The most entertaining radio around is listening to the JFK/LGA controllers. Love it when they ball someone out.

 

Hard time day... beacon on...

Stewardess... more coffee please.

 

I'm guessing the visibility was poor and the tower could not actually see the aircraft. If somebody makes a wrong turn or does something that they were not supposed to do, it's pretty hard for the controller to unscrew it once the pilots have screwed it up. It's not always the controller's fault.

[Do controllers ever read this forum? If so, that gives me one "Get Out of Jail FREE" card.]

 

This chart probably shows better and more easily the running argument Sailingfun and I have, which has turned ugly as of late.

Nothing I've seen suggests anything other than jobs and travel demand track hand in glove. While it is true that reducing capacity has driven up revenue ( just as it did a Northwest ), there is a back side of the power curve where capacity reductions both drive up costs and reduce demand ( just as it did at Northwest ). The same managers are following the same play book.

My question has been, and continues to be, where is the bottom?

Not that there are not signs of life. Bringing flying back to mainline is a great sign, as is the investment in our mainline fleet. I argue in favor of doing more. It appears to me our yields are slipping compared to competitors who do more of their own flying. The back side of the power curve is dangerous because the resulting yield disadvantage makes it even harder to sustain, or grow.

Revenues / Expenses / Profit / Yield (all measured by ASM - cents)

Alaska / 15.78 /15.09 / 0.68 / 12.89
- Domestic 16.36 / 15.52 / 0.84 / 13.05
- Latin 10.51 / 11.23 / (0.72) / 11.43
American / 15.91 / 16.17 / (0.27) / 15.21
- Domestic 15.54 16.24 (0.70) 14.91
- Atlantic 13.86 15.57 (1.70) 13.55
- Latin 18.63 16.29 2.34 17.71
- Pacific 13.58 16.30 (2.72) 12.04
Delta 17.95 17.13 0.82 14.70
- Domestic 22.08 19.81 2.27 15.34
- Atlantic 12.23 13.83 (1.59) 13.17
- Latin 12.80 14.19 (1.39) 13.89
- Pacific 14.85 14.27 0.57 14.93
Hawaiian 13.87 13.42 0.45 14.88
- Domestic 14.29 13.98 0.31 14.89
- Pacific 12.88 12.10 0.78 14.86
United 16.40 16.94 (0.54) 14.49
- Domestic 19.15 21.16 (2.01) 13.71
- Atlantic 12.44 12.72 (0.29) 14.69
- Latin 16.08 13.20 2.89 17.27
- Pacific 13.76 12.51 1.26 14.95
US Airways 18.82 18.51 0.32 14.60
- Domestic 19.64 19.10 0.54 14.95
- Atlantic 14.65 15.69 (1.05) 11.87
- Latin 19.06 18.30 0.76 15.35

 

2 things. I thought I read that our operating margins were in the neighborhood of 15% in the latest qtr. I don't have the info handy.

Second. Isn't AF/KLM about tojettison somewhere around 5,000 peeps?

 

Sure they have (I guess). I'm just looking at capacity & revenue; not how they make their widgets.

 

You obviously never worked for Air Jamaica. It's 8 hours "toke to yoke"!!!!

 

It makes matters worse when I'm working the radios.

Was good flying with you... and now I've got my glass of courvoisier right here!

 

I had it out with the tower chick in MSP yesterday morning. What a beeyatch.

 

Buzz, after she got done screaming at you, did you ask her,

"Wasn't I married to you once?"