I've been wrong before:
And....the 717s are GONE!
Message from Mike Van de Ven:
Southwest confirmed today that we, together with AirTran, have reached a tentative agreement with Delta Air Lines, Inc. and Boeing Capital Corp., to sublease all of AirTran’s 88 Boeing 717 aircraft. The final agreement is subject to Delta and Southwest reaching certain agreements with all parties related to the aircraft leases. Final details must be completed with all parties before a binding agreement between Delta and Southwest can be completed.
I know that speculation without information creates anxieties; especially in times when the pace of change is accelerated. Your professionalism during this period, particularly among the 717 Pilot, Flight Attendant, and Maintenance groups is both honorable and appreciated. At this point, we are able to share a bit more information with you. First, the aircraft transitions to Delta don’t start for another year. The tentative agreement between Southwest and Delta would transition the 717s over three years starting in the second half of 2013 at an anticipated rate of three aircraft a month.
While the 717 is an excellent aircraft, it is in the best interests of Southwest Airlines (and therefore our People’s collective best interest) to transition these aircraft from our fleet before the end of their current lease terms. Our intent is to manage a relatively flat fleet as the 717s transition out by substituting the needed lift with 737 aircraft. Those aircraft improve our scheduling and operational recovery flexibilities; they return us to a more simplified single fleet type; and they improve our economics as compared to the 717. It’s that simple.
Our plans to continue to integrate current AirTran Employees into the Southwest operation over the next several years are not changed by this tentative agreement. The Pilots will now transition directly from the 717s to the 737s, and the Flight Attendants and Maintenance personnel are currently trained on both fleets. I’m sure that many of you will have additional questions and we will have time to work through all those details before the first 717 leaves the fleet more than a year from now.
A transition of the 717s was an option that we acknowledged when we established our fleet plan with The Boeing Company. At that time, we did not have a willing customer for those airplanes, but built in flexibility in our fleet plan should the need to replace those aircraft come to fruition. We have great flexibility to match our future fleet needs with our financial performance. If we hit our return hurdles, we have the ability to grow the fleet. The more flexibility we have on where and when we fly our Southwest Airlines jets at favorable economics, the better opportunity we have to achieve that goal.
An all-737 Southwest fleet with the addition of the ETOPS equipped 737-800 expands our network opportunities. It allows us to consider places like San Juan, Hawaii, Alaska, and near international markets to continue growing both our network and our profits. Flexibility to allocate the fleet to the right destinations and opportunities, wherever they are, allows us to pursue new Customers. It also allows us to redeploy flying from unprofitable routes, as we have done now for several years. The greater our flexibility, the more opportunities we have to pursue profitable flying. That provides job security for our People. It’s smart, and it’s just that simple.
Again, the tentative agreement to sublease the 717s and return to an all-737 fleet improves our network flexibility. The final pieces of that flexibility are the technology investments underway and the labor agreements that are still needed. It’s our Southwest, and we want to get into a game that takes us beyond the lower 48 states. That’s good for our Company, good for our People, and good for our Customers and Shareholders.
Thank you for your Warrior Spirit!
Well, they're not quite gone by 2015, but this will become one slippery slope. Is there a possibility of the fragmentation policy kicking in and protecting some of the CA positions? By PCL 128's vague overview in another thread, there might be a possibility. The SWAPA and SWA announcements state that there will be jobs for those pilots at SWA without the possibility of furlough, but doesn't address the possibility that some pilots may be able to transfer to DAL. I doubt it will be brought up by DAL or DALPA till the TA is agreed upon (or ever), so what is the position of AirTran ALPA?
