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More Boyd-isms for Delta and RJs...

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Could not agree with you more, I just sat next to a business customer enroute to IAH, and he told me he avoids the ERJ. It works for him on a 1.5 hour flight, but almost three hours is too long. Huh, just want the studies have shown at UAL.

The 70 seat is much better than the ERJ, but you still get that "tubular" feel.

Right now Delta has three 737's goin to IAH so it looks like they will add a 70 seat, better than nothing. Does the MD-90 hold more folks?

Regarding Boyd, I don't know what to think, but it does seem like the 50 seat RJ has its days numbered. The question is who will fly the 90-100 seat aircraft?Please be mainline, regardless of the pay rate, just get them on the property. Lets get this right this time!
 
Hey BID, get back to work! ;)
 
For high revenue business travellers frequency is King. If the choice is a cramped seat or another night in the hotel away from the family, the cramped seat always wins. That is why an RJ goes ATL-JFK at the crack of dawn.

and, I think the CRJ200 equipped with 40 seats is the most comfortable narrow body ride Delta has short of first class in anything. Besides, the Connection stewardesses are better looking.

Of course a 40 seat RJ is just begging to be parked - 20% less revenue with the same fuel burn as the 50 seaters.
 
~~~^~~~ said:
For high revenue business travellers frequency is King. If the choice is a cramped seat or another night in the hotel away from the family, the cramped seat always wins. That is why an RJ goes ATL-JFK at the crack of dawn.

and, I think the CRJ200 equipped with 40 seats is the most comfortable narrow body ride Delta has short of first class in anything. Besides, the Connection stewardesses are better looking.

Of course a 40 seat RJ is just begging to be parked - 20% less revenue with the same fuel burn as the 50 seaters.

Fins,

I think that the "frequency is king" notion was the one that Fred Reid used to convince the Delta board to finance hundreds of RJs for ASA and Comair... That was the rationale used. However, now that you have low-cost carriers flying the same routes with larger aircraft, lower fares and pretty good frequency, the RJs just don't work on the popular trunk routes - that's a fact. All it takes is the LCC adding more flights on the same routes and it will become uneconomical to fly the RJs with competing low fares...

I remember when AWA used Mesa CRJs (primarily CR7s and CR9s) on the popular PHX-LAX and PHX-SNA routes and they competed against SWA 737s. Well, business travelers were very vocal about their dislike of the CRJ and its cramped quarters. If you look at the schedule now, you won't find many CRJs - only A319s, 733s and 757s. With lower fares making RJ economics difficult, you won't find many RJs on the trunk routes. Instead, they should be used on non-LCC routes where nonstop point-to-point service (like PHX-MRY or PHX-Santa Barbara) can charge a premium (business travelers would probably accept the cramped conditions if they can fly nonstop)... In this case, the RJs can be "somewhat" profitable because the airfares tend to be higher on thinner routes where LCC competition is non-existent. Frequency doesn't work on trunk routes with RJs in a low-fare environment anymore...
 
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"For high revenue business travellers frequency is King. If the choice is a cramped seat or another night in the hotel away from the family, the cramped seat always wins."

This is true. But at what expense? How many customers do you LOSE to an LCC or competitor that flies a larger aircraft? Maybe even one equipped with a laptop power port.

I live with a business traveler, so I hear all of her gripes.
  • Boarding via airstairs vs. jetway in all weather conditions
  • Inoperative APUs prior to boarding (she doesn't want to sweat when she is dressed for a business meeting)
  • Tray-tables are not large enough to use the laptop
  • CRJ has the air-conditioning conduit running under the windows at ankle-height. Limits underseat storage.
  • No opportunity to upgrade to first-class
  • Terminal "C" in Cincinnati was an afterthought. Riding a bus to get to a train to get to the street is time consuming.
Most of her gripes deal with a simple premise. Time is money.

It is difficult for us to sometimes understand because, as pilots, we dont view time dedheading or commuting as lost productivity. For us, its time to take a nap, or read a book.

But for the legions of road-warriors who fly the airlines every week, it is much more. It is time away from the office, from cell-phones, from co-workers, to get some actual WORK done without interuption.

Yes, frequency is king. However having the space to use a full-sized laptop, or extract documents from the carry-on under your seat in-flight without being a circus contortionist.... those are invaluable.

