Freightbird

It does not "hurt" the company, but it may help show that commuters are vital to our system reliability.

For example, today there are 5 crews or 15 pilots scheduled to be on AA 1919 MEM-DFW. Most will deviate from this flight that has a 1 Star rating due to a 60% on time track record. The average delay listed on http://www.flightstats.com was :27 minutes.

If this flight mis-connects in Dallas, there should be 15 phone calls, 15 new reservations and concern for legal rest periods for 5 crews.

Instead, I will carry the burden of traveling on my shoulders. The accepted fare is $100 lower than the price Global Travel just quoted me for the same AA flights. And if the optimizer finds a way on RJ's or some LCC, the spread between actual costs and allowance will be even greater.

So, if we would all come to MEM for a Sunday night dinner once in while the reservations may be spread out among more airlines and not always the cheapest seats. I jumpseat down on Sundays during the middle of winter.

Is it worth it? Yes, I woke up looking at the snow covered Rockies this morning!