Originally Posted by
GolferNJ
I agree with everything you said except this. OM and SK put us in this situation. They have squandered every penny earned on our backs since they took over. They could have been paying down debt, hoarding cash and preparing the airline to support its employees in the next downturn. Instead they rewarded shareholders (and themselves) and required taxpayers to save us. Nobody could have predicted a 90% drop, but we would be in this situation with a 40% drop and no taxpayer assistance.
First, the purpose of United airlines is to make money for the shareholders, not to build a pad to support employees. We are just a line on an expense report. Second, this company and others viewed 9/11 as the possible worst case scenario. They were financially prepared for that. Like you said, no airline was prepared for this.