Originally Posted by
Mason32
Why not just use the DOT ratings... and categories. That woud make it easier for everybody to know who is being talked about.
Major
National
Regional
and bring back commuter, for things like Cape Air, Colgan etc....
Mason32,
These definitions do nothing to describe the relationships between the airlines and the types of operations these airlines perform. There are no universially agreed upon terms for airline type definitions. The DOT airline categories you refer to are based solely on revenue alone for government accounting purposes and are actually called "Groups" . The terms "Major, National, Regional, Commuter, etc. have always been ambiguous terms used randomly by different parties to suit their political needs and often quoted, especially by misinformed media.
Some Group III Carriers are often referred to as "Major" while others are called "Regional". Under the revenue definitions, American Eagle, Atlantic Southeast, Comair and Skywest can all be considered "Major" airlines although their true function is to separate labor groups and create a lower scale of income and quality of life for their respective employees.
The latest
Air Carrier Groupings (Financial) were established by the DOT on November 13th, 2009:
Group III Air Carriers (Over $1 billion) - 21
ABX
Air Tran
Alaska Airlines
American Airlines
American Eagle Airlines
Atlantic Southeast
Atlas Air
Comair
Continental
Delta Air Lines
Federal Express
Frontier Airlines
Hawaiian Airlines
Jet Blue
Northwest Airlines
SkyWest
Southwest Airlines
United Airlines
UPS
USAirways
World Airways *
* Reporting in Group III by waiver.
Group II Air Carriers (Over $100 million to $1 billion) - 32
Air Transport Int'l
Allegiant Air
Amerijet
Arrow Air, Inc.
Astar
Centurion Air Cargo
Colgan
Compass
Continental Micronesia
Evergreen Int'l
Executive Airlines
ExpressJet Airlines
Go Jet
Horizon Air
Kalitta Air Service
Mesa Airlines
Mesaba Airlines
Miami Air International
Midwest Airlines
North American Airlines
Omni Air Express
Pinnacle
Polar Air Cargo
PSA
Republic Airlines
Ryan International
Shuttle America
Southern Air
Spirit Air Lines
Sun Country
USA 3000
Virgin America
Group I Air Carriers (Over $20 Million Operating Revenues) - 13
Carrier
Aerodynamics, Inc.
Aloha Air Cargo
Asia Pacific
Capital Cargo International
Casino Express
Florida West
Lynden Air Cargo
Lynx Aviation
Northern Air Cargo, Inc.
Pace Airlines
Tatonduk Outfitters d/b/a Everts
Tradewinds Airlines
USA Jet Airlines
Group I Air Carriers (Under $20 Million Operating Revenues) - 11
Carrier
Ameristar Air Cargo
Avjet Corporation
Falcon Air
Gulf & Caribbean Cargo
Kalitta Air Charters
Murray Air d/b/a national Airlines
NetJets
Sierra Pacific Airlines
Sky King
Swift Air
Victory Air
I propose separating the DOT Airline Group accounting definitions from the operational type definitions. The term "Regional" is a misnomer and needs to not be used when describing the type of flying these airlines perform. Many of these (whipsaw, outsourced, b-scale) type airlines are actually larger and generate more revenue than the "Major" partners they were designed to undercut.
winglet