Boyd on RJ's 30 April 07

[DiverDriver]

I love the puddle jumper comment when people get on. Yah, it's a puddle jumper. If you consider the Great Lakes (all of them) puddles.

 

[BoilerUP]

I love the puddle jumper comment when people get on. Yah, it's a puddle jumper. If you consider the Great Lakes (all of them) puddles.

Had a little girl screaming down the jetbridge the other day "I'M GONNA DIE, THAT AIRPLANE IS TOO SMALL, I DON'T WANNA DIE!!!" Her poor father looked so sheepishly at us, all we could do was laugh.

When an RJ is too small for a 6 year old girl of all people, you know there is a problem...

 

[RJAA]

and of course the majority of this country's people would have problems fitting into that forward lav on a CRJ700.

 

[acarpe3448]

Had a little girl screaming down the jetbridge the other day "I'M GONNA DIE, THAT AIRPLANE IS TOO SMALL, I DON'T WANNA DIE!!!" Her poor father looked so sheepishly at us, all we could do was laugh.

When an RJ is too small for a 6 year old girl of all people, you know there is a problem...

Was she getting on a Comair flight?

 

[crjdxr]

Oh that's bad form.

 

[JonnyKnoxville]

Was she getting on a Comair flight?

Very classy...I forgot that your airline has a perfect record doesn't it.

 

[Morning Wood]

A metaphor such as the F terminal at ORD being: The fall of Saigon re-enactment?

Yeah he has used that one a lot, but the first time I heard it I thought it was pretty funny.

 

[Bako Cap]

Actually, pay to play is not a new concept. Sorry Boyd, you're still lacking any insight by rehashing the obvious. The regional industry used to be all code-share not fee-for-departure. The regionals were only paid for the seats that were sold. Jerry Atkin was a pioneer in the fee-for-departure when he inked a deal with Delta to actually make a profit on the CRJ back in '95-'96. Delta wanted the CRJ to fly routes but didn't have the loads to allow SkyWest to break even. Fee-for-departure became an industry standard when every other airline wanted to dump their props for "All jet" service and still turn a profit back when there was not many 50 seat jets in service or being built. Ask anyone who knows about United being a "Black Widow", they used to control the profit margins of their partners on a daily basis to keep a regional in check or destroy them. Competition is going to get fierce in the next couple of years. However, I don't believe that will affect us too much as pilots. With the "qualified" pilot shortage, airlines will buyout competitors, not for physical assets, but for their pilots/mechanics and other trained labor

 

[~~~^~~~]

Good post!

Jerry Atkin was a pioneer in the fee-for-departure when he inked a deal with Delta to actually make a profit on the CRJ back in '95-'96. Delta wanted the CRJ to fly routes but didn't have the loads to allow SkyWest to break even.

Delta is very smart about using the RJ's to get the passengers in their 757's and 767's to make a profit. Delta looks at more than just the DCI part of the customer's trip - they analyze the margins.

Competition is going to get fierce in the next couple of years. However, I don't believe that will affect us too much as pilots. With the "qualified" pilot shortage, airlines will buyout competitors, not for physical assets, but for their pilots/mechanics and other trained labor

I hope you are right, but history tells a different story. In almost every previous buy out management has wanted to re-staff with new hires and usually the incumbant pilots are willing to even sign concessionary "B scales" on flying that they know they will never have to perform. The only reason pilots got integrated in the past was because of ALPA.

Without ALPA - jeesh - welcome to the street.

When the regional consolidation starts I don't think it will be good for anyone except for managers who are adept at making deals and moving on. These days regionals WANT employees to move on so they can operate with low cost new hires. The days where airlines wanted you for a career are over - apparently training expenses are not the consideration they once were.

 

[Bako Cap]

I've got my fingers crossed because I'm a glass half full kind of guy.