How to save the Airline Industry

[castle bravo]

I dont know if you you dropped out of high school but the only thing we support in the US is the dairy farmer. Its called CAPITALISM,,,jeez read a book. What you speak of would be a form of SOCIALISM. not good

Take yet another look at AMTRAK!!!!

 

[castle bravo]

I think if you take a look a the big picture an exec does effect the lives of others. Because they have the "authority" to run the company they way they want (to a certain degree).


John Dasburg had the "authority to run" right to Burger King's open arms.
Richard Anderson had the "authority to run" right to United Health Care. When the going gets rough, management "runs" all right......

 

[Yank McCobb]

LOL,,.

Yep...I'm LOL

At a jacka$$ who works for one of the extreme bottom feeders in YIP.

Who cares what you think. It's obvious WHY you think the way you do. Everyone here should just let you go on your merry way. You are what you are and you think what you think and noone gives a crap.

So keep those auto parts moving, and keep those pilots in line. Jacka$$.

 

[Huck]

I remember when Exec Jet got 737's - they needed to hire some captains off the street until the line guys could get some time in the plane and upgrade.

So they advertised for 737 captains: $136,000 a year to start.

What is important is that Warren Buffet owned the company. I would argue that this salary was as close to a "free market" amount you could find. Imagine what they would have paid had Buffet owned 777's....

By the way, I just finished my international loft for the MD11 here at Fedex. One of 7 (that's seven) lofts I have to pass AFTER my checkride. It was Hong Kong, Subic, Beijing - headsets on, plates out, real time, and a "dummy" seatfiller captain so I had to do all the headwork. And this is just to get to IOE! "Yank and bank" my a$$....

 

[Clyde]

LOL,,,what, you dont feel that a guy should get paid $240,000 a year to work 8 days a month? If your an exec at a corp and you make 240 a year your a$$ workes 80 hours a week and you probably graduated from Harvard. Well good news,,,neither does natural economic forces. A re-alignment BACK into reality is underway for Legacy pilots as we speak. Your comment is probably gonna get ya blasted by some crusty, clockin a quarter mil, but livin off 30k of it because of the train reck a career in this industry leaves behind. I mean come on guys a quarter mil to yank and bank? We're not brain surgeons. If you need proof just read any thread in here.

$240K/yr and only working 8 days a month? Wow, where can I find a job like that? Last year, I worked an average of 16 days a month and only brought home $105K.

I'm glad you protest making so much and flying so little, someone needs to fly the trash out of KYIP and you sound like the ideal person to do it. Besides, we want pilots who are going to raise the bar, not lower it.

Think about that as you fly your Part 91 deadhead back to KYIP after being on duty for 14 hours and awake for 30+ hours.

 

[Mr Zog]

I dont know if you you dropped out of high school but the only thing we support in the US is the dairy farmer. Its called CAPITALISM,,,jeez read a book. What you speak of would be a form of SOCIALISM. not good

How does regulation equate to Socialism? I am not saying go back to the 70's, but there has to be some kind of medium. The airline industry abroad is heavily subsidized. How can US carriers compete? Answer, they can't. Capitalism only works in an environment free of barriers. That is not the case in the airline industry. If we let the airlines "evolve" the way you like and remove all regulations (allowing a true free market), in 10-15 years we all will be flying Air China or Korean Airlines from ABQ to BNA. In fact, last week the Fed appeared before Congress on the ongoing currency situation in China. The government of China is arbitraily devaluing their currency to help their economy and giving them an unfair advantage in trade. This is the type of market we (the airline industry) cannot compete in.

Oh, and by the way. I was a double major in college, not that it matters. And one of the majors was Economics. In fact, you helped pay for my education. So, belated thanks.

 

[Freight Dog]

The fundamental problem in our industry is the lack of accountability.

You have CEO's and upper management running off with $$$$$ while employee groups take paycuts, lose retirement, etc.

Sorry, but there should be NO bonuses for the management unless the airline posts a profit. As long as the unions give in to the b.s. of 'saving the airline' by taking paycuts, this downward spiral will continue. The issue is not the employees, it's the corporate America rejects running our airlines coupled with unwillingness of the employee groups to call the management bluff and dare them to shut down.

 

[TAZ MAN]

The bottom line is there is too much competition. Too many seats on too many carriers not charging enough. The LCC's for now are doing there own thing in their own markets with a few exceptions. Sort of like how regulation was. Now you have the legacies competing with each other. If one doesn't go along with a hike in fares then no one raises prices. What other industry doesn't raise their prices when their cost of supplies go up. When concrete goes up, my contractor charges me more. Always. Peculiar how we don't charge more when oil rises. It wouldn't be a load of money. Probably 10 bucks a passenger. But with all this competition its that narrow. Really insane.

The only way for this to work its way out is to consolidate or let a few go out of business. It really is that simple. I vote for consolidation. But no matter which way it goes, more jobs will be lost for a while. Deregulation will only succeed with a few legacies. If all the pilots worked for free, the business still wouldn't have made a profit.

Some of the management is bad, but some is ok and they are still losing their asses.

Good luck to us all.

 

[pipejockey]

The bottom line is there is too much competition. Too many seats on too many carriers not charging enough.

I agree with the "not charging enough". But I don't understand all these people saying there are too many seats, meaning excess capacity. Load factors are at record breaking levels. I remember flying in 2000, and 2001 and I would often have an empty seat beside me. Forget it now! If the airlines can't make any money with the overwhelming demand we are seeing these days, they will never turn a profit until oil hits 30 a barrel or everyone works for free. And as far as I'm concerned we are all but working for free compared to what we should be earning.

 

[TAZ MAN]

I agree with the "not charging enough". But I don't understand all these people saying there are too many seats, meaning excess capacity.

Supply and demand. If too much supply, create the demand. Create the demand by offering lower priced seats. I worked for an airline one time that sold the entire seating capacity for a summer at half price. Completely filled the airline but went bankrupt in June of THAT summer. If they didn't sell the seats for that price they would have gone bankrupt sooner.

The problem with the legacies is that if they get any smaller with such extreme competition they will not be able to compete as much. They wouldn't have as many markets to offer and may not be appealing to the frequent flyer who is their bread and butter.

Consolidation is the key. It would provide fewer competition but hold onto market share. The problem is that any two airlines that marry will have some overlapping in their routes and will need fewer airplanes and employees. AWA and USair for example. they make the announcement and almost in the same breath say there are 50 more airplanes than they need.

Or have a United, Delta, NWA or of the like go under you will have a few hundred airplanes worth of routes reduced from capacity. No matter how its done...its the only long term fix in the industry. Sad but true.

Again, I think the likelihood is consolidation. Nationally its far more accepting to stomach. If this USair/AWA has any legs to it, you will see more consolidation to come. Delta and NWA would be a great merger for the passenger. But any merger is tough on its employees.

Good luck to us all.