VA may get Dallas Love gates......

[tzskipper]

And that he's touting two former AA managers that helped American into bankruptcy, but left before the shoe could hit the ground. I'm not sure Carty or Cush are anything to get excited about. And the CFO is a disaster.

And to your line of thinking regarding the $49 fare, what's to keep SW from lowering the fare on the VA routes out of DAL? The Orange Co remark still stands. Unbelievable wealthy passengers that want to travel. It's tough to NOT make money in SNA. ie, cash cow.

I hope it works out for them, but historically it doesn't look stellar.

The Cush/Carty remark was simply relative to their having an insight into the DFW market. VA is not going in "blind". That was the point.

As for $49 fares (which were set by SW preemptively, I believe), does that equate to a "cash cow" to you? To me, it is just the opposite. Trashed yields. I do agree that there are wealthy passengers in these markets who want to travel. I disagree that lowering fares was or is needed to do that. I would think you would want just the opposite from your management.

No matter what, it will be interesting to see how the marketplace reacts to the new service and competition.

S

 

[bri5150]

And that he's touting two former AA managers that helped American into bankruptcy, but left before the shoe could hit the ground. I'm not sure Carty or Cush are anything to get excited about. And the CFO is a disaster.

And to your line of thinking regarding the $49 fare, what's to keep SW from lowering the fare on the VA routes out of DAL? The Orange Co remark still stands. Unbelievable wealthy passengers that want to travel. It's tough to NOT make money in SNA. ie, cash cow.

I hope it works out for them, but historically it doesn't look stellar.

Even today the managers admit leaving Orange County was a mistake. We were making money, but wanted to make more with those airplanes.

If VX gets the DAL gates, I don't think they will try to run us out of town. It's better to have us in there than any other alternative. We really won't be able to grow much with only the two gates as well.

I don't think anyone will put Cush and Carty on a pedestal, but they have to know something about Dallas. Lastly, small net profit last year it sounds like.

 

[Freebrd]

Did Glee just admit he was wrong and I was right? Amazing!.

She did but thought she was signed in as someone else.

 

[waveflyer]

Yeah, with those $49 fares that SW was charging SNA/SFO in the beginning, I'm sure the route was a real "cash cow".

Given the background of VA's senior management, I would bet that they are confident in their success. Don Carty is the current VA Chairman of the Board and David Cush, the current VA CEO, was at AA for 20+ years in senior management/marketing. I don't get the impression that this move is any sort of knee jerk reaction.

S

I'd think any AA pilot would have differing opinions about the talent, and more importantly- the commitment, of either of those two
Especially about their confidence in them making money

But on the selfish side, id love to take VA into DAL
LAS-DAL??

 

[tzskipper]

I'd think any AA pilot would have differing opinions about the talent, and more importantly- the commitment, of either of those two
Especially about their confidence in them making money

But on the selfish side, id love to take VA into DAL
LAS-DAL??

There was no inference to "talent". Only to the fact that both have extensive experience in the DFW market. Apparently that is a difficult (yet simple) point to make. The post wasn't made to start a political/Union debate.

S

 

[canyonblue]

Finally a comfortable seat commute on to DAL. Evolve interior is crap. How long is SWA going to treat the customers like a burden that has to crammed into a seat and moved from A to B to C to get to D?

Maybe VA is hiring, why don't you go find out. God knows we don't need you.

 

[Just thinking]

Yes of course. Don't look at the elephant that is sitting in the corner of the room. Keep ignoring it. Your product is substandard. Your customers deserve better. Your on time performance is terrible. Your customers deserve better. Your baggage handling is terrible. Your customers deserve better. Maybe you need more of me and less of you. You seem to think that kind of service is fine. I don't.

 

[waveflyer]

Just thinking -
You're a SWA rookie- the ship ain't gonna sink or swim based on your opinion of things- which are.... "New"

Jmo

Tz-
AA is a global company - not sure that they have super human knowledge of the Dallas market- and out of love...?
It's not a dig on what you're saying, they simply shrunk AA for most of their tenures paying themselves millions in the process. They ran an airline that had a big hub in Dallas, ie had every fortress hub advantage, and didn't do much with it- even after delta left.

I don't think dl is better or worse than va getting the gates- both offer different products than SWA

 

[SWA Bubba]

Yes of course. Don't look at the elephant that is sitting in the corner of the room. Keep ignoring it. Your product is substandard. Your customers deserve better. Your on time performance is terrible. Your customers deserve better. Your baggage handling is terrible. Your customers deserve better. Maybe you need more of me and less of you. You seem to think that kind of service is fine. I don't.

Really?

We need more of you? We need more pilots who whine and bitch incessantly? Who do nothing but denigrate our product on a public forum ("our product is crap!"), with every opportunity they get? That's what we need? Can you explain how that will help anything?

We as pilots ARE aware of the problems our airline faces (on-time, baggage, etc.). And no, we don't think that those issues are "okay." But I'm pretty sure that the way for pilots to address them is by working with the company, and showing how specific issues may be addressed. Give them a frontline view, as it were. Seeing as how we don't write the checks, and can't just snap our fingers and make operational changes. Responsible leaders act that way.

And you know what? It has an effect. After the January MDW meltdown, VPOps Van de Ven blamed the weather and new part 117 rules as the "culprit." The union immediately took them to task, privately and without fanfare, and then presented them with a report from the frontlines, with input from 1.500 pilots, explaining what actually happened and why things broke down. Guess what? The company agreed and changed tacks. They've created a new office, staffed by a pilot (Chuck Magill, formerly VPFltOps) to oversee and address operational issues noted and experienced by crews as they happen. In other words, they listened to us. They've also changed the way calculate turn times and connection times throughout the day to allow for contingencies that frontline employees see, but that Dallas managers may not see (although this large change in flow planning won't happen until late May or June, due to lead time in scheduling and selling flights). This is to address "ripple delays" from waiting for slow connections. Don't know that this will solve all our operational issues (we still need to address ramp staffing), but it's definitely a start.

On the other hand, maybe you're right; maybe the answer is to just complain and moan on anonymous forums, like whiny little bitches, and hope that GK and VdV happen to read FI in their spare time. Maybe that'll produce better results.

Bubba

 

[Freelovefield]

As a SWA employee I'm happy to see them make a run at those gates. Southwest might have to step it up a bit. Competition is great thing!