It seems pretty simple to put 737's on RJ routes, at least the RJ routes that support that kind of capacity. The regional fleets have gone way beyond regional flying. The system would work much better if regional jets reverted back to flying smaller destination to hubs, and not ORD-AUS 4 times a day. I really don't understand how the whole regional thing has gotten to where it is now. The regional fleets are expensive to operate, and although the crews make less money, for the passenger seats they fly, they are more expensive than the legacy guys. For instance, take a 10 year SKYW captain making 75 an hour and compare it to a 10 year A-320 captain making 130 an hour. Say the UAL A-320 holds an average of 145 people (two class config vs TED) compared to a CRJ holding 50. That means as far as pilot cost to the company, a skywest captain costs about 218 an hour to carry as many people as a UAL captain making 130. I know there are other small considerations to get a totally accurate comparison, but on top of that the regional fleet operates somewhere in the 14 cents per seat mile range where the legacy fleets seem to be in the high 10 lower 11. Doesn't make any sense, and I am surprised that a change hasn't been made accordingly. I think it is coming, I see very little regional expansion over the next 10 years. In addition to that, it would free up much needed space in the sky and on the ground at all the most congested airports.
