Thread: Evolution + the Future of our industry.
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Old 02-07-2009 | 10:00 AM
  #33  
tzadik
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Originally Posted by captain152
The other way I can see it balancing out is by doing what SWA is doing right now. Every airline cutting back their schedules by a certain percentage. Now, if every airline did that, then there would be almost no choice but to scale back (if not completely dismiss one or two) the regionals as well.
the definition of "regional" has been bastardized so many times over i don’t know what to think anymore.
  • there was a day when regional meant tulsa to salina on a 1900.
  • the jet made phoenix to santa barbara possible. time was you flew to LA then drove to santa barbara.
  • then every city with more than 4 street lights and two walmarts started getting service and most multiple times a day.
  • the jets began to feed the hub.
  • when frequency became everybody’s best friend the jets started servicing major cities at off times of the day.
  • regionals began flying from one class bravo to another.
  • then came airlines using regional jets to maintain market share in enemy territory. hence the use of RJ's on LAX-SFO or ORD to DFW.
  • the real transition came when someone gave these regional jets legs. i assure you when the term "regional" was first used to define an airline they didnt mean midwest to northeast.
  • then came the replacement of the mainline fleet with passenger friendly RJ's... a'la midwest
it was the advent of range that was the death blow in my opinion. we were all more than thrilled to ditch the tulsa to salina scenario to fly a CRJ-900 from Kennedy to Dallas. So thrilled we'd do it for 20 bucks. pennies on the dollar and every bit as efficient if not more. I personally never thought id see a day when id fly a CRJ route that blocked at almost 4 hours and crossed two time zones. i fly like a real pilot but get paid like a puddle jumper.


to see the bastardization of regional jets go no further than the following... FlyteComm: The Most Accurate Free Flight Tracking/Tracker Tool in the industry!
type "CVG" into the arrival airport block and look at the carriers.
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