Originally Posted by
dckozak
This is a cop out of the problems inflicting (many) US airlines. The US government doesn't effect the poor quality of service many airlines provide. Your airline hasn't failed to gain elite status within the greater international community because the US government makes you provide a (relatively) poorer product. There are some issues where the government can and should protect (our) interests but the problem of poor product is not one of them.
That's your opinion. I disagree, but you are entitled to it. And I never said that the government "made" us provide a poorer product. The government most certainly affects the level of service that US carriers provide by sticking their grubby paws into our wallets and taxing everything from fuel to pretzels when the emirates do not, and probbly even subsidize those very same items. When you are in a competitive industry where operating margins are as thin as US carriers are, it is not an easy thing to compete with those where money is no object. It is not easy to compete with companies whose governments throw up road blocks to foreign competition whereas the US government welcomes it with open arms. I am not crying poor mouth here, I am recognizing that the playing field is not level. You seem to think that we can wave some sort of magic wand, and compete with that. I am not that naive.