAPA OPERATIONS LLC , GULFSTREAM AEROSPACE G-V
GULFSTREAM AEROSPACE | G-V | WEST TRENTON | fixed wing multi engine | CHARLIE PAPA OPERATIONS LLC
Serial number: 5005
N-number: 4CP
Cerificate issued: Thursday, December 04, 2003
Manufactured year: 2003

CHARLIE PAPA OPERATIONS LLC , EMBRAER EMB-135LR
EMBRAER | EMB-135LR | EWING | fixed wing multi engine | CHARLIE PAPA OPERATIONS LLC
Serial number: 145726
N-number: 201CP
Cerificate issued: Friday, May 30, 2003
Manufactured year: 2003
CHARLIE PAPA OPERATIONS LLC , EMBRAER EMB-135LR
EMBRAER | EMB-135LR | EWING | fixed wing multi engine | CHARLIE PAPA OPERATIONS LLC
Serial number: 145728
N-number: 202CP
Cerificate issued: Friday, May 30, 2003
Manufactured year: 2003

Aircraftone.com lists these:

PFIZER INC
Corporation * 2001 635 N83CP BMW ROLLS/BR 700 SERIES
Corporation * 1999 565 N77CP BMW ROLLS/BR 700 SERIES

Let’s see if any can be tracked (at flightaware.com):

N4CP – Flight tracking not available (CHARLIE PAPA OPERATIONS LLC (EWING NJ))

N22CP – Flight tracking not available (CHARLIE PAPA OPERATIONS LLC (EWING NJ))

N66CP – Flight tracking not available (CHARLIE PAPA OPERATIONS LLC (EWING NJ))

N77CP – Flight tracking not available (PFIZER INC (WEST TRENTON NJ))

N83CP – Flight tracking not available (PFIZER INC (NEW YORK NY))

N88CP – Flight tracking not available (PFIZER INC (WEST TRENTON NJ)

N201CP – Flight tracking not available (CHARLIE PAPA OPERATIONS LLC (EWING NJ))

N202CP – Flight tracking not available (CHARLIE PAPA OPERATIONS LLC (EWING NJ))

Every single one of them, “This flight is not available for tracking per request from the owner/operator”

Now why would they do that? Security, or maybe covering up a lot of trips taken by execs and families for who knows what purposes. Not that any tawdry affairs or the like are in any way implied.

Nice pix of the Gulfstream landing in Switzerland:

http://www.abpic.co.uk/photo/1004793/

How nice not to have to put up with TSA screening, please remove your shoes Mr. CEO and Ms. VP

Not that I am insinuating there is any hanky-panky afoot, heck these aren’t the Agee’s we are talking about…

Lots more out there…

http://www.pharmalot.com/2008/07/the-pfizer-exec-and-the-300k-helicopter-bill/

http://208.101.7.228/boards/showthread.php?t=277012

http://peterrost.blogspot.com/2006/08/pfizers-secret-jet.html

http://peterrost.blogspot.com/2006/08/cost-of-pfizers-two-party-jets.html

http://www.aircraftone.com/aircraft/models/gulfstream_aerospace_g_v_3980116.asp

[2ndDivisionVet]

Guess I work at the wrong company: I’m a VP of Recruiting and haven’t been on a helicopter since the Army...LOL

[xDGx]

The only helos I get close to are ride-alongs for local Medevac.

One thing I have noticed since 9/11 is while regular air traffic has dropped off sharply, corporate jet traffic seems to be booming. I can sympathize with not wanting to put up with the TSA foolishness, but using the corporate aircraft to commute is a little over the top. Especially when they have had beaucoup layoffs and the stock has lost something like 40% of it’s value.

btw, I don’t think the muckity-mucks in question are medical or scientific background folks, mostly lawyers and MBA/consultants. It’s stuff like this that wrecks companies.

[durasell]

Okay. I agree with you there.

[JonH]

Buy a couple of Pfizer shares and go to the annual meetings and ask your questions there.

The use of corporate aircraft for legitimate business purposes is unquestionably cost efficient much of the time. The benefits are the ability to be in more places in less time than would be possible on the airlines.

If there is abuse, sooner or later the IRS will pick it up because they have live in audit staff at most large corporations.

[xDGx]

I’m only interested in investing in companies with a positive upside. Based on the performance of PFE over the past few years I see precious little evidence of that.

An HR VP using corporate aircraft to commute is hardly an effective use of assets, unless you seriously believe that the extra hour she would spend in traffic with the rest of the poor slobs is vital to the performance of the company.

Then again, maybe you think Pelosi’s personal 737 is a wise use of taxpayer dollars...

[Reeses]

PFE is big business, really big, and not much different than big government. With FDA regulation and protection it is almost an arm of the government, makes its money by monopoly pricing granted by FDA approval and oversight. It’s probably a steady place to work, like a government job, but usually is not a great stock investment.