AMR profit

[Jeff Helgeson]

Way to take one for he team....

I would like to offer to remain on furlough a little longer to try to help AA make even more money. TC

...but if you really want to help, how about passing along some of those jumbo prawns from the inflight catering. Some of us have protein need!!!

 

[Yank McCobb]

I think you cracked the code....

However, I am proud to state that, despite never having seen the "free ride" you are talking about, my life is anything but the "ramshakle state" you describe.

And yes, I am 100% against PBS until all of our furloughees are recalled, and then only for something in return.

When I said "you", I meant a collective "you" and not you, personally. I was making a generalized statement in which I made some observations. The fact that I quoted a portion of one of your posts was only to set up my comment and not to attack you as an individual.

No need to be so defensive....

 

[PHX767]

just curious,

do you feel that way when you or you fellow union brothers grab ALL that open time with 3000 people on the street?

I'll chime in:

These guys filling up on open time are not helping us get back any sooner. If everyone flew the minimum, how many additional pilots would we need? But everybody has their own comfort level. I'm sure some guys have boats, cars, planes, kid's college, and alimony to pay for.

On the jump seat for my ride home the day before I was furloughed, the guys were busy figuring out how much open time they could pick up. I asked if they condidered not picking up any time 'cause you know we do have these furloughs and all - blank stares in return. Oh well, to each their own.

 

[aa73]

just curious,

do you feel that way when you or you fellow union brothers grab ALL that open time with 3000 people on the street?

Well, in my case I am on reserve so I have no control over how much I fly per month. The average has been 80 hrs out of a max of 85.

However, when I was a lineholder way back when in much happier times, I was perfectly content to fly the line award, and nothing more. Most of them were built to around 75-77hrs (out of 83 for lineholders.)

And finally, yes it irritates me to see all of the picking up of open time. But hey, this is the APA we're talking about... each man for himself, and don't forget to eat your young.

 

[aa73]

When I said "you", I meant a collective "you" and not you, personally. I was making a generalized statement in which I made some observations. The fact that I quoted a portion of one of your posts was only to set up my comment and not to attack you as an individual.

No need to be so defensive....

DEFENSIVE!!! WHADDAYAMEAN, HUH?

j/k. all joking aside, I also wanted to clarify to any of my fellow AA pilots reading this to vigorously understand that PBS is no good until everyone's back AND we get something in return.

No offense taken, peace out.

 

[jetexas]

Here is the part I like: $3.9B in cash. Up 300m. 75m pension contrubition.

Here is the part I don't like: Regional Affiliates -66m



Unit

Shell game. Where'd all that $3.98B in cash and 75M pension contribution come from? They can cook the numbers however they see fit. For some reason, they chose to show Eagle at a loss. It's certainly not due to empty flights.

 

[furloughfodder]

And finally, yes it irritates me to see all of the picking up of open time. But hey, this is the APA we're talking about... each man for himself, and don't forget to eat your young.

HAHA. Yes... eat the young...That is the APA motto. Remember..... APA was the first group of pilots to accept the B-Scale. They invented it with Crandell.

 

[TCAS]

Here is the part I like: $3.9B in cash. Up 300m. 75m pension contrubition.

Here is the part I don't like: Regional Affiliates -66m



Unit

Financial numbers can be spun whichever way you need to spin them to keep your shareholders and financiers happy. In general Wall Street and the banks only care about how AMR is doing. They don't care if Eagle made the profit or contributed to the loss on the BGR-BOS leg or whether AA made the profit or contributed to the loss on the BOS-MIA leg. All the money people want to know is did AMR make money or lose it flying Joe Public on a ticket from BGR-MIA.

It's the employees who get into the details and look to see who's carrying who and where to point the finger of blame. The problem with this is we are never given that information because it can disrupt the spin that AMR wants for the bankers and shareholders. A classic example of this is the line in the most recent SEC filing that attributes a $66 million loss to "regional affiliates." By my count there are 5 regional affiliates. Eagle and Trans States may have contributed $X to the bottom line and Chautauqua, Corportate and Executive could have lost $Y which resulted in a $66 million loss. Who knows? It's just not broken down further to determine what is going on here.

