Kingairfun - Your assessments, IMO, are right on. It's refreshing to see posts made without emotion or personal hang-ups. It will be interesting to see how the A321 NEO "actually" performs. OBTW, do you mind me asking what aircraft you flew at FL510? Great response by the way, gave me a chuckle.

dundem - Thanks for the "real world" perspective. Once upon a time one of the airlines I flew for (now bankrupt) had a tough time getting the 737-700/800 to HNL from the West coast for all the previously stated reasons which I will not delve into. I remember stopping short into ITO or KOA on occasion.

It's easy to get caught up in Boeing vs. Airbus. I always considered myself a Boeing guy, love the planes that I was fortunate enough to fly. Now I'm on Airbus, and it's been good to me, no complaints. Was I hesitant at first? Yup, pilots don't like change, but once I got over that, it was mostly all good. I guess my long-winded point is, lets get all the facts first before we come to any conclusions. But in the mean time, I'm all for a healthy and factual discussion. But lets steer clear of the "sound bight" reporter tactics of reporting half-truths and misinformation. Ironically, I saw a news report today concerning the JAL 787 Dreamliner, and some fuel leak (valve?) issues Boeing will eventually work out. You see, both Airbus and Boeing have their fair share of hick-ups, they will work them out, they have to.