http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/21/o...nl=todaysheadlines&emc=edit_th_20121121&_r=1&
"Between 2007 and 2012, airlines cut the number of domestic passenger flights by 14 percent...."
"The reason is simple: airlines have decided that the best way to earn a healthy return on their investment is to maintain tight discipline on capacity. That’s a fancy way of saying they want their planes to fly as full as sardine cans."
"Unfortunately for travelers, this situation is unlikely to change anytime soon. With five airlines now serving 85 percent of the domestic market — four, if American Airlines and US Airways merge, as industry analysts expect — the major carriers are worrying less about the one factor that could disrupt their cozy, cram-’em-in strategy: competition."
"That is, unless policy makers do what they should have done a long time ago and allow foreign airlines, including discount carriers like Ryanair and global players like Qantas and British Airways, to serve domestic routes in the United States. Why, after all, should an industry that has ingeniously used free-market principles to squeeze the most revenue out of each middle seat be protected from competing in a real free market?"
"One possible solution is to take a half-step toward opening up domestic markets and allow foreign carriers to serve any midsize and regional airport in the United States that has lost service in the past few years. New entrants would be able to integrate those markets with their international routes, something that could put many smaller American cities on the global business map."
I know; zero chance.
"Between 2007 and 2012, airlines cut the number of domestic passenger flights by 14 percent...."
"The reason is simple: airlines have decided that the best way to earn a healthy return on their investment is to maintain tight discipline on capacity. That’s a fancy way of saying they want their planes to fly as full as sardine cans."
"Unfortunately for travelers, this situation is unlikely to change anytime soon. With five airlines now serving 85 percent of the domestic market — four, if American Airlines and US Airways merge, as industry analysts expect — the major carriers are worrying less about the one factor that could disrupt their cozy, cram-’em-in strategy: competition."
"That is, unless policy makers do what they should have done a long time ago and allow foreign airlines, including discount carriers like Ryanair and global players like Qantas and British Airways, to serve domestic routes in the United States. Why, after all, should an industry that has ingeniously used free-market principles to squeeze the most revenue out of each middle seat be protected from competing in a real free market?"
"One possible solution is to take a half-step toward opening up domestic markets and allow foreign carriers to serve any midsize and regional airport in the United States that has lost service in the past few years. New entrants would be able to integrate those markets with their international routes, something that could put many smaller American cities on the global business map."
I know; zero chance.
