Bill, you know what? When you're right, you're right. My last response was condescending and for that I apologize, and I have deleted it. So, let me try again...

First, I am not an MEC member and have never stayed in a Ritz Carlton, but I do know a bit about accounting.

You are correct that DAL received $950m in baggage fees last year, but in reality, much of that was a shift from how they price their tickets. For example, they used to charge $300/ticket. Now they charge $280 plus charge another $25 for a bag. So they make a total of $305 rather than $300. All those numbers are made up, but you get the point. The bag fees are not an additional $950m of "gravy".

As for paying down debt, that is a good thing. Reducing our debt has a positive effect on net income, because it reduces our annual interest payment. That means more net income, which translates into a higher profit sharing check for you and me. It also strengthens our company's position with respect to investment banks, making it likely that we can borrow in the future at lower interest rates. That's good too.

Having said that, this all means nothing, if it doesn't translate into higher pay rates for us. I honestly don't care how strong Delta is financially, other than the fact that the stronger they are, the more leverage we will have to extract contract improvements.

So, I say keep paying down debt, and keep charging those bag fees. Our time will come, and it will be next year. I'll be ready.