Buying JB would be a dumb idea. You can't control the northeast much more than we already do. Buying JB would like you said end up costing us a enormous amount of slots that are then taken by SWA and others and we're left with a bunch of airplanes we could have had anyways and nowhere to fly them while other airlines expand in mass where we once were. It'd be the most insane move in recent airline history not to mention the insanity involved in JFK terminals.

The 100 seater "problem" wouldn't be solved since JB is already offloading E190s. We had a JB guy somewhere around here mention the E190 is not doing as well as it should. Which sucks, looks like a great airplane. And I don't think Airbus will say "hey, sorry, no room for you on the production line..." They won't because they can't afford to do that.

So really, it's just a horrible idea.

 

Everybody got to go to Chapter 11 but them. They're at a disadvantage and they've been perturbed I'm sure for years over that. They probably haven't been negotiating with their pilots because their goal has been status quo until chapter 11 and then slice and dice from there.

If AMR goes Chapter 11, this government which is absolutely anti-business, will struggle with that mightily in an Presidential election year. They can't stop it so they'll assist it in whatever way possible to make it quick and keep it under the rug.

 

I can agree with that wholeheartedly.

 

OK.. so if SWA makes $0.01 more than ATI, the ATI guys would be getting a windfall, right? I just want to be sure where you are coming from.

With that logic, SWA has X airplanes. SInce ATI will be bringing Y airplanes, the SWA FO side of the list will be getting an airframe windfall since they did not have those airframes available before the merger. How do you reconcile that?

And no, not related to Trump, but I live within my means so money is not as big an issue as it is with some.

 

Uh...I think you know that your logic is beyond suspect. The ATI pilots will be getting a $50K+ a year pay increase, if not more, from what I can tell. Even hinting that somehow compares to a "one cent" raise is like saying there is no difference between McDonald's and a kid's lemonade stand. After all they both make money selling food and drink, do they not? Disclaimer: I'm not equating the ATI pilots with the lemonade stand, just the silly $.01 analogy

As for the "airframe" argument: that would have merit if SWA got the planes without the pilots; with this acquisition they do get the planes, but planes that are already pre-staffed with pilots to go with them. No "windfall" there. The ATI pilots get a large pay increase just for doing the exact same thing they were doing before. SWA pilots don't.

 

I heard somewhere that JBLU is finding out the major checks on the 190 are double $$$ what they were originally told by ERJ and no one's happy with her.

 

What is amazing to me is the number of guys that are promoting this exact thing. I wish them well.

 

YGTBKM. I'll take the second one first. By stapling the FOs on the bottom that is EXACTLY what they get.. unfettered access to airplanes that they did not have before. Windfall.

The first one. Gotcha. Kind of like that old joke. You go up to a woman and ask her if she would sleep with you for $1 million dollars, and she says.. "Uh, OK" Then you say to her "How about $50?" and she says "What do you think I am a prostitute?" The response from you at that point is "Why, yes, we have already established that and now all we are doing is negotiating the price." So if $0.01 is a silly analogy and is NOT a windfall, what dollar figure do you have in mind that would make it a windfall? Take your time.

Look, I really don't care how this all pans out, it doesn't affect me one way or the other except that I might wind up training the FOs that realize they won't upgrade in their natural lifetimes and come over to DAL to fly the ER, but I am amazed that once again it comes back to money with you guys. Truly a sad thing IMHO.

 

What the hell was THAT?

 

No, I really don't. I can't see the DOT or DOJ signing off on it without some serious divesture of slots in NYC. It'd be a East Coast monopoly otherwise. That being said, I'm just a messenger.