We're barely hiring to cover attrition right now, and I really, really don't think we're going to make it to 18 additional EJets. The possibility of taking on more than that is patently absurd.

The growth curve is stalling out, and attrition is picking up from both seats--you can't grow if you're only hiring enough "passable" folks to cover attrition.

We're basically in a "hamster wheel"/stuck in a rut mode right now in terms of staffing vs. attrition--I'll gladly bet money we'll end up delaying or cancelling a handful of those additional 18 EJets before the summer hiring season at the legacies/LCCs is over.

And if Endeavor gets EJets (which all indicators are pointing towards) it's going to become that much more difficult for Mesa to recruit and retain even the most rabid, SJS-infected souls--even the ones born and raised in Houston. $50k/year 1st year vs. $22/hour 1st year to fly that shiny Electric Jet? The old guys will just buy tickets to JFK/DTW/MSP with all that extra money.

Don't get me wrong--I don't want Mesa to falter or fail to staff--I don't want us to shrink, b/c that would be bad for my QOL/finances. But every single one of our additional 18 EJets is going to be exponentially harder and more expensive to staff than the previous delivery--that's just the facts of the current hiring environment/talent pool.

You'll know if we're going to make it to 18 by around August-October 2016. Come back to this post then and you'll see if I'm right or not.