Ah, found it.

Hello, it's Sean Donohue with a message for Thursday, March 20.



By now you have all heard the company's announcement earlier this week to ground and sell 15-20 of our 737s by the end of the year. Delta made a similar announcement Tuesday to ground 15-20 aircraft this year and is targeting a 2,000 employee reduction. Several other carriers have indicated they are likely to reduce their flying levels this year.



We are responding to the rapid increase in fuel prices by taking actions already laid out in our business strategy - accelerating activity in areas like capacity management while increasing the level of fuel hedging. In short, we are quickly responding to the real and extraordinarily challenging cost pressure that is staring at us and the entire industry.



The economics are simple. The company's fuel spend could increase by more than $1 billion this year. In this environment, flights and markets that were financially challenging at fuel prices a few months ago become much more so at historically high levels. This is not about shrinking to profitability; it is about making sure our network is profitable because flying to markets where the company loses money simply doesn't make sense.



From a Flight Ops Division perspective, we are now re-evaluating our new-hire pilot plans for the remainder of the year. We have canceled all scheduled interviews for future classes. Once we have the new flight schedule from our Route Planning colleagues, we will be able to finalize the new manpower plan for the division.

I have also directed Captain Jim Barnes, our Manager of Operational Efficiency, to develop a call to action plan that will highlight and re-emphasize the operational efficiency learnings that we shared with all pilots several years ago. It is critical that we have consistent adherence in areas like contingency fuel, planned alternates and other fuel efficiency metrics to maximize savings. While we will never compromise the safe operation of any flight, a review of these guidelines and processes is necessary given the current fuel environment. Other fuel improvements are being accelerated throughout the company including reduced APU usage, flight planning enhancements, winglet installations, and ensuring that our UAX partners are delivering on their fuel conservation commitments.



It's important to note, however, that the company has a strong financial foundation in the face of these challenges:

· We had more than $3 billion in unrestricted cash and short-term investments on hand at year-end.

· While we will reduce capital expenses, investments important to maintaining the safety of the operation, and provide a consistent and improving operation and product to our customers and employees, will be made.

· The company has limited debt maturing this year, just $700 million, and $2.3 billion in debt was paid off last year, saving the company $120 million in interest expenses this year and beyond.

· Finally, we are leading the industry in revenue performance and just this past weekend led one of the largest fare increases in recent memory.



In closing, we are prioritizing our efforts and work to minimize the impact on our pilots, while balancing the requirements to quickly and effectively meet these unprecedented cost challenges.



We will continue to keep you updated, and thank you for your continued efforts and professionalism.



Thanks for listening. Fly safely.