AirTran MEC Chair message.

[madjack]

Max Blasts gets it...

 

[waveflyer]

And for those of us that never aspired to work at WN don't really care how hard it was to get a job, how long it took, or what it cost (buy your own type, get one from the govt/military, or from a previous employer) and don't believe it should have been a factor at all. But I'm living with the outcome.

Cool, I don't fault you for that. But the reality of aspiring to work at a smaller, growing, niche company is that you may be acquired. Just because you didn't aspire to WN doesn't mean the years of extra effort it took to get there shouldn't be factored. Seriously, maybe AT pilots don't always get respect from swa types bc they tend to piss on the dedication it took to get here, while it just landed in your laps from a job that was easier to get.

Name anything you worked hard to get- do you like people diminishing that work?

What I'm curious about is why we're still talking about this- don't convince yourselves that you're the only side that feels they got screwed. Move on or quit- just like I tell the pissed swa types.

 

[Just thinking]

What I'm curious about is why we're still talking about this..............
Because you make comments like this.........

"Cool, I don't fault you for that. But the reality of aspiring to work at a smaller, growing, niche company is that you may be acquired. Just because you didn't aspire to WN doesn't mean the years of extra effort it took to get there shouldn't be factored."

For how many years was SWA a "niche" company?
How many years did it take to SWA to start flying "international"?
How many years did it take SWA achieve a 100 aircraft stable?
How many years has it taken SWA to adapt to technological advancements or have they stayed mired in outdated technology?

Maybe GK bought Airtran to force SWA into the 1990's?
Maybe GK bought Airtran because they were a viable threat to SWA?
A good portion of your profit sharing check that will be coming in from 2011 will be from the efforts and energies from the hard working professional pilots at Airtran..... Try looking at it this way..... we have helped pay for a portion of your type rating since we do not get to share any of the profit sharing you will recieve this fall..........

 

[redflyer65]

What I'm curious about is why we're still talking about this..............
Because you make comments like this.........

"Cool, I don't fault you for that. But the reality of aspiring to work at a smaller, growing, niche company is that you may be acquired. Just because you didn't aspire to WN doesn't mean the years of extra effort it took to get there shouldn't be factored."

For how many years was SWA a "niche" company? Not sure, SW could have been bought at anytime when it was small
How many years did it take to SWA to start flying "international"? SW up until recently could have cared less about international, so I'm not sure what your point is here.
How many years did it take SWA achieve a 100 aircraft stable? 1990 they crossed the 100 aircraft line. Almost 23 years ago.
How many years has it taken SWA to adapt to technological advancements or have they stayed mired in outdated technology? Again, up until recently it didn't matter. If we just stayed in the 50 states there would still be no need to upgrade our system. They never have before because it's a huge outlay of cash. The AAI system isn't much better in this regard. Both systems pretty much suck.

Maybe GK bought Airtran to force SWA into the 1990's? He bought them mostly to get rid of a competitor and also for the ATL presence, slots in LGA/DCA and the 737s with the future order book.
Maybe GK bought Airtran because they were a viable threat to SWA? Viable threat? Not really, but by purchasing AAI he can capture more capacity overnight and not have a competitor keeping downard pressure on ticket prices. The same reason all the other purchases/mergers have been done.
A good portion of your profit sharing check that will be coming in from 2011 will be from the efforts and energies from the hard working professional pilots at Airtran..... Try looking at it this way..... we have helped pay for a portion of your type rating since we do not get to share any of the profit sharing you will recieve this fall.......... I'd say most of the types have looooong since been paid for, but the profit sharing component is nice and I'm looking forward to you getting the deposits also.

Here you go.

 

[Cometman]

The statement was not entirely accurate as you point out but no AAI Captain will move over to SWA as a Captain.

We will all cross the fence as FO's.

I told you to quit whining. Now grow up. Nobody cares what you think. Move on with your life. It will not get better by bitching on here.

 

[Britpilot]

I told you to quit whining. Now grow up. Nobody cares what you think. Move on with your life. It will not get better by bitching on here.

And who cares what you think?
Tell you what, I'm telling you quit whining and grow up and move on.
You don't tell me anything, got that?

 

[SWA/FO]

Hey b*tches... make sure to speak your mind in Big D at the training center, I mean you will be there for 45 days so you will have plenty of time to share your feelings.

Then tell it to your check airman on IOE.

Welcome to SWA. Enjoy your extra 2-4 days off a month.

 

[Cometman]

And who cares what you think?
Tell you what, I'm telling you quit whining and grow up and move on.
You don't tell me anything, got that?