So is it hopeless to expect to untangle the financial web? No, not if you know where to look. The key is finding the matrix where the truth can be found. The answer is that common denominator that you never hear from managements lips when they talk about how the company is doing financially, that is the Department of Transportation's Bureau of Transportation Statistics. The BTS requires the airlines to complete a document each quarter called the FORM 41. The BTS then compiles that information and puts it out so that you, the taxpayer, has an indication on how the US airline industry is performing.

Now to the heart of the matter.... We all keep hearing how bad Eagle is doing. How we're a money pit. Costs are out of control. We're going down the bankruptcy tube, etc.

Let's take a look at the information that American Eagle reported on their Form 41's for 2004

2004 Total Operating Revenue = $1,445,784,000
-- ( In comparison to 2003 = +28.2% )

2004 Total Operating Expenses = $1,226,598,000
-- ( in comparison to 2003 = +28.9% )

2004 Operating Profit = $219,196,000

2004 Net Income = $48,804,000

No matter which way you cut it Eagle was profitable in 2004 or they lied to the US Department of Transportation and the Securites Exchange Commission.

Granted, it was a tougher year in 2004 then it was in 2003 when American Eagle reported an Operating Profit of $177 million which resulted in a Net Income of $60 million.

So how's 2005 going for Eagle? The April issue of Eagle’s company newspaper Connections claimed a "record first-quarter onboard loss" and that "cost per departure has risen and is now higher than the amount of revenue Eagle generates per departure." Sounds pretty bleak, huh? Well, let's take a look at what American Eagle reported to the DOT on it's Forum 41 for the first-quarter of 2005...

Click Here:
http://www.bts.gov/press_releases/2005/bts027_05/html/bts027_05.html

In the first-quarter of 2005 Eagle reported a $54.6 million Operating PROFIT. Only Southwest airlines had a larger Operating Profit for the first-quarter of 2005, but yet all we heard was the doom and gloom in the Connections article. Things that make you go hmmmmm!

The regional affiliates of AMR may actually have a $66 million loss but I can assure you that it wasn't because of American Eagle. I suspect a large portion of it is due to the American Connection agreements. AMR has paid a $23.2 million dollar fine to APA for violating their scope clause with the American Connection reverse code sharing scam. AMR has also paid APA $500,000.00 through June 30, 2005 and is continuing to pay an additional $30,000 per day going forward because of the scope violation due to Chautauqua flying EMB-170's for United Airlines.

It's all about the numbers and how you want them spun!

 

[tubelcane]

AA73 by "all" do you include TWA furloughs also?

PHX767 I had the same experience on my last jumpseat home. The capt. couldn't stop foaming at the mouth about all of the open trips. I'd flown with him before and he knew there were furloughs coming within a week. Well now he's furloughed like most of the rest of us. I hope he choked on all of his open time. Union brothership, that's an oxymoron. It's more like how fast can I stab you in the back. Oh is that your dog over there let me just kick him a few times while you pull the knife from your back.

 

[aa73]

AA73 by "all" do you include TWA furloughs also?

Oh, sure, why not (sarcasm...) Of course! They are furloughed AA pilots just like the rest of them! And a whole bunch of 'em are guys I went to school with.

PHX767 I had the same experience on my last jumpseat home. The capt. couldn't stop foaming at the mouth about all of the open trips. I'd flown with him before and he knew there were furloughs coming within a week. Well now he's furloughed like most of the rest of us. I hope he choked on all of his open time. Union brothership, that's an oxymoron. It's more like how fast can I stab you in the back. Oh is that your dog over there let me just kick him a few times while you pull the knife from your back.

That is typical, and unfortunately I still see it a lot on the line today. Scumbags.