CONSUMER COMPLAINTS:
(Complaints per 100,000 enplanements - best to worst)
1- Southwest ... 0.11
2- ExpressJet ... 0.16
3- JetBlue ... 0.33
4- Alaska ... 0.37
5- Skywest ... 0.46
6- Independence ... 0.59
7- Comair ... 0.63
8- American Eagle ... 0.69
9- America West ... 0.81
10- United ... 0.83
11- AirTran ... 0.83
12- Hawaiian ... 0.88
13- Atlantic Southeast ... 0.90
14- Northwest ... 0.94
15- Delta ... 0.95
16- ATA ... 0.96
17- Continental ... 1.04
18- American ... 1.08
19- US Airways ... 1.27 (all together, on time)
(Average: 0.79 complaints per 100,000 enplanements)
As you can see, US Airways ended up on the 'dark side' of April's report in
every category.
TRANSPORTATION SECURITY ADMINISTRATION (TSA) COMPLAINTS:
For April, 2005 there were:
223 complaints regarding TSA courtesy, or lack thereof
75 complaints regarding screening procedures
21 complaints regarding processing time
549 complaints regarding personal property
223 checkpoint damage claims reports
75 checked baggage (TSA and/or airline) damage claims reports
CORRECTION:
I've just been informed by the girls in my research department that Spirit
Air has named their newest Airbus 'The Spirit of the Bahamas' and not 'The
Spirit of the Baldanza' as reported earlier in this newsletter. John
McCorkle's Newsletter regrets any confusion this may have caused.
http://www.spiritair.com/welcome.asp...D=2&StartRow=1
FRICK & FRACK:
Okay, what would a newsletter be without catching up with two of our dearest
friends, Neal 'I-don't-know-what-my-compensation-package-is-worth' Cohen and
Mr. Labor-friendly himself, Dave 'I'm-not-going-to-take-the-money-and-run'
Siegel?
First up, Neal Cohen. When he took over the job of CFO at Northwest
Airlines recently, after his one-year hiatus spending his severance money
from US Airways, his buddy Dave Siegel said that Cohen was the best at
cutting non-labor costs. Well, in the few weeks he's been on the job, Neal
has made two incredibly cunning decisions for Northwest: eliminate pretzels
and magazines. Wow! Who woulda thunk it? These two moves will save
Northwest about $2.5 million annually which, ironically, is about what he
took from US Airways in severance. According to well-placed sources, Neal's
next move is to have the person who grates the Mozzarella cheese on the
salads to grate only one stroke per salad, versus the standard three. This
move will eliminate 16 tiny strands of Mozzarella cheese per salad, saving
the airline roughly $691.82 per month.
And now to "they're coming to kill us" Dave Siegel, the current CEO of Gate
Gourmet. I'm sorry folks, but the situation there is just laughable to me.
Since Dave's arrival, some of Gate Gourmet's facilities have been found
infested with rodent droppings, pink slime, etc. A lawsuit has been filed
against Gate Gourmet for serving contaminated carrots on flights out of
Honolulu last year, which caused 45 people to suffer food poisoning across
22 states, Japan, Australia and American Samoa. It's just amazing.
And then, there's the escalating labor problems, which oddly seem to follow
Siegel wherever he goes. You see, Gate Gourmet's U.S. employees have said,
basically, "screw you," to a new cost-cutting contract which, according to
Gate Gourmet, "would have achieved necessary labor cost reductions as part
of its ongoing restructuring efforts." My oh my, doesn't that sound so
familiar?
It gets better.
Gate Gourmet, in a statement, went on to say that "in light of the balloting
results, Gate Gourmet is reviewing its options going forward. Our strong
preference remains to reach consensual agreements with the labor groups that
will provide the savings critical to a successful restructuring." Man,
that's like the exact crap we heard from US Airways when Siegel was CEO
there. Of course, it could be because it was written by one John Bronson,
the managing director of corporate communications for Gate Gourmet. Correct
me if I'm wrong, but could that be the same John Bronson who was head of US
Airways' corporate communications not too long ago?
Anyway, I just laughed at the press release because it's the same modus
operandi that was used at US Airways. You can read the press release for
yourself by going to:
http://www.gategourmet.com/797/828/2889/2895/2896.asp
Dave said recently that he still hears from US Airways employees and that
"99 out of 100" emails were positive. Quit lying dude. You can prove him
wrong, if you want.
[email protected]
1-703-964-2310
Oh yeah, Amtrak's gonna renegotiate their $73 million-a-year contract with
Gate Gourmet. See the article:
http://washingtontimes.com/business/...2451-9403r.htm
OH, THE EXCITEMENT:
It might be some time before you actually get to fly on the Airbus
double-decker A380. But at least you can get an 'idea' of what it will be
like. Check out the trailer for the movie 'FlightPlan,' where the only
thing missing is a pot of hot coffee scalding a little child because the
goofy little half-sized beverage cart tipped over.
http://touchstone.movies.go.com/inde...ink=flightplan
Oh yeah, if you want to say "hello" to Doug Parker, chairman of America
West:
[email protected]
Seems like a nice guy.
SPEAKING OF AMERICA WEST:
http://www.azcentral.com/news/articl...lots08-ON.html
US AIRWAYS SHOULD HAVE KEPT THEIR PRESENCE AT PIT:
http://www.pitairport.com/AboutUsSer...ediainfo_press
Remember, if you are going to forward my newsletters to family or friends,
make sure you delete the 'unsubscribe' link at the bottom of the newsletter
before passing it on or you may be removed from the list. Better yet, just
tell them to subscribe by contacting me at
[email protected] or by
sending a blank email to:
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No spam, no selling or sharing of names and email addresses. Just facts.
Regards,
John McCorkle
Wilmington, NC