United's "TED"......LCC

[Sinca3]

http://biz.yahoo.com/rc/031109/airlines_united_1.html

 

[colorado418]

I think that "ted" is the last name of the airline if I read it correctly. "retar" is the first part of the official name.

Oops, did I write that out loud???

 

[Typhoon1244]

United...Uni/ted...Ted.

What if this trend continues? We could see a whole nest of LCC's start up with names like "Ican," "Ta," "Ways," "Ental," or "Tier!"

Suppose "Ted" has a connection carrier...will it be called "Ed?"

 

[Cleared Direct]

Seems TED has some competition already,

''L-U-E are the last three letters of jetBlue. The airline is planning to launch the premium service option in February as part of its plan to enter into bankruptcy. It will be based out of San Juan, Puerto Rico.''

Click Here for JetBlues Low Cost unit LUE

 

[colorado418]

United...Uni/ted...Ted.

What if this trend continues? We could see a whole nest of LCC's start up with names like "Ican," "Ta," "Ways," "Ental," or "Tier!"

Suppose "Ted" has a connection carrier...will it be called "Ed?"

Yes I know.

I was making fun.... you know.... retarted retar/ted????

I know the spelling is not "correct" but it was again, just a joke...

 

[Skyboss]

Personally I like DL's 36" pitch move.

 

[Cleared Direct]

American's new LCC "CAN"

DALLAS, Nov. 12 /PRNewswire-LastCall/ -- Ending days of speculation in Dallas and around the country, American today confirmed that Can is the name of its new low-fare service that will bring travelers a quality experience with simplified low fares.

Culminating a successful guerilla marketing campaign in the city that will be its first hub, Can has generated buzz and excretement in Dallas, achieved through a series of random acts of urination. Can's unveiling celebration will take place on November 18 in Dallas, officially putting a face to the name.

While the mainline remains American's core product, Can expands the relevance of American's brand portfolio, capturing an opportunity in a high- growth segment of today's airline market.

"Customers want low fares and lots of lavatories, especially in our leisure markets," said Bob Killgore, Vice President - Low Cost Operation. "In order to meet that need and seize the opportunity, American has accomplished substantial cost reductions -- nearly $5 billion annually by 2005 -- that allow us to offer an operation that is competitive with other low-fare carriers. Can is supported by a profitable and sustainable plan, with higher aircraft utilization, a simplified schedule and fare structure, and more toilets per aircraft."

"Can isn't just a low cost initiative, it also creates more revenue opportunity in leisure focused markets," said Jim Smith, Executive Vice President - Customer. "Although Can will be an American branded product, it has been designed with a unique name and personality all its own. American chose the name Can to emphasize that the service is an essential, integrated part of the company -- it's the last three letters of the company's name," he added. "Through our guerilla campaign in Dallas, we've created intense interest in Can by reaching deep into the community in new and unique ways. The consumer response to our initiatives and the IGottaGoToTheCan.com website has been phenomenal."

Can will begin flying customers in February 2004 with service from Dallas to Reno, Las Vegas, Phoenix, New Orleans, Tampa, Orlando, Ontario (California) and Fort Lauderdale, a new Can market not previously served by American . Beyond Dallas, Ted will also offer service between Las Vegas and Los Angeles, Las Vegas and San Francisco and San Francisco and Phoenix.

The Can fleet will feature the popular Airbus A300 aircraft, launching with four planes based in Dallas and expanding to as many as 45 planes by the end of 2004 -- 19 of which will be based in Dallas. Each A300 will have 18 more toilets than American's mainline A300's-- due to a single class of service -- for a total of 25 toilets. "The Airbus A300 is the perfect aircraft for lavatory enhancements." said Victor Frederickson, VP Operations, "In the future you can expect even more washroom innovation while flying on the Can."

Can offers a compelling alternative to the current crop of low-fare carriers. Customers can earn AAdvantage frequent flier miles on all Can flights; seating is pre-assigned and can be pre-booked; and Can customers can expect seamless travel around the world on all American offerings, including American mainline, American Eagle and oneworld partners. Can planes will feature a More Headroom Throughout Head section with five extra inches of lavatory headroom to reward loyal customers. Finally, Can customers will be provided with complimentary luxury liners to make their bathroom experience comfortable, secure, and clean.

 

[Flying Illini]

"Thankyou for flying Ted!"
"Thankyou for riding Ted!"

did they even think about the implications when they named it that?!

