Gloop,
I don't go as deep as TP, but will say this; DAL 8 and DAL 7 are stinking' full almost every day. It is a non rev nightmare. In the last three years I have only been able to get on DAL less than a half dozen times with an S3B. The price of tickets on EK and DAL are very similar. And frankly when I have gotten on DAL it looks like a troop carrier with all of the contractors coming and going. They're not on vacation looking for cheap fares. So why has DL cut back their service to DXB?
So why should any "foreign" airline be restricted to the US with an Open Sky agreement, if none of the Legacies want to service a market? Maybe I'm looking at this from a simplistic view, but as TP was alluding to, when DPA raised its head, and ALPA was charged with non representing the TWA pilots and possibly assessing the membership.....we had "ads" on the front, back, inside and backside inside covers of AIRLINE PILOT demonizing a new boogie man. And who was the President of ALPA, and what is he doing now? Good job there Moak. Over 25 years of reading that rag and never saw anything about state supported airlines prior to DPA (re., dues) and the possibility of a major assessment from the TWA judgement.
Just saying'