Originally Posted by
PaulFooley
So let me get this straight: Pinnacle asked Delta to begin proceedings to cancel their agreement simply to shakedown the Pinnacle pilots? And you are proposing that Delta agreed to this?
No. Delta is working to eliminate available seats with minimum cost to their own operation. They are doing this by eradicating a couple of their (too many) connection carriers: Mesa and Pinnacle.
Too bad they are breaking a service agreement by doing so. Pinnacle was hosed by the A+14 arrival metric, but the service agreement said that the flight schedules would be something that BOTH Delta AND Pinnacle would agree mutually upon. That never happened.
So, Delta cancels Pinnacle flying in a heartbeat to backout. Like you said, to eradicate one of too many connection carriers.
I hate to say it, but from the airline services agreement point of view, it wasn't exactly legal. If it goes to court, Pinnacle would at the very least get an injunction, and Delta would have to pay Pinnacle $$$ (like they are paying off Mesa).
Pretty cheap of Delta to pull this kinda move, IMO. They signed a contract for 10 years, and then terminate it in 6 months before the jets are even delivered. Reasoning the cancellation on poor performance, where really, Delta gave schedules that were physically impossible to meet. Exmplain to me how you can fly ATL to TLH in 15 minutes air time. Not even afterburners could do that.