FlyBoeingJets
YES, that's NICE
- Joined
- Mar 20, 2003
- Posts
- 1,802
Flopgut said:And SWA is the very cradle of civility amongst airline competitors...just ask Muze.
Chase,
Thanks for the biased recap post. I love how SWA writes stuff that makes it sound like they are the only company who has had to fight to stay in business. I do like that the article openly owns up to the niche SWA sought to preserve at Love. The article fails to highlight the degree to which this was a back alley bait and switch by Herb and Lady Bird and the fact that the only real legal action taken, was to REMOVE Braniff who was matching your routes at Love. Without exception, every Braniff guy I fly with maintains that they were told every airline tenant at Love was going to move to DFW. When SWA did not go Braniff (and everyone) was pi$$ed! Braniff stayed to try to compete with you but were forced out by court order. So the wellspring from which your airline spawned was not so much a lovely little niche but rather a legal ambush.
Where is the equity in a repeal of the WA? Your airline has been enabled by the positive aspects of the agreement to the extent that it is very likely the main reason the airline is what it is today. Now, your airline is ready to come out from behind those protections and rather than open up operations at DFW, you want a REVERSAL on the agreement! Again, where is the equity in this? Equity treatment for the airlines that went to DFW, to the people who built DFW, to the North Texas economy? Low airfares to a very small number of cities is not going to cut it. Equity too in the form of some type of "soft landing" for AA. AA is relatively strong in the face of all the non-market, geopolitical churn of the last four years. All of which, I might add, has been a windfall to your airline. Which highlights something interesting: What is the real issue here? Is some of the non-market, geopolitical churn negatively affecting the mighty and precious SWA? Do you need to start flying longer distances from Love because people might start to drive and forego the frustrations of air travel? Well, if that is at all true, I say: you made your bed--sleep in it! Or move to DFW.
The soft landing (equity treatment) due to AA should pattern the sort of gracious gift given to SWA in the form of Love Field. Just as SWA was given an advantage to start operations, AA should be allowed to continue operations. Afterall, SWA only wants this brand of competition now, at this time, because AA is hurting. SWA has always shirked the sort of heads up competition that could really help North Texas travelers.
Flopgut,
I very much appreciate the lesson and wish SWA didn't have a hand in their demise. I was hazy on how Braniff was pushed out. Herb was, and is, an amazing lawyer in a crazy industry. SWA has, indeed, been blessed at key moments. It amazes me how a handful of events or decisions can decide the fate of an airline.
I've been trying to see the future of this industry for awhile and it still looks opaque to me. I thought USAir and UAL were goners and now they look to dominate once again. NWA and DAL appear to be on the brink of shrinking by 20%, but I am probably underestimating them too.
I have friends overestimating SWA as I underestimate other carriers. Some say SWA will be flying international. I think SWA will remain successful, but I doubt the international expansion.
This industry is incredibly interesting (read terrifying). I wonder how it will unfold over the next 2-5 years.
Regards,
FBJ
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