Piedmont was a very good, well paying airline before being acquired by USair. Sailingfun lives down that way and may have better insight.

And you're wrong. A couple of people have made that clear.

You are biased as your wife is an eastie.

This (from the 4 Apr 2014 Flight Standards Update) ...

Surface 2 / iPad Tablets
Captain Tom Staigle: Chief Technical Pilot
• Delta’s plan to replace flight-deck paper with Microsoft Surface 2 tablet
o Shipping cost savings
o Weight savings
o Future versatility with other apps
• Blended launch – Microsoft Surface 2 and “BYOD” iPad 2,3,4 until early 2015
o After early 2015 Surface 2 only
o One platform for future apps
• FAA submission March 12th
o May 1-31: Surface 2 shipped to pilot’s home address via FedEx
o Surface 2 may be used in-flight in non-sterile cockpit environments (above 10,000’)
o June 1-30: Distributed training (distance learning) must be completed
o Once trained (with code in DBMS) and FAA approval, pilots may use Surface2 or iPad
in all phases of flight
o Paper to be removed off aircraft (except QRH, aircraft logbook and paper checklist)
when validation period ends (projected to be December 1, 2014)

Just flew a 757E from SFO to JFK today. The Captain pointed out to me that the logbook had an MEL card in the front that said Hawaiian Airlines at the top of it (tail had just come from HNL). Capt took this as a sign that we'll be merging. I thought it was weird. Good to know.

I'm bidding HNL as soon as I can hold it!

We had the opportunity to recapture that flying during our last contract but gave management 70 new 76 seaters instead for 4/8/3/3. And we'll do the same on this contract if given the choice. We'll never see RJ's at mainline. That ship has sailed.

First off, the E170/175/CRJ900 airplanes are not RJs. Management doesn't consider them RJs. They regularly refer to them as mainline-class. So, as a preliminary step towards recapturing DC9/733 flying, I suggest we stop giving them the same label as CR2s rapidly headed to the desert.

Secondly, a few things have changed from a few years ago, both within DALPA and within the regional airline industry. I wasn't happy about the scope tradeoff in C2012 and argued vigorously at the time that it was throwing a lifeline to the DCI outsourcing scheme. The inability to staff DCI may be about to render that lifeline moot. Either DAL is going to have to greatly increase what they pay for feed to make sure the OJs (Outsourced Jets) get staffed, or pay basically the same thing to have mainline fly it and take control of their product. I think our union leaders should be nudging them in the latter direction.

If you say so. I would say that you have already backed off your position that USAir "ruined" America West--after given the facts; and given a few more (which someone might be able to provide since their "wife is an eastie") your post could be seen as completely wrong.

…but I would never do such a thing to someone hiding behind such an insightful, unifying screen name. Guess Delta ruined NW as well, huh?

Delta management is smart and buying Pinnacle was part of their plan to whipsaw the other DCI carriers and reset the DCI pay scales, all while insuring their feed was not disrupted. This might have worked 5-10 years ago, but like you've said, their has been tremendous change in just two years. Delta has spent hundreds of millions on their "experiment" and now the other DCI carriers are not falling into place like they had planned. But, from what I know of Delta management, I guarantee they already have another plan in place.

Endeavor Air announced plans to hire 400 pilots this year (so far they have hired ~15) to staff the CRJ 200s that were supposed to go to the desert, but now there not, but they will, well maybe not if we can staff them!?! The biggest problem Delta/Endeavor has is they can't find anyone who wants to fly a shinny little CRJ200/900 for 20,000 dollars a year. So Delta's next move will be interesting to say the least.