RJ! You are thinking like an airline exec! If I were in the big chair, I would not want to furlough anyone. The idea is to outlast your competitor. If AA, DAL and UAL furlough, we have an opportunity to hold our markets, expand current markets, and fill in the gaps of abandoned markets. SWA has the financial ability to outlast the others, but not forever. Operating an airline on borrowed money is risky (UAL AA) but SWA may do it to pounce on abandoned markets.

This is all dependent on loads coming back. If our planes are still empty after the 4th of July, plan on furloughs this fall.

I would support half pay for everyone (half the flying as well) keep everyone on property, current and ready to ramp back up quickly. That’s good for the company, keeps money in everyone’s pocket, and keeps everyone employed. I don’t see that as a “concession” we just become part time employees. Same pay scale, same work rules, same contract.

“Same pay till the last day” is a nice thought, but not very practical. It would just prolong furloughs and hamstring flexibility for the company to throttle the operation. The more agile the company can be, the quicker we will recover/expand.

If SWA plays their hand just right, I think we will come out ahead.