The company's decision to move its training and technical workers out of Minnesota means it must pay off $175 million it owes the Metropolitan Airports Commission on a 1992 loan to help then-struggling Northwest. That debt agreement, revised after Delta acquired Northwest, required it to retain its Eagan training centers -- or repay the money.

Pat Hogan, a spokesman for the commission, which owns the airport, said Delta still is obligated by lease agreements to maintain a minimum of 360 departures a day, and the airline more than meets that with 480 now.

Speaking of SEA, does anyone have any sample trips for either airplane in SEA? I know it's a wait to get out that way, but just curious what kind of trips and what directions you fly out there.

How is he really wrong? The 757 isn't a wide body and the 767 pays more like a narrow body than the other wide bodies.

2 questions. What if DAL doesn't shut down the facility but moves excess simulators in there and rents space out for the other simulators? What if it is still called NATCO training?

2nd question, do we owe $175M if we don't keep BOTH the training center and > 360 departures? Because what's the incentive now to keep 360 departures? Other than of course, 480 makes $$$.

3rd question, just thought of it. Oh wait, let me revise the thread about the training centers.

Don't know about your first question but as to the second...

The $175 M is money that we owed regardless. All that is happening now is that we have to repay it immediately as opposed to whenever it was originally due to be paid off. Not really that big of a deal for Delta, I'd imagine.

Any idea where planning will displace the DTW 320 B's too? They're saying they don't need MD90 peeps, but where else will they send them?

I envision a lot of the bottom guys being bumped to either a 9 or 88 seat in NYC or MSP.

If the interest rate is anything above ~ 8% Delta is money ahead by paying it off anyway.

Someone asked about capacity coming out of the system and hiring. They have announced DC9 retirements which are offset by MD90 acquisitions. The decision on hiring will happen once marketing tells Flight Ops what it wants to fly in Summer 2012 and beyond. Expect very late in the fall to winter quarter and then expect flow through pilots to affect the equation. Once hiring starts it should continue, unless we continue to shrink.

Someone can correct me if this is mistaken, but I believe we are planning on a smaller airline than we were after the merger and perhaps even smaller than we were (combined) post bankruptcy.

What's your plan? You gonna hang tight in DTW or VD out?

These displacements are a real wild card.