Mesa to go to China

[GOTAFLY]

Mesa Air Group Signs Landmark Agreement in China With Shenzhen Airlines
Thursday December 21, 10:00 pm ET
BEIJING, Dec. 21 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Mesa Air Group Inc. (Nasdaq: MESA - News), today signed a Joint Venture agreement with Shenzhen Airlines to create a Chinese regional airline, the name of which is yet to be determined. The new airline is expected to commence scheduled services within 12 months, initially operating 50-seat regional jets on domestic routes within the People's Republic of China. Focus cities for the new services will include Shenzhen, Beijing, Chongqing, Xiamen, Nanjing, Kunming, Dalian, Shenyang, Xian, Zhengzhou and Nanning.
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(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/19990210/LAW065)
Mesa Air Group Chairman and CEO, Jonathan Ornstein said, "We are delighted and privileged to be the first US passenger airline to form a strategic alliance to create a new airline to operate in The People's Republic of China. Under the leadership of its President Mr. Li Kun, Shenzhen Airlines has earned an outstanding reputation in the industry with its modern fleet of Boeing and Airbus aircraft. We at Mesa look forward to making a positive contribution to the development of the regional airline industry in China and to forging a strong, long-term relationship with our friends at Shenzhen Airlines."
Shenzhen Airlines was founded in 1992 and currently operates a fleet of 45 new generation A320 and B737 aircraft, flying 100 routes within mainland China and South East Asia. The company has carried nearly 5.3 million passengers this year, employs 6300 people and is headquartered in the metropolis of Shenzhen, in southern China's Guangdong Province.
Shenzhen Airlines President Li Kun said, "Today represents an important milestone for our company as through this joint venture we extend our service to many smaller communities throughout the country. Mesa's experience and reputation as a leader in the regional airline industry make it the perfect choice to partner with us in launching this new regional airline. I wish to thank Jonathan and his team for their enthusiastic support and look forward to a long and successful partnership as together we work to build a world class regional airline."
China currently has just 70 regional jets in operation, flying for seven different carriers. The new carrier, Beijing Airlines, expects to have 20 50-seat regional jets in service prior to the Beijing Olympic Games in 2008, growing to more than 100 planes within five years, comprising a mix of 50, 70 and 90 seat regional jet aircraft.
Commenting further on the joint venture from Beijing, Ornstein said, "Mesa will initially provide significant technical capability, including pilot, maintenance and operations support and training, as well as the sourcing of aircraft. We see this new partnership as a great opportunity to continue growing our business and further diversify our airline operations. The potential for Mesa to grow our business with Shenzhen Airlines through this partnership is significant. With a population of more than 1.2 billion people, China is the world's fastest growing air travel market. There are currently 134 airports with plans to grow that number to 200 over the next ten years. Furthermore, 40 of the 50 largest airports have expansion projects underway or planned."
Mesa currently operates 199 aircraft with over 1,300 daily system departures to 173 cities, 43 states, Canada, Mexico and the Bahamas. Mesa operates as America West Express, Delta Connection, US Airways Express and United Express under contractual agreement with America West, Delta Air Lines, US Airways and United Airlines, respectively, and independently as Mesa Airlines. Effective June 9, 2006 Mesa launched inter-island Hawaiian service as go! This new operation links Honolulu to the neighbor island airports of Hilo, Kahului, Kona, and Lihue. The Company, founded by Larry and Janie Risley in New Mexico in 1982, has approximately 5,000 employees. Mesa is a member of the Regional Airline Association and Regional Aviation Partners. The Company was named 2005 Regional Airline of the Year by Air Transport World Magazine.
This press release contains various forward-looking statements that are based on management's beliefs, as well as assumptions made by and information currently available to management. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable; it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to have been correct. Such statements are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those anticipated, estimated, projected or expected.
For further information please visit our website at: www.mesa-air.com

 

[suupah]

maybe they'll stay in china and not come back. he can change his name to xianothan xhenstein

 

[Jack Mehoff]

So I wonder if this is the proof that Mesa if finally getting their A$$e$ canned at one of the code shares.

 

[Superpilot92]

Its probably Johnny O's new way to try and Fcuk up contract negotiations for mesas next pilot contract. Dont fall for his crap. Thats the next freedom, fine you want a raise? I will just send the planes to China and they will fly for 10 bucks an hour over there. What a douchbag!!