 

[Sphincter Boy]

I guess their call sign will be "Teddy"?

 

[saabcaptain]

As the USAToday said today:

"Ted's late again" or "Ted lost my bags" etc. is a lightning rod for jokes.

 

[fletch717]

Let me get this right, You add 15-19 more seats with the same cost structure and you expect to reduce rsm by half. How does that work?

 

[Flying Illini]

hey, United got themselves into bankrupcy, I think they know how to get themselves out! Oh wait, no they don't.

 

[F9 Driver]

We're not the only ones...

My take is that UAL needs exit financing, and needs to show they have a plan. ANY PLAN! This is what Ted is. A bad plan, but a plan none the less.

http://www.aviationplanning.com/

From The Better-Get-A-New-Ad-Agency-Department, Phase II: United is covering the Denver market with teaser ads about "Ted" - its new low-fare airline-within-an-airline. Apparently, "Ted" is derived from the last three letters of "United." Others opine that the letters "T-E-D" stand for "They're Extremely Desperate."

The Ted website is a perfect example of what happens when an ad agency is let out of its cage unsupervised. A quirky, jumbled, and confused mosaic of pictures and things like: A video store. Three guys apparently one beer over the line at a Broncos game, wearing nothing but barrels and cowboy hats. References to "denim." A salute to macaroni & cheese. A clerk at a cigarette counter, replete with an advertisement for Camels in the background. (Nice image for the kids, eh?) The whole thing looks like it's aimed at cornering the lucrative trailer park market.

More Questions About TED: Regardless of advertising, key questions remain blissfully unanswered about Ted. (Or Starfish, Blowfish, or whatever this thing is going to be called.) Question one: how can Ted get lower costs when every major factor in the expense mix is reportedly the same as mainline? Fast turns? Not likely if the traffic depends on more than just Denver O&D. More seats? That doesn't make flying the plane any cheaper, in fact, it could deter premium passengers entirely. Question two: what's the effect of inter-mingling different products to the same customers, at the same connecting hub? For example, the Premier Executive passenger from Seattle connecting at Denver on his way to Phoenix. SEA-DEN, he gets mainline, upgraded to first class. Then his connecting flight to PHX plunges him into the murky denim-Marlboro-beer-and-potato-chip world of "Ted." It doesn't seem to make sense, and it's all painfully similar to the United Shuttle fiasco. Some folks in the media are asking the same questions of United and getting no answers, either. (We covered this a couple of weeks ago. Click Here.)

American's CEO last week again made the observation that an LCC sub-fleet of 25 or 50 airplanes cannot do much to change the fortunes of a carrier operating over 700 aircraft. But then again, he could be wrong. After all, United is paying its outside advisors plenty - according to the Denver Post, one advisor is billing his time at over $1,100 per hour - so maybe there's something we're all missing. And maybe it's just United's senior management missing good sense. One has to wonder how much money and energy is being diverted from turning around United's mainline operations just to start a funky 40-airplane non-low-cost LCC.

But the whole idea behind the Ted advertising is to "create a buzz." That may be prophetic. "Buzz" was the name of KLM's LCC.

It failed miserably.

© 2003 The Boyd Group/ASRC, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Check out F9's official reply per Rocky Mountain News:

http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/business/article/0,1299,DRMN_4_2423933,00.html

And I found these on Yahoo!'s message bbs

Teetering Each Day?
Thanks Enron Disciples?
Topheavy Egomaniacal Dumbf--ks?
They're Especially Desperate?
Total Encompassing Destruction?
Tilton's Engineered Debacle?
Tempting Each DIP (Debtor in Possession)?
Take Every Dollar?
Tragic Enema Done?

 

[HueyPilot]

Optional names

United claims they came up with "Ted" because it's the last 3 letters of the parent company's name. Here are some other alternatives:

Uni Airlines
Nit Airlines
It'e Airlines

 

[Captain Fury]

Here is the new TED paint job.

 

[Typhoon1244]

Here is the new TED paint job.

Bad. Really bad.

 

[HAZ-MAT]

Sofa King RETARD TED

 

[Flying Illini]

How about "Tcy" for Bankruptcy.

 

[GogglesPisano]

"TED" is the end of "United"

 

[Typhoon1244]

Love the avatar, 'chicaga!

And the beauty is everybody gets an exit row!