Originally Posted by
chuck416
Interesting that today, according to the fleet page on Delta net that the DC-9, per-sear-mile, is the most profitable aircraft we operate. At least that's what the fleet chief pilot wrote last summer on 'the -9 iron' update.
That's probably because they have been paid off for many, many years, and all they 'cost' to fly is the gas and oil, flight crew and mx. all of which are at the bottom of the 'cost' charts.
That's the same reason I drive all my cars until they die. After they are paid off, they are pretty cheap to own, just pay for gas and oil, tires and brakes, every auto I have has over 150,000 miles on it and still going strong...and cheap, oh, and the insurance cost goes down as they age too, since they are less valuable. (1997 Tahoe, 2004 Suburban, 2007 F150).