Sounds like you are losing control. Really, what do you think will change by crying everyday about something that will not change? Grow up.

 

[Britpilot]

Sounds like you are losing control. Really, what do you think will change by crying everyday about something that will not change? Grow up.

Really you need to get a grip.
I don't need to grow up and I'm not losing control either.
You sound like a control freak to me, scary that they allow you in a cockpit.
I was just stating facts, not whining, not trying to change anything. I don't care anymore. It is what it is. I will go to work, fly my trips and go home.


Oh, be sure to let me know where you're based so I don't bid it.

 

[humveedriver]

Yo mommas sooo fat...

 

[texman]

For the 12 month period ending 3/31/12, SWA pulled a 6.1% ROIC with an economic fuel cost of $3.30/gallon. Doing the reverse math provided by the data in the Q1 2012 earnings release, here are the fuel prices that would have been necessary to pull 10% and 15% ROIC:

$3.03/gallon => 10% ROIC

$2.57/gallon => 15% ROIC

The latest SWA RASM estimates were for May 2012 and they came in 5-6% higher than May 2011. The latest EIA spot prices for Jet A are in the $2.60-2.70 range. With the current revenue initiatives coming online over the next few years (Rapid Rewards, AirTran acquisition synergies, B737-800 deployment, and international flying) and the current trends in energy costs, SWA could attain a 15% ROIC quicker than you think. The question is how many consecutive months of lower energy costs will it take for Gary to feel comfortable pulling the growth lever. I seriously doubt SWA is only producing 120 billion ASMs annually by the year 2015.

YES! We could hit the 15% this year, or trend that way.

 

[carl p]

Wouldn't that be nice.

 

[Luv2BFlyin]

Hey b*tches... make sure to speak your mind in Big D at the training center, I mean you will be there for 45 days so you will have plenty of time to share your feelings.

Then tell it to your check airman on IOE.

Welcome to SWA. Enjoy your extra 2-4 days off a month.

If you don't live in base, do you spend 4 extra days commuting which would negate or actually lessen the days off?

 

[Lear70]

2-4 extra days off per month? Awesome. I average 18 days off now. So I'll get 20-22 days off a month? Sweet!

 

[RobZerbe]

True, but that's only HALF the story. I know, because I was in the room.

You aren't the only person on these forums who was "in the room". To be clear, exactly what SLI discussions were you "in the room for"?

We ALSO took LESS seniority because we were going to retain our 717 Captain slots. That was very specifically discussed.

I was there from day one. The conversation you describe never happened. Specifically or generally.

 

[scoreboardII]

oh snap!

 

[Crash Pad]

Hey look it's SWAPA guy. Shouldn't you ask GK if it's ok to post on here? Honestly you should be embarrassed a staple would have passed our side, after our jobs were threatened. If you have GK in your corner push the advantage ALPA would have.

Lear is full of poop. He pushed hard to get the 7 to 1 vote. He has no room to complain, criticize, or talk. He lobbied hard and got exactly what he wanted. He then went to Dallas and got us this deal. He only ignored 86 percent of us.

 

[FlyinGuy]

Lear is all over the map. Just because you try to sound smart, does not make you smart.

 

[maxblast72]

YES! We could hit the 15% this year, or trend that way.

We are definitely trending that way now with the recent drop of fuel. However, until Q1 2012 drops out of the 12 month look back calculation on 3/31/13 (fuel was $3.44/gal for Q1 2012), we probably won't hit 15% ROIC.

I bet we are flying 130 billion ASMs by the end of 2015. Some of that growth will be due to replacing 117 seaters with 175 seaters while the rest would be due to increased utilization/larger fleet size (ie more block hours).

 

[maxblast72]

2-4 extra days off per month? Awesome. I average 18 days off now. So I'll get 20-22 days off a month? Sweet!

Must be nice. Been on reserve for over 5 years. Until November 2010, I averaged 11 days off per month. Since then I averaged 13 days off per month.

While I will lose my Captain seat when the B717 goes away, the 17-18 day off hard line won't be horrible once I go to training in Dallas. If I work 1 or 2 extra days (still more than 15 days off), my SWA FO W-2 will exceed my AirTran reserve Captain W-2. Not to mention I will get the holidays off until I reupgrade as well.

 

[bladeusa]

Any guesses how much $ we are losing again based on current hedges.

 

[Lear70]

I was there from day one. The conversation you describe never happened. Specifically or generally.

And you were not in OUR room at all times we were talking with management, nor we were in YOUR room.

Hell, there was one day you guys didn't even COME to the GO.

