Sweet, now we're getting somewhere!

In those examples, those fake airlines couldn't operate them "profitably" within the confines of their own CPA/ASA's. That's because since they are cut throat labor busting bottom feeders that only exist to be the lowest bidder, as soon as someone else bids lower, they lose their work. Since there is always someone willing to bid lower, these fake airlines are under tremendous pressure to bid super low to get the deal. Sometimes they bid below their own cost structure so that even they, with their cut throat cost structure, can't "do it profitably" but that doesn't mean the parent company can't afford to pay more now does it?

But let's run with that assumption for a moment. If the cut throat, back stabbing contracts of SKYW or Pinnacle for a given airframe are too low for them to operate it profitably, and we further (incorrectly) assume that means the aircraft just can't be flown at at that cost anywhere, then we admit that is the absolute ceiling corresponding with the revenue potential for those airframes in the first place. We are therefore admitting those airframes aren't viabile in the first place, even at some of the lowest sell your mother down the river for a buck cost structures. If that's the case, Delta doesn't really need them in the first place now, do we?