 

[MarineGrunt]

And the sad thing is, given China's explosive economy, I'm willing to bet that this venture will be pretty successful... should be interesting/nauseating to watch.

 

[bustinmins]

I don't think Mesa can offer a salary below CBA levels - regardless where the pilots are located. Mesa pilots won some pretty tight scope protections at the cost of Quality of Life in the last contract (if you can call it that). Regardless where these pilots are, they have to be "Mesa Pilots" and paid Mesa Rates (no matter how ugly they are). I am sure JO is up to something. He always is. However, it will be interesting to see how this plays out.

XYV

 

[Soverytired]

maybe they'll stay in china and not come back. he can change his name to xianothan xhenstein

I am SO stealing that!


ROLF!


MESA

M aking
E veryone
S uffer
(in)
A sia

 

[Soverytired]

Here's how Mesa will succeed in China!

This is pretty funny. Apparently the government of China can actually ORDER it's airline passengers to to STFU and stop complaining.

This kinda says it all (and why Mesa will fit in just fine):

"Chinese airline passengers have long got used to surly cabin crew, decrepit in-flight entertainment systems and mysterious delays where aircraft full of people are just left on the tarmac"


http://today.reuters.com/news/artic...asicIndustries&storyid=nPEK6125&from=business

Stop complaining, China tells airline passengers

BEIJING, Dec 22 (Reuters) - The food's bad, the airport coffee costs too much, the in-flight service is terrible, the flight's delayed and your suitcase got destroyed in transit -- well, it's your fault for having unrealistic expectations.

China's civil aviation authority, seeking to head off an upsurge in consumer complaints about domestic air travel, this week issued a plea to long-suffering travellers to stop complaining so much.

"We hope to increase consumers' understanding about the special nature of the civil aviation industry, so that together we can create a cosier, more harmonious aviation travel environment," the General Administration of Civil Aviation of China said on its Web site (www.caac.gov.cn).

"What must be stressed is that safety is at the root of airline travel, and on-board service revolves around this," it said.

"That is what restricts the type of food carried, as well as the fact that on-board food is frozen first for freshness then reheated, so naturally the flavour suffers," the statement added.

Chinese airline passengers have long got used to surly cabin crew, decrepit in-flight entertainment systems and mysterious delays where aircraft full of people are just left on the tarmac.

But passengers have fought back by refusing to leave aircraft until compensation is paid for late flights, storming runways in protest and breaking down locked doors when herded into lounges after unannounced diversions to remote airports.

The airlines counter that it is the passengers who are unruly and poorly educated about flying, adding they are spending billions of dollars on new aircraft and improving service, especially ahead of the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

 

[CA1900]

I bet you could fit 70 people in a CRJ-200 if you narrowed the seats and the aisle, and got rid of a bit of the legroom......

 

[jetpig32]

Its probably Johnny O's new way to try and Fcuk up contract negotiations for mesas next pilot contract. Dont fall for his crap. Thats the next freedom, fine you want a raise? I will just send the planes to China and they will fly for 10 bucks an hour over there. What a douchbag!!

I've got a bad feeling about this.

 

[labbats]

Is it true that Mesa has slowed, if not stopped all jet hiring?

If that's true with their attrition rates, then it speaks volumes that there's a shakeup in the works.

 

[mdanno808]

If MAG owns 49% of the company, and it's not operated under the MAG umbrella, then how will the CBA be an issue. They are starting a new venture with a partner airline, and only providing aircraft and support such as training. This seems to be simply an investment for MAG in order to diversify their operations. Please correct me if I'm wrong, as I don't know anything about the Mesa CBA.

 

[#%&@$!]

So they will use Mesa pilots to start up operation, until they can get Chinese pilots trained. Once these Chinese pilots are trained, what's to keep them from flying US routes.

Is this outsourcing Mesa flying and bypassing cabotage, or am I just paranoid?

 

[CX880]

Is it true that Mesa has slowed, if not stopped all jet hiring?

If that's true with their attrition rates, then it speaks volumes that there's a shakeup in the works.

