Originally Posted by
bryris
Here is why this won't work:
Ticket prices need to be low. Costs needs to be even lower in order to juice any profit margin out that can be gotten.
Raising ticket price is against this logic. Its reduces the competitive edge for that company = less money for the company (not you).
If the ticket prices could be raised, even a cent, the profit gained wouldn't go to you. It is the airline's ticket, their seat, their airplane, their route, their contract, their name, etc. You are seat meat - instantly replaceable by the next guy in line.
Pilots are LABOR. We don't feel that way, but they do. The "Salaries/Wages" line item needs to be as low as it can be. Regardless of how low it goes, people still sign up. If it weren't for the unions, F/O pay would rival that of a 16 year old flipping burgers and pilots would still sign up - I promise you they would.
Once again, it sucks, but it is just the way it is. Unions are a double edged sword, but you can thank them profusely for the fact that your pay is even $22/hour. The market supply of pilots could drive that way lower if it was allowed to.
First year FO pay is almost the same as a 16 year old flipping burgers. Think about this, if you got a regular job, 40 hours a week, you only need to make $10.31 an hour to match a first year FO pay. Heck, you don't really need anything above a HS diploma (if you even need that)to make $10.31 an hour, but instead you spend $20K to $50K for flight school and more for a college education...and wind up making the same thing.
But hey, you didn't have to accept the low pay. You could have went somewhere else, I suppose. If people stopped taking the job for the low pay, something would have to be done. Then again, the government would probably make Airline Pilot a government position and fire everyone (like ATC in the 80's).
As far as airline ticket prices, you should never be able to fly in a plane cheaper than it is to drive your car! That's that. Raise the prices to where they once were and people will still fly, not as often, but still fly. Business travelers will continue to fly, it's a requirement in the global market. People will take their vacation once a year, after saving for it, instead of showing up in their pajamas and jetting off to grandma's once a month for $100.
NYC to Disney - 1,113 miles
Airline ticket $89.00 ($0.079 per mile), 2.5 hours
Auto - $140.00 gas (at $2.50 average price), 17.5 hours
If your time is worth anything, that needs to be figured in too (let's face it, people fly because it saves time). So, what is your passenger's time worth? Let's just use $10 an hour as an example (Burger flipper heading to Disney).
Savings by flying - 15 hours
Gas - $140.00
Time - $150.00
Total $290.00 (not including regular operating cost such as oil & maintenance. Also, not including food stops along the way.)
So, a ticket from JFK to MCO, one way, should never sell below $290.00
Some peoples time is worth much more than $10 an hour, this was just a simple example.