As a businesswoman, the ability to walk off of the airplane in a dry, heated or air-conditioned jetway is invaluable. It allows her to look presentable if she is going directly to a meeting with her client.

The RJ has had its day. It took the traveling public from the Saab and the Shorts to a more dignified method of air travel. Consumers are fickle though. Faced with the option of an RJ vs. an E-Jet, or a full sized LCC... they will likely choose the latter...

...unless its that last flight home and will keep them from having to spend one more night in a hotel.

Is that the kind of customer service we want the airlines to provide?

"I'll ride it if I have to to get home tonight."

Nobody is expecting PanAm Flying Boats. White glove service. Staterooms. Wine Stewards. Live entertainment.

But if given the option between a CRJ and an Airbus.... what would you choose?
 
I guess since we are so smart on this board then we should be in charge of revenue management...... or we could just fly them and constructively figure out how to stop the race to the bottom (it will not fix it self and ALPA has done little to help).


Why don't we start taking a portion of revenue just for pilots and use a 4 month moving average divided by the 4 month moving average of active pilots to determine pay rates. Why this works? there is motivation there for us and it fixes the amount of money management pays to pilots. This way in bad times the amount of money pilots make goes down, without having to renegotiate and in good times, pilot pay goes up. This leaves ALPA left to discuss work rules, scheduling, etc.... but it would be in the pilot groups best interest to be more productive, since everyone wants a bigger piece of the pie.
 
General Lee said:
I know, and that has been our problem. RJs should fly from hubs to small/medium sized cities, or point to point from large cities to small cities. When you throw them against AA on routes from MCO to DFW, you are asking for a loss. Especially with 50 seat RJs, which we are doing. Maybe the MCO to BTR route will be a good one for us, but the MCO to DFW and MCI are going to be money losers.

Bye Bye--General Lee

I thought you were a smart guy and could figure this one out. It's called "FF" program. That is the only reason DAL did it for those FF that want to take the family to Disney, and not go through ATL, on their miles.
 
Texx said:
I thought you were a smart guy and could figure this one out. It's called "FF" program. That is the only reason DAL did it for those FF that want to take the family to Disney, and not go through ATL, on their miles.

Those routes will be money losers if only FF miles are used. Not everyone flying to MCO is going to Disneyworld....
 
Okay I know this is a theme that comes up over and over again. I fly an CRJ however I do not make the business plan for the company I am employed by or fly under. I flew the Brasilia before the CRJ, and the industry shift to CRJ's or Erj was not the downfall of mainline. I am tired of people blaming the regionals for the downfall of mainline. It reads like the RJDC crap and save mainline crap misses the point, whatever end of the stick you are holding, right now there is a good chance the crap is going to rub off on you. Either mainline or the regionals, we all are trying to make a living and not at the expense of each other. However, in most cases we speak publicly out of one side of our mouth about solidarity, however the public forum that is anonymous like this we cut each other down to the bone. It is just sad to see. Attack me as you want to, most of these posts are not debate or sharing information any more, they are avenues to vent and be frustrated. Blame not responsibility, reaction not pro-action, we are all bleeding and the last time I look it is all the same color of red.
 
ASADFW7 said:
Okay I know this is a theme that comes up over and over again. I fly an CRJ however I do not make the business plan for the company I am employed by or fly under. I flew the Brasilia before the CRJ, and the industry shift to CRJ's or Erj was not the downfall of mainline. I am tired of people blaming the regionals for the downfall of mainline. It reads like the RJDC crap and save mainline crap misses the point, whatever end of the stick you are holding, right now there is a good chance the crap is going to rub off on you. Either mainline or the regionals, we all are trying to make a living and not at the expense of each other. However, in most cases we speak publicly out of one side of our mouth about solidarity, however the public forum that is anonymous like this we cut each other down to the bone. It is just sad to see. Attack me as you want to, most of these posts are not debate or sharing information any more, they are avenues to vent and be frustrated. Blame not responsibility, reaction not pro-action, we are all bleeding and the last time I look it is all the same color of red.

Well put!
 

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