Originally Posted by
embraer
Oh Boilerup...now who is being naive? You sound like AA's management who refused to see the writing on the wall throughout the 2000s.
The flying public is not as stupid as we think..in particular business travelers which are our key customers. They understand differences in aircraft and have a particular distaste for some of them (MD-80s, ATRs, etc..)
They WILL avoid flying on them whenever possible. If your airline is flying around in old MD-80s while your competition has newer, more comfortable A320s and 737s you will lose customers.
Just ask AA. They refused to accept this for years (among other things) and now it has all come back to bite them.
Hmmm, I commute quite a bit on MD-80's. Sit in front and back. I can't recall a single person complaining about the aircraft. I like the 1 in 5 chance of a middle seat, also it is quiet (up front).