gzsg

I believe we will have a deal soon. Why? Lunacy?

Maybe

Maybe Kirby is a madman. Maybe his massive expansion will drive them into bankruptcy.

IT DOESN’T MATTER

He made $1 BILLION in Q3. He is not going to back off. 500 new aircraft in the next 55 months. Hiring advancing to 400 a month. $100 million being spent on expanding their pilot training center as we speak. The largest pilot training center in the world. New order for 100+ widebodies. New pilot bases in warm cities designed to entice new hires.

Regional fleet down to 120 in 24 months. Massive conversion of RJ gates to mainline. Doubling of some domestic hubs.

Some here get so distracted slamming Kirby. Stop that! It’s not the point. The point is Kirby is intentionally hording the new hires so we can’t grow and the tier 2 carriers will shrink. He hates Doug Parker and is going to inflict massive pain on AA.

Here is why I believe we will have a deal soon.

Bastian needs to head off Kirby. Delta is far better positioned for the raises needed to conclude a deal that will pass our MEC and MEMRAT. Pilots are so confused and think 35% raises will break the company. Raises are an expense. A $2 billion dollar increase does not make profits fall $2 billion. After TA2 that the black shirts claimed would bankrupt Delta, they made $5 billion year after year after year. After this deal they will make even more.

Fares are up by breathtaking percentages and as Glen pointed out, demand is through the roof.

I think Kirby’s Q3 profit was a rude awakening to our executives. Kirby is now for real. A force to be wrecked with.

One thing we all know about our industry. Egos abound.

Gspeed

If you think UAL is creating bases “in warm places” simply to get more pilot new hires, then I got a bridge to sell ya.

And Parker is no longer at AA. It’s Isom’s show now. I bet all three light some expensive stogies from time to time and laugh at posts like yours.


You and I generally want the same thing but my god your posts can be delusional.

tcco94

Yeah I’m sure Kirby is a real threat to our management team who is going to cut debt down while Kirby is placing more 100+ new airplane orders down just like he did at AA in an environment of horrific rates. Never heard anyone flex Kirby before just because you’re making money in an environment where people are buying any airline ticket they can get their hands on regardless if it’s 40% more than last year.

really if they WERENT making money in this market that’d be a huge red flag

gzsg

Doug Parker is the chairman of the board. Currently.

boog123

I can’t find the video now, but there was an interview with Kirby, about how things went down at AA when he was “supposed” to be the new CEO at AA when Parker left. There was a “plan” there that was to make Kirby CEO at AA.

He made the comment that he and Parker were family friends, vacationed together, etc. Parker then decided he was staying and basically told Kirby very point blank “change of plans, see ya”. You could tell even though Kirby is now at UAL, he was hurt, ****ed, whatever emotion you want to attach to it. Big business and crap aside, he was not happy about it.

sailingfun

You forgot to mention the future widebody order they might place is because they have 90 very old widebodies in their fleet. It’s a replacement not growth order.

gzsg

As always, you miss the point. Kirby has openly stated he plans to horde all the new hires so no one else can grow. I think he’s right. And now he has the massive profits to back up his plan.

If he’s growing profits he will fly all the new widebodies for growth. If they are not profitable, he will, as you imply, use them as replacements.

Like it or not, United is now calling the shots.

Starcheck102

I hope you are right.

The latest series of communications from our MEC, especially the negotiator notepad, leads me to conclude that both sides are still very far apart on compensation, scheduling and retirement.

Our negotiators have been given unfulfillable direction by an MEC that is afraid of its own membership. The outgoing administration has fewer days left than could be covered by a 60-day membership ratification period; Ambrosi can’t shake on anything because he won’t be around for the duration of the deal, and even if he did, he would be an explicit violation of process.

Since 2017, our Policy Manual has been slowly chopped and edited to put internal obstacles in front of any deal. The populists would howl like whipped dogs.

I think the MEC will make a show of requesting release to self help in the next sixty days, and get us parked by the mediator in January. They’re running out of triggers to pull. Eventually the only trigger remaining will be a TA, but that will require brains and guts, start up the dreaded time-value-of-money machine, and hilarity will ensue.

Maybe you’re hoping that Delta will make a public pitch to the pilots. That would be lunacy. I hope you’re right, but I think you are wrong.

TED74

No way management would appeal directly to us. That would disclose exactly what they think we’re worth, even the Peach Corps would see them for what they’re worth, and our entire business model would finally collapse. The only things holding this house of cards together are our insulation/gag order and some green slip addiction.

PilotJ3

Then it will happen the same that’s happening here “United has hired too many pilots between this date and this date, if you want seniority you have to go to AA or DAL”.

Kirby can try to eat the world of pilots, he won’t be able to. Not everyone wants to fly for UAL.