So to say that the conversation didn't happen is simply a.) impossible for you to know and b.) just incorrect. If you haven't noticed, one of our Merger Committee members who is ALSO on this board, disagrees with me often, and posts regularly, doesn't disagree with my statement, either.

I'm here to tell you that conversation DID happen, and in the way I describe. Sorry you don't like it, but that's not a debatable fact.

 

[Crash Pad]

Any guesses how much $ we are losing again based on current hedges.

Oh it's a ton. Not nearly as much as we lose every day when people call in sick!

 

[humveedriver]

Any guesses how much $ we are losing again based on current hedges.

12 cents a gallon in the 1st quarter. (7th line down)

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/southwest-airlines-reports-first-quarter-results-2012-04-19

 

[Lear70]

Must be nice. Been on reserve for over 5 years. Until November 2010, I averaged 11 days off per month. Since then I averaged 13 days off per month.

While I will lose my Captain seat when the B717 goes away, the 17-18 day off hard line won't be horrible once I go to training in Dallas. If I work 1 or 2 extra days (still more than 15 days off), my SWA FO W-2 will exceed my AirTran reserve Captain W-2. Not to mention I will get the holidays off until I reupgrade as well.

And see, that's the problem. You were negotiating from a personal perspective of "it won't get any worse for me, and can only get better".

Many of us won't be that lucky. I will go from whatever weekends and holidays I want off, 18 days a month off, to back on reserve at a decent base (unless I choose a 5 hour commute to OAK or LAS which isn't going to happen).

Basically I give up all my quality of life for money. And my fiance' and I do just fine on the money I make now... many of us would rather have had the seniority.

So now that it's over, and the seniority is lost forever, many people just have a "get what you can get" mentality moving forward, and why not? Nothing else is really fixable.

For you it may be a wash, for most of us, it sucks, and is simply going to take time to get over. We will, but it will take time, and a bunch of other people telling us to hurry up and get over it doesn't help either. No one can dictate other people's attitudes, we have to get there on our own.

 

[FatesPawn]

You aren't the only person on these forums who was "in the room". To be clear, exactly what SLI discussions were you "in the room for"?

I was there from day one. The conversation you describe never happened. Specifically or generally.

Excuse me while I get some popcorn.

:beer:

 

[maxblast72]

The table is located on page 52 of the LUV annual shareholder report. With WTI prices below $90/barrel, SWA will pay about 10-15 cents per gallon above unhedged market price plus $5 million in premiums for Q2 and $37 million in premiums for the 2nd half of 2012.

So it looks like SWA will "eat" $50 mil in Q2 and $70-90 mil in Q3 and Q4 unless Isreal and Iran decide to go at it. Of course, the overall fuel bill will be $300-400 million less per quarter than projected just a few months ago as well. I think Gary would take that trade any day of the week. Gary just prefers having that "insurance policy" there while guys like Doug Parker don't mind moving forward without a hedge portfolio for protection.

There will also be a significant accounting loss reported next month as the future value of the 2013-2015 hedge portfolio gets marked down to due the recent drop in oil. Accounting or "on paper" gains/losses don't get included in ROIC calculations.

 

[texman]

The table is located on page 52 of the LUV annual shareholder report. With WTI prices below $90/barrel, SWA will pay about 10-15 cents per gallon above unhedged market price plus $5 million in premiums for Q2 and $37 million in premiums for the 2nd half of 2012.

So it looks like SWA will "eat" $50 mil in Q2 and $70-90 mil in Q3 and Q4 unless Isreal and Iran decide to go at it. Of course, the overall fuel bill will be $300-400 million less per quarter than projected just a few months ago as well. I think Gary would take that trade any day of the week. Gary just prefers having that "insurance policy" there while guys like Doug Parker don't mind moving forward without a hedge portfolio for protection.

There will also be a significant accounting loss reported next month as the future value of the 2013-2015 hedge portfolio gets marked down to due the recent drop in oil. Accounting or "on paper" gains/losses don't get included in ROIC calculations.

Ok you and Humm seem like smart guys. If fuel stays like so, what year could we hit the 15% ROIC. 2016-2018?

 

[redflyer65]

Excuse me while I get some popcorn.

:beer:

Is it too early for a beer with that popcorn?

 

[vixin]

Lear is full of poop. He pushed hard to get the 7 to 1 vote. He has no room to complain, criticize, or talk. He lobbied hard and got exactly what he wanted. He then went to Dallas and got us this deal. He only ignored 86 percent of us.

This speaks volumes. He is already getting a wonderful reputation at SWA and he isnt even here yet. Must be proud.