Originally Posted by
Smokey23
I love how every double-breasted wannabee airline analyst around here reads exactly what they want to read into otherwise innocuous quotes about an airline they cannot stand:
"Mr. Kelly said international flying was only 1% of its network, and he had previously identified adding routes to Mexico, the Caribbean and northern South America, as well as to Hawaii and Alaska.
"Hawaii is one of 50 potential destinations," he said, adding on a post-earnings call that it "wouldn't take years" to start flights to the islands."
I didn't see much "treasure trove of profits" in that statement. If SWA does eventually fly to HI it will be for the same reasons as Delta: it fills out the route map nicely and makes the airline more attractive overall to the traveling public.
But everyone thinks it fills out their route map nicely. Allegiant thinks they can make a go of it and soon JB, SW and VX will try as well. Not to mention the endless churn of start ups.
Even funnier is the manifest destiny of heavy metal across the ponds. Lots of waterloos out there. As the world churns.
As for SW, other than the blatant favoritism by the government at all levels in (almost) all cases and their future heavy international ambitions, I have nothing against them. I actually hope they can remain prosperous because they have reached critical mass and their destabilization would be a land grabbing chaos ripe for a million start up ponzi scheme pay for upgrade start ups to gut CASM all across the domestic system.
Your jacket envy is duly noted.