I don't think so, I just started a thread about Air Midwest hiring and the guy from mesa says they don't have enough RJ guys and the next classes will probably go all RJ.

 

[Tim47SIP]

Holly cow! Think about the commute!

Yeeeouzzzzzzzz!

 

[Stifler's Mom]

Holly cow! Think about the commute!

Yeeeouzzzzzzzz!

Commute? What commute? With only 8 days off a month, who has time to commute? By the time you get back to the US, you'll have to start heading back to China.

 

[yahooair]

nice...now well get to screw over some of asias pilots too!!

 

[Prop2Jet]

ChiCom Supporters suck.

 

[relief tube]

yep, and with getting paid crap and still having to pay the taxes, they'll be breaking even at best. But with 8 days off and having to commute, they at least won't have to have a place to live, so rent wont be an issue.

Crappy company, horrible QOL, evil CEO, but hot CEO daughter...

 

[RJAA]

Holly cow! Think about the commute!

Yeeeouzzzzzzzz!

They'd probably find a local flight school, hook up a sim there, hire locals and pay them 80 cents an hour. They will probably find a way to do it.

 

[tyuwerty]

The real effect here will not be on pilots working inside North America. Countries in Asia, India, the Middle East have a severe shortage of experienced and qualified pilots. Therefore, they pay a healthy premiuim to get expat pilots from more developed countries to come in and fly their airplanes.

For a very long time this has been a hidden cash cow where guys can bank over a million+ US dollars tax free in a relatively short period of time (compared to working in the US).

The contracts have traditionally included housing, per diem, big blocks of vacation, tax free salaries, regular business class travel back to the home country several times a year, school costs and health insurance for the whole family.

Basically, MESA is exporting their cheap pilot force and will be destroying the premiums and benefits Expat pilots have always been paid. They helped lower the bar in North America, now they have decided to go Global with their Walmart style work force.

As an Expat working overseas, this really worries me. They are no better than the third world pilots that have started to under cut in India.

 

[SuperPilot]

So I guess JO has run out of US airlines to piss off and is now starting to branch out internationally.

Fun.

 

[federico]

Mesa is gonna get hit in the US and needs a place to send their jets and the chinese will takes all the jets possible. I hope mesa doesnt screw up the good expat wages in china. Can you imagine flying on a bowl of noodles a day

 

[Prop2Jet]

How about flying them to Taiwan after they invade! Screw the Chicoms man!
They are just using us.

 

[threegreen]

Just wait until they develop opposable thumbs. Then we're all screwed.

 

[altscap]

One rumor has it that mesa planes, mesa pilots, and mesa mechanics will start the operation, but the FA's will be chinese so they will understand what the pax are complaining about. After things are up and running, who knows what kind of dirt will be found in the corners.

Mgmt. just asked for resumes from guys wanting to become IOE Captains. Not sure why they did this though, training is so slow that they are putting the sim instructors on the front line.

Our plan to get rid of mgmt. was about to work too, darnit; keep the industry informed of how bad it is here so no-one wants to work here, then they can't hire anyone, so they make us all fly until we're timed out or fatigued, then no planes can fly by the end of the year because ther are no legal crews. None of the majors want to do bizz with JO as it is so we aren't getting any new contracts, then we start losing the contracts we do have ecause the planes are sitting on the ramp, this will require the board will have to make changes at the top. The only problem is that we have a huge confilct of interest here in that the BOD is made up of all of JO's buddies so they won't boot him out as long as he is making them money. If only the SEC new about THAT situation.

So, yes, it wouldn't surprise me to see a chinese FO sitting next to me some day. I would say that the pilot shortage in china could work in our favor, but they are starting to realize that women can fly airplanes too and are opening the trapdoor in the glass ceiling.

And of course we can all count on those "Freedumb A" scumbags to help mgmt. get things started.

 

[mdanno808]

And of course we can all count on those "Freedumb A" scumbags to help mgmt. get things started.

ttuite, are you and your buddies up for the job?

 

[Ineedabrew]

They'd probably find a local flight school, hook up a sim there, hire locals and pay them 80 cents an hour. They will probably find a way to do it.

Yeah, but they will have to have American pilots just to taxi. Ever seen a chinese guy drive.

Oh,

That's it I am going straight to hell