More Competition in Milwaukee for Midwest

[CitationLover]

So citation get over it, AirTran is in MKE and will be building a gateway for their East-West network. You will in the future see more expansion to the MKE market. By the end of 2009 you will probable see AirTran flying non-stop from MKE to: DEN, SLC, HOU, DFW, DCA, PHL, MONTREAL, CLT, AND MSY. Just to name a few. These are cities that were projected in AirTran's SEC filing during their attempt to buy Midwest. With or without Midwest, Airtran will continue to expand in MKE. It makes the most economical sense right now.

I'm not stuck on anything, you're the one posting all these articles and announcing it. Does Air Tran have a mental health plan?

 

[fam62c]

I see a lot of Airline CEO potential on this board.

Very, Very Impressive.

More potential than T.H. at MEH has, that's for sure. If it wasn't for AAI putting MEH in play you would have a $6/share stock right now. Don't kid yourself, most airline CEO's aren't that good, they basically lose money and blame it all on external factors prior to filing for Chapter 11........I'm as qualified as anyone to run a company into bankruptcy

 

[CitationLover]

More potential than T.H. at MEH has, that's for sure. If it wasn't for AAI putting MEH in play you would have a $6/share stock right now. Don't kid yourself, most airline CEO's aren't that good, they basically lose money and blame it all on external factors prior to filing for Chapter 11........I'm as qualified as anyone to run a company into bankruptcy

We got it, you hate Timmmay. Did he rape your momma or something? Go eat some grits.

 

[fam62c]

We got it, you hate Timmmay. Did he rape your momma or something? Go eat some grits.

Not exactly, but he put me and 400 others out of a job and if you work for MEH you'll probably be out of a job eventually too after T.H. walks off with his 10M. Enjoy your life under the thumb of a private equity outfit, they will squeeze your company for every penny and every ounce of productivity they can get out of it until there is nothing left. If you're lucky you end up on the bottom of the NWA and or NWA/DAL list. If you are unlucky they will just raid the gates/slots/pieces that they want without the employees and liquidate the rest of it. That way they get what they wanted, a buffer against a MKE LCC hub, without having to integrate a bunch of 10+ year employees and all of the hassles that go with a merger. We'll see how you feel in a few years when you're on the street and NWA/DAL/Compass/Mesaba/Comair/Skywest or whoever is flying the routes you used to fly. Maybe you'll get a preferential interview somewhere as a consolation prize. Bend over pal because bad things will be visiting you and all the good folks at MEH before too long. There's a lot of great people I know at MEH and I'm scared for them when I look at what's happening to us at Skyway before the NWA/TPG deal has even been signed. I hope I'm wrong. We all would have been way better off if AAI had bought MEH out, that was our chance to be part of a company with a future.

 

[IdRtherBsailing]

very, very impressive, long paragraphs. I cannot write such long paragraphs about airlines, but here is what I know about Weird Al.

The only child of Nick Yankovic (June 4, 1917–April 9, 2004; an American of Serbian descent) and Mary Elizabeth (née Vivalda; February 7, 1923–April 9, 2004, an American of Italian and English descent), Alfred was born in Downey, California, and raised in the neighboring town of Lynwood.[6] Nick was born in Kansas City, Kansas, and began living in California after serving during World War II.[7][8] He believed "the key to success" was "doing for a living whatever makes you happy" and often reminded his son of this philosophy.[7] Nick married Mary Vivalda in 1949. Mary, who had come to California from Kentucky, gave birth to Alfred ten years later.[7]
Alfred's first accordion lesson was on October 22, 1966, a day before his seventh birthday. A door-to-door salesman traveling through Lynwood offered the Yankovic parents a choice of accordion or guitar lessons at a local music school. Yankovic claims the reason his parents chose accordion over guitar was "They figured there should be at least one more accordion-playing Yankovic in the world," referring to Frankie Yankovic, to whom he has no relation.[7] He continued lessons at the school for three years before continuing to learn on his own.[6] Yankovic's early accordion role models include Frankie Yankovic and Myron Floren (the accordionist on The Lawrence Welk Show). In the 1970s, Yankovic was a big fan of Elton John and claims John's Goodbye Yellow Brick Road album "was partly how I learned to play rock 'n roll on the accordion."[7] He would repeatedly play the album and try to play along on his accordion. As for his influences in comedic and parody music, Yankovic lists artists including Tom Lehrer, Stan Freberg, Spike Jones, Allan Sherman, Shel Silverstein and Frank Zappa "and all the other wonderfully sick and twisted artists that he was exposed to through the Dr. Demento Radio Show."[9][6] Other sources of inspiration for his comedy come from Mad magazine,[7] Monty Python,[10] and the Zucker, Abrahams and Zucker parody movies.[11]
Yankovic began kindergarten a year earlier than most children, and he skipped the second grade. "My classmates seemed to think I was some kind of rocket scientist so I was labeled a nerd early on," he recalls.[7] As his unusual schooling left him two years younger than most of his classmates, Yankovic was not interested in sports or social events at school. He claims to have been a "straight A" student throughout high school, which earned him the honor of becoming valedictorian of his senior class.[7] Yankovic was fairly active in his school's extracurricular programs, including the National Forensic League (in which he "usually brought home some kind of trophy"), a play based upon Rebel Without a Cause, the yearbook program (for which he wrote most of the captions), and the Volcano Worshipper's Club, "which did absolutely nothing. We started the club just to get an extra picture of ourselves in the yearbook."[7]

 

[FlyWolf]

