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AirTran Alaska merger

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gt1900 said:
Exactly. Key west is a joke. Yet AAI guys were up in arms about flying into it when we announced it. I find it interesting that you have so much Mt experience yet you think that the approach is the hard part. If you don't think there is a different mentality with AAI pilots and ALA pilots then you are sorely mistaken! Fly the RNP into Juneau through the Gastina Channel, then get back to me. The flying that AAI does is simple everyday flying with not a single tough airport to fly into, and ZERO mountains. ALA flys into some of the toughest airports in the world. Youve flown in Alaska, youve seen what can happen in the winter when a storm brews. We have nothing that comes even close to that in the lower 48. I had a Cpt get very, very nervous in ROC when they were reporting 200-1/2 with snow and winds gusting to 30 with fair breaking action. Thats a pretty regular occurance for the guys at Alaska!

AAI flys scheduled trips to exactly 4 international destinations. Cancun, Aruba, Montego Bay, and Nasau. WOW!!!!! Alaska Airgroups flys to 15, of which Alaska flys to 10 I believe. Not a lot, but far more then AAI. Throw in 4 Hawaii destinations from 6 different cities and we arent exactly talking the same type of flying. Heck, we don't even have rafts on our planes. Imagine half of our F/A's if they had to get their hair wet in water training!
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Take it easy Nanook. Yes, everyone will agree that Alaska has some challenging flying, jimmy crack corn and I don't care. Two thirds of the US population lives where we fly, not in the great white north. I was thinking of the revenue possibilities of flying people from Sarah Palin land to Disney World and other points east of the Mississippi where the Eskimo doesn't fly. It's all about money, not who can fly a RNP approach in a valley with tall mountains and blowing snow.
 
Your exactly right. Who cares where everybody lives. Its about making money! Can you say EAS? ALA does a fine job of transfering their flying from Alaska in the summer to Hawaii and Mexico in the winter. ALA makes a butt load more money then AAI, even flying mostly where only 1/3 of the U.S. population lives. And there cost structure is much higher.... HMMM..... Imagine that!

Im not saying ALA is better then AAI, but with the exception of airplanes, size, and similar route maps, they are two totally different companies. ALA's business plan wouldn't work in the AAI markets!
 
gt1900 said:
Your exactly right. Who cares where everybody lives. Its about making money! Can you say EAS? ALA does a fine job of transfering their flying from Alaska in the summer to Hawaii and Mexico in the winter. ALA makes a butt load more money then AAI, even flying mostly where only 1/3 of the U.S. population lives. And there cost structure is much higher.... HMMM..... Imagine that!

Im not saying ALA is better then AAI, but with the exception of airplanes, size, and similar route maps, they are two totally different companies. ALA's business plan wouldn't work in the AAI markets!
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Yes, they make money yet still furlough pilots, go figure. They have a monopoly on some routes in Alaska and Seattle, tell me how they are doing in LAX. If Delta or Southwest wanted to make their lives miserable they could in a heartbeat. Delta could drop the code share and spool up the NWA operations in SEA and ANC. They have already started to ramp up their operations on the west coast. Look what happened with Midwest when they didn't adapt to the changes in the playing field. Heck, Mesa could set up shop in ANC like they did in Hawaii, it didn't take them long to run Aloha out of business. Alaska Air can keep plodding along the same course and keep making hay while the sun is shinning but the winters up north in the future will keep getting longer and darker. In my opinion they will have to merge with someone.
 
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I heeerd that Alaska is buying every airline because Alaska flies harder than everyone else. Including NASA - which we're buying. Landing at Canaveral? Pfffft. We have some guys who used to fly into Dutch Harbor. In the MUDHEN! (a-a-a-a-men!).

And my daddy can beat up your daddy.

[/ENDthisuselessthread]
 
Two totally different scenerios. Alaska is very, very strong on the west coast and has a very good following. Nobody can touch them in ANC because of all the connecting cities they serve throughout Alaska. SWA tried to make their lives he11 in SEA and it didn't work. Alaska has held their own and SWA hasn't expanded on the west coast like they have been able to in other markets. LAX isn't a huge hub for them and they have still done very well there. THe difference between ALA and MidEX is that ALA has constantly changed to the environment, and it could be argued that it has made them much, much stronger. Technologically, nobody can touch them. They had HUD and were shooting RNP approaches before anybody else, that has allowed them to operate in crappy weather when DAL, NWA, and SWA were shut down. Midex never considered themselves pioneers with technology. ALA does. ALA's product is 10X's better then SWA's and their ticket prices are within 10-15 bucks on most flights. People on the west coast are willing to pay $10-$15 more to get service that is much, much better then SWA's, or DAL's, and NWA's for that matter on short flights. I know lots of people in the Northwest. Most choose ALA over SWA every time. The combination of ALA and Horizon offer so many more opportunities then NWA, SWA, and DAL do on the west coast that they really cant compete very well at this time. Heck, AAI pulls out of SEA every winter because they can't make money on ATL-SEA. Yet ALA comes in and every single flight is full. I tried to buy a ticket on them last winter, the only thing availibale was $1000+ roundtrip because the flights were already full. Don't bother trying to non rev on them from ATL-SEA. Yet you still can get on AAI flights. AAI flights are cheaper, yet ALA flights are more full. Imagine that!

However, you put ALA's cost structure and business plan on the east coast and they would fold pretty quick.
 
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Kharma Police said:
Lots of good "synergies". We only have one route that overlaps (ATL-SEA). They are on the west coast, we are on the east coast. Similar fleet types, roughly the same number of pilots. Very different business models and management styles. Any thoughts from all the players and haters on FI?
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I'd rather them put up with your expectations and "major airline" pilot demands than WN.

Yep, I said it.

Flame on brother.

Gup
 
400ADude said:
Can you imagine being over at Alaska and having to merge with Valuejet?
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Can you imagine getting turned down by AirTran, then sulking for the next 5 years, "butting in" to every AirTran topic with nothing to say but "Valujet" . . . . .:bawling:

Can you imagine changing your screen name every few months because you get banned for juvenile behavior, yet you re-register again under a newer, stupider name, because you just can't help yourself . . . . :erm:

Can you imagine coming home from your lousy commuter gig, and finding your old lady in bed with some AirTran FO . . . . who doesn't even know who Valujet was . . . . so he just laughs at you . . . .


Apparently, you can ! :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
 
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You guys are ridiculous.

WHAN.....my flying is harder than yours..........whan......mommy give me your tit to suckle......whan....
 
gt1900 said:
ALA's product is 10X's better then SWA's and their ticket prices are within 10-15 bucks on most flights.
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One of the execs a few months ago told a group of us that this difference was more like $1 or $2 more on most routes (I think he meant on average), but you can decide yourself. I temporarily lost my pass benefits due to medical issues a few years ago and wanted to go to Vegas for a friends birthday. Being short on cash I looked at all the options and Alaska was still the least expensive, and a non-stop to boot, compared to Southwest.
 

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