Staffing was not the driver for K4 getting out of the 767 business, DHL approached K4 about reallocating the DHL owned tails to other carriers such as 21 Air as they were bidding to do the flying at a significant block hour discount from the K4 rates. So the DHL tails went into the kitty and K4 leased their tails to DHL. The reward for K4 was the ability reallocate the 767 bodies to their already short staffed 777/747 fleet.

 

After publication of this story, an Amazon spokesperson said in an emailed statement that the assertion the company is scaling back flights "due to lower demand overall and slow economic growth is false."

"As part of our annual planning, we routinely reduce our flight schedules at this time of year to account for the typical post-holiday fluctuations and for aircraft maintenance," the spokesperson said.

Amazon in October hired Hawaiian Airlines to fly large, rented Airbus cargo jets, and said it would retire some older planes.

 

The lesson in all of this is, certain carriers viewed themselves as Amazon and DHLs wives when in essence they were just the mistress...no true commitment only empty promises, false ideas about what the future holds. And they move on to the next and do the same thing all over again. Recognize the whipsaw game and dont sell each other out for a chance to ride in the front seat.

 

Boy there's an idea, i wonder why no one else thought of that?

 

Hopefully rates, a part 117 backstop, and a good trip rig by Hawaiian will stop whatever excuses the managements and pilot groups of other carriers have had up until This point. It’s complicated I get it, but DHL and Amazon be darned.

 

That's a hope but ATSG seems pretty dug in for the long fight.

 

Hopefully for the pilot groups sake. If this market is sustained for a few years then Amazon and DHL may have no choice but to go with those who can staff.

 

Good luck with that...there is always an AMJ or 21 Air, or Mesa airline that are willing to do it for less.

 

13 years of this and I’ve learned that Amazon and DHL are both scumbag operators. The profit margins for their contractors will never be high. A few years ago I was in Seattle having breakfast at the airport hotel and had my badge turned around so I kept getting glances from all the ATSG pilots trying to figure out who I was. Anyway, I heard them all bragging about how they were poaching flying from a larger (might even say “Giant”) air carrier. This other airline was in stalled contract negotiations and their opinion was that we were so embittered that we would never survive as an operator. I just smirked and chuckled to myself. Being Amazon’s golden boy doesn’t mean much. I’ve always admired my airline’s high diversification and ability to bring in high profit contracts. They know how to make cold hard cash. DHL/AZN will always just be icing on our cake, not our cake.

 

Appreciate your post. Still sounds like an Amazon/DHL problem if y’all pattern bargain up.