I wouldn't worry about furloughs at this point. Attrition is sky high right now. Add to that that he says "furlough" and "continue to hire" in the same breath. I fully believe that attrition will take care of any staffing issues we may have, whether the staffing issues are perceived or real.

He does mention flying for other carriers on a short moment's notice. Perhaps something is in the works; no one can know for sure. In the end, there is nothing anyone can do about it except ride the waves.

I seriously wouldn't worry about a furlough unless something drastic happens such as another terrorist attack, the economy completely tanks and airlines drastically cut flying, etc, etc, etc...

The ONLY reason we furloughed back in '05 was because the company was trying to whip the union into submission. It ended up backfiring because we were so short staffed, and most pilots refused to pick up open time while we had guys out on the street. The few pilots that did pick up open time needed friendly "reminders" about picking up extra flying with guys on furlough. I think the company was banking pilots flying lots of extra flying, and when it didn't happen, the recalled everyone almost immediately. If I recall correctly, the furlough was no longer than 3 to 4 months. Furloughed in January and everyone was back by April.

If they did furlough, they would only be slitting their own throats when it comes to staffing this airline and I think they know it. Or, maybe they are completely clueless and have no idea what is going on. Yeah, that's probably the most likely explanation.

Besides, wasn't the most recent FA vacancy bid due to "increased block hours"? They always talk out of both sides of their mouths here. Always have and always will.