Wrong. They would still have 9 planes. Boeing was taking back the 717's at a rate that satisfies the new Mexican customer. RAH's involvement had nothing to do with the loss of the 717, and has nothing to do with the rate of loss. Midwest contracted with RAH once they learned of Boeing's intention to take back the 717. RAH essentially filled in the gaps in the Midwest fleet, and is going to continue to do so.

In hindsight, Midwest may have been better off giving in to the Airtran purchase. But, we all have our pride, and we never want to see our company "lose" to someone else. Midwest had a great product, but to varying degrees the economy and the Midwest managers contributed to the collapse of a nice niche airline. Midwest will never be what it was. The 190 will not replicate the comfort of the 717, and will not be as memorable to the passengers. Midwest will likely be brought to match the Frontier model for passenger accommodation (still not bad, but not what Midwest was), and soon the main difference between Midwest and Frontier will be paint color. Brian Bedford will aim to have a single brand experience for the simple reason that it is cheaper to train and provide a single level of service, and to outift aircraft to a single standard. Frontier and MIdwest now have a codeshare agreement. I could very well see the Midwest name go away in a few years, after Midwest passengers have had a chance to experience and accept Frontier as an equal product via the codeshare.