Not exactly, but he put me and 400 others out of a job and if you work for MEH you'll probably be out of a job eventually too after T.H. walks off with his 10M. Enjoy your life under the thumb of a private equity outfit, they will squeeze your company for every penny and every ounce of productivity they can get out of it until there is nothing left. If you're lucky you end up on the bottom of the NWA and or NWA/DAL list. If you are unlucky they will just raid the gates/slots/pieces that they want without the employees and liquidate the rest of it. That way they get what they wanted, a buffer against a MKE LCC hub, without having to integrate a bunch of 10+ year employees and all of the hassles that go with a merger. We'll see how you feel in a few years when you're on the street and NWA/DAL/Compass/Mesaba/Comair/Skywest or whoever is flying the routes you used to fly. Maybe you'll get a preferential interview somewhere as a consolation prize. Bend over pal because bad things will be visiting you and all the good folks at MEH before too long. There's a lot of great people I know at MEH and I'm scared for them when I look at what's happening to us at Skyway before the NWA/TPG deal has even been signed. I hope I'm wrong. We all would have been way better off if AAI had bought MEH out, that was our chance to be part of a company with a future.

fam62, how do you know TPG will do that to Midwest? I was just wondering, because looking at TPG history they never done that to any company they purchased?

 

[Eagle757shark]

I'm not stuck on anything, you're the one posting all these articles and announcing it. Does Air Tran have a mental health plan?

Citation, Grow up will you! As you have probable seen by now, the DOJ has approved the TPG deal. Now it will be pure head to head competition in MKE. Best of luck to your company and the employees who work daily to earn a living.

 

[FlyWolf]

As pilots thats a risk that comes with the profession, you know if we end up in the street we just pick up the pieces and carry on, and you should do the same.

 

[Eagle757shark]

Word on the street, this was a test to get an idea on how the DoJ would look at consolidation. The DoJ having now approved the TPG/Midwest deal, now look for the Delta and Northwest merger to be announced real soon. Hold on everyone, 2008 is going to be a wild ride.

 

[IdRtherBsailing]

Is that the Batwing?

 

[fam62c]

fam62, how do you know TPG will do that to Midwest? I was just wondering, because looking at TPG history they never done that to any company they purchased?

Wolf, Like I said I hope I'm wrong. I may be wrong but I think the other airline investments by TPG were equity stakes in carriers that were in Chapter 11 so the exit plan was obvious. Where is the upside to making any additonal investment in MEH? I don't think that TPG really wanted MEH in the first place or they would have bought all of MEH by themselves. They were acting as an agent for NWA, it's the only possible scenario and NWA must have a deal to pay them off and make them whole.

I also don't believe that NWA wants anything from MEH other than to use it as anti-LCC insurance in MKE. If NWA wanted MEH they would have bought it years ago but they never even tried. They only got involved to thwart AAI and that's been accomplished for now anyway. So TPG wants out with their money and NWA wants cheap insurance in MKE.....that tells me that there is no future for MEH. Compass could do most of what MEH does with E-175's and do it cheaper and that's where I think things go in a few years. Also, don't forget that NWA/DAL wasn't on the table when they bought MEH and it will play into this if it happens.

I don't know any more than anyone else but I don't see any future for MEH on it's own after a few years. BTW, that's good advice about moving on and accepting job loss as a pitfall of the industry. Remember that because sadly, I think you will need that advice if you fly for MEH. Again, I hope I'm wrong. Best of luck to all of those left at MEH.

 

[gt1900]

Actually Fam... You may actually get it... I don't think your that far off...

 

[27 driver]

holy vodka batman, are you drinking again? imp:

I am, it is the only thing that keeps me from jumping out of my hotel window.

 

[CitationLover]

Wolf, Like I said I hope I'm wrong. I may be wrong but I think the other airline investments by TPG were equity stakes in carriers that were in Chapter 11 so the exit plan was obvious. Where is the upside to making any additonal investment in MEH? I don't think that TPG really wanted MEH in the first place or they would have bought all of MEH by themselves. They were acting as an agent for NWA, it's the only possible scenario and NWA must have a deal to pay them off and make them whole.

I also don't believe that NWA wants anything from MEH other than to use it as anti-LCC insurance in MKE. If NWA wanted MEH they would have bought it years ago but they never even tried. They only got involved to thwart AAI and that's been accomplished for now anyway. So TPG wants out with their money and NWA wants cheap insurance in MKE.....that tells me that there is no future for MEH. Compass could do most of what MEH does with E-175's and do it cheaper and that's where I think things go in a few years. Also, don't forget that NWA/DAL wasn't on the table when they bought MEH and it will play into this if it happens.

I don't know any more than anyone else but I don't see any future for MEH on it's own after a few years. BTW, that's good advice about moving on and accepting job loss as a pitfall of the industry. Remember that because sadly, I think you will need that advice if you fly for MEH. Again, I hope I'm wrong. Best of luck to all of those left at MEH.

So simply buy MEH and let it whittle or use its assets (airplanes and gates) and employees (they were planning on hiring 1/2 the amount of Midwest's pilots this year, their DTW FA reserve list is the number of our FA's)? MEH is a small speed bump in the grand scheme for NWA and integrating them. No doubt Compass is going to be used, but so will the MEH 717's and people who operate them already qualified.

But we shall see, if we're stand alone TPG better buy new airplanes......

 

[CitationLover]

Word on the street, this was a test to get an idea on how the DoJ would look at consolidation. The DoJ having now approved the TPG/Midwest deal, now look for the Delta and Northwest merger to be announced real soon. Hold on everyone, 2008 is going to be a wild ride.

so a company that is less than 10% the size of another with no international legalities, is a testcase for a merger of 2 of the largest airlines in the world with international complexities? yeah right.

perhaps a better testcase can be found.........