Originally Posted by
FrankCobretti
I've been thinking about scope today.
Imagine a sine wave with an amplitude of +/- 100. This is Delta's demand signal for pilot labor. Over a five-year period, the number of DAL pilots on the list meets the demand between +/- 80. Perhaps RJs and code shares should provide a "labor buffer" for those times when the need goes below -80 or above +80. This flattens the demand wave, which makes the airline more nimble since it isn't directly responsible for the employment of those in the +/- 80-100 pools.
Frank,
In practice a little different model comes into play.
Today, to attend Delta's outsourcing party you have to BYOA (Bring Your Own Airplane). Folks won't pick up a $30 million dollar jet without a firm, long term, commitment. They seek the longest, strongest, contract they can get to lock Delta in. They want 30 years, Delta wants 30 days, they seem to compromise around 5 years (on average).
Under contract Delta is locked in, meaning that capacity is paid for whether it flies or not. So where is the real
accumulator in the system? What part of Delta's network is unencumbered by debt and can be parked with minimal economic cost? .... You can tell an accumulator by what it does ...
"we're expanding MD88 flying" "no we are getting rid of the DC9's" "we're keeping the DC9's" "We're getting more MD90's" "no, we aren't" ... "DC9's until 2013" It all depends on the configuration of our Corporate airplane that instant, are we landing, departing, or going missed?
Ironic that the only airplane in the fleet with unpressurized hydraulic reservoirs are our job accumulators. As we suck up the gear and the flaps for a nice flight in 2012, we'll see the MD88 accumulator get filled. If we lose an engine and expect an emergency landing, that same accumulator will be drained.