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Backlash from "Fuel Conservation" cancellations

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Dec 21, 2001
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Delta Airlines Says It Is Reducing Its Domestic Flight Schedule to Conserve Fuel


ATLANTA (AP) -- Delta Air Lines Inc., buffeted by high fuel costs in the wake of Katrina and Rita, said it is reducing its domestic flight schedule.
The Atlanta-based carrier isn't experiencing a shortage of jet fuel, but is conserving energy, it said.
Delta spokeswoman Chris Kelly said it's impossible to say exactly how many flights will be reduced because it will depend on travel each day.

Wow, the response was darn near immediate.

Two of our clients (one a Fortune 100 Company) has just sent out e-mails cautioning against using Delta for travel on their accounts. It seems the arbitrary cancellation of Delta flights will not be tolerated by business travellers. LAX to ATL is getting at least one cancellation of a 767 per day - but no one can tell which flights are getting cancelled :(

This could not have come out at a better time for the manufacturer of Eclipse Jets and the other light business jets, or AirTran for that matter. Delta was called "unreliable" by one of the very largest purchasers of corporate travel in this Country.

I guess the choices out of Atlanta are AirTran and charter to where AirTran does not go. Jeesh, seems like Delta would stop trying to find ways to make enemies in the business world. If a huge customer like G.M., A.I.G., G.E., tells you to be at a meeting at 0900 to address their managers, you don't have the option of calling at 09:15 to tell them you are still in LA because Delta was not able to fill up their 767-300. Do that more than once in my business and your competitor will take your client away from you.

We have airplanes for our travel within 500 NM. Previously almost all of our longer distance travel was on Delta, usually on walk up fares. Several folks have been defecting to AirTran because they get upgraded to business class easier. This will only increase the momentum of business travellers away from "unreliable" Delta.
 
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Well, maybe this is how they did it at Gucci...it just gets better and better, doesn't it ?
 
~~~^~~~ said:
Wow, the response was darn near immediate.

Two of our clients (one a Fortune 100 Company) has just sent out e-mails cautioning against using Delta for travel on their accounts. It seems the arbitrary cancellation of Delta flights will not be tolerated by business travellers. LAX to ATL is getting at least one cancellation of a 767 per day - but no one can tell which flights are getting cancelled :(

This could not have come out at a better time for the manufacturer of Eclipse Jets and the other light business jets, or AirTran for that matter. Delta was called "unreliable" by one of the very largest purchasers of corporate travel in this Country.

I guess the choices out of Atlanta are AirTran and charter to where AirTran does not go. Jeesh, seems like Delta would stop trying to find ways to make enemies in the business world. If a huge customer like G.M., A.I.G., G.E., tells you to be at a meeting at 0900 to address their managers, you don't have the option of calling at 09:15 to tell them you are still in LA because Delta was not able to fill up their 767-300. Do that more than once in my business and your competitor will take your client away from you.

We have airplanes for our travel within 500 NM. Previously almost all of our longer distance travel was on Delta, usually on walk up fares. Several folks have been defecting to AirTran because they get upgraded to business class easier. This will only increase the momentum of business travellers away from "unreliable" Delta.

Overkill there Fins. AA and other airlines are doing the same, and jet fuel prices prevent most middle managers from flying corporate. And when will those VLJ's come out in mass? Years. This flight cancellation deal is temporary during the slower SEP/OCT timeframe. AA started it too.

Bye Bye--General Lee
 
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Michael, watch the DAL stock ticker news. Someone is bound to pick up this story as the day goes on. I'm not going to post a Client's Company memo on the FlightInfo web board.

None the less, it stands to reason that if you had an important meeting you needed your employees to attend which was costing your employer, say $25,000 in travel, hotels, food and billable hours you would not want them flying on a carrier with an "unreliable" schedule. By the same token, if you were that employee and you knew for sure you could get home on AirTran, but there was a decent chance your Delta flight would get cancelled, who would you choose?

The memos we got were cautionary - along the same lines as the memos we sometimes get involving travel to parts of the World they send us to anyway as soon as the memo was written. But, for those with concerns about Delta's reliability in bankruptcy, those fears are being confirmed that Delta, although cheap, can not be counted on.
 
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General Lee said:
AA and other airlines are doing the same, and jet fuel prices prevent most middle managers from flying corporate.

Bye Bye--General Lee

Keep thinking that; you're loss is my gain. Within our company, middle managers didn't really use our services before, but as you start cancelling flights to some of our key plants, I look for an increase in our passenger loads and cities pairs served. Remember, our fuel costs are very small in the grand scheme of things.
 
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fokkerjet said:
Keep thinking that; you're loss is my gain. Within our company, middle managers didn't really use our services before, but as you start cancelling flights to some of our key plants, I look for an increase in our passenger loads and cities pairs served. Remember, our fuel costs are very small in the grand scheme of things.

Hey, we average a dozen (12) flight cancellations a day out of thousands of flights. Easy there chief, stop drooling. Those flight cancellations are only temporary too, to get us through this slow season with unbelievable fuel costs. And your fuel costs are small? So is driving in an SUV to a plant 200 miles away, right? Wrong. Higher fuel hurts EVERYONE.

Bye Bye--General Lee
 
General:

At my previous job we "middle managers" were billed out between $75 and $225 an hour. This was a few years ago. Often we had to take attorneys on our trips with us at an average of $250 to $375 an hour. When you figure at least two hours are wasted on each leg with security and gate hassles it does not take long for simple hourly costs to add up to several thousand dollars.

The variable expense on our jet was $765 an hour. For trips in the Southeast we usually could realize a savings by flying our own jet if we had more than one person travelling to the same place. Also we could save time - rather than sitting with your neck stretched trying to discreetly discuss a deal in row 19 the jet allowed us to have a nice club seating arrangement, some room, a table, food and drink when we pleased not to mention the effect that it has on your client when you give them a ride in your jet.

Even today, with that same airplane probably costing $1,200 an hour we could save money, but the little business I'm a part of now cannot justify the 6 million acquisition cost and fixed expenses. But, we do each have our own aircraft for business trips (2 Bonanza's, a Saratoga, and a 421). We are probably an idea customer for a frax but AirTran seems to be working for the non-pilots in the office.

Our travel is last minute and it must happen when promised. I also moonlight as an airline pilot so it is necessary that I be home and rested in time to go to job #2. So, Delta's new policy if cancelling flights on an arbitrary basis if they don't have sufficient bookings is a deal breaker. We just can't rely on an airline we can't rely on.

I'm not a Delta detractor. Delta might have made the right choice for their business - but - we can not trust Delta to get us where we need to go when promised.
 
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Perception is stronger than reality, General. If the travelling public "thinks" their flight "may" be cancelled they will book away.TC
 

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