FIGMO,

Welcome to the incredible shrinking airline - Delta. Although Delta is shrinking - the Delta network is growing. This is what the union, all airline unions, failed to foresee and protect against. Granted the BK gun pointed at our heads did not help, but if you go back 25 years or even longer pretty much all Pilot unions blew it. SWA is now going to experience pretty munch what everyone else already has - with one possible exception. I doubt they will repeat our disastrous Scope failures.

Sometime I feel like the guy in the cartoon climbing up the burning rope. I am making progress up the rope but never get any further from the bottom!

Scoop

 

Remember to wear green!

Scoop - Irish for a day.

 

The preponderance of indicators show that the world is undergoing a protracted, if wobbly, recovery.

As the economy (slowly ... slowly) grows and (Don't screw it away, Europe!) gathers steam, I expect mature companies like Delta to grow along with it. Combine that with the fact that we're getting tantalizingly close to that $10B debt number, and I think our seniority list will grow, not just turn over due to retirements, over the next ten years.

 

Not necessarily that uncommon for the bottom. I was hired in 99 and did 4 initial trainings by the end of 2002.

 

Or Bedrock as the case may be.

 

So, if we added 88 717's and subtracted 17 DC-9's, how many 76 seaters could they add?

 

But in order to do so they must remove 70 seaters. The number of large RJs may not exceed 255, regardless of the number of mainline airframes.

 

Wee bit o' a rant...

Hired end of '88. Told on day one we'd all be Capt's in less than 5yrs. Thought, we'll see...

Flew with guys who spent years on the panel or smashed bags (vice furlough)... got my window seat in less than a year... spent next 9yrs in right seat of 727... felt very lucky.

Finally could upgrade after 13yrs (waited 'til 16yrs... 777 FO was awesome)... again, felt very lucky.

Don't really understand the beyotching about bids/ae's/res, etc., (especially from guys hired w/in the last four years). Seems like some people haven't really payed attention to what's been going on the past 20yrs, in this seniority based biz.

P.s., As I told my 2010 hire friend when he asked for advice on bidding an ae..."if your a relatively new hire and you don't want to go to training a lot, bid to be the most senior pilot on the most junior equipment you can hold. If you want to go to training a lot, do the opposite."

Last thought... unless Delta/DALPA decide they want to recapture their Scope/flying/brand identity, we are all pretty much finished.

Happy St. Paddy's Day

 

This reminds me of captains who tell me that they made more back when they were in the right seat than they do now as captain. I guess I'm supposed to feel sorry except each time I hear it I want to tell them to imagine sitting in the right seat again for what they pay now. Perspective.

 

It's not bad up front either, it can go across the country in one stop with alternates and almost never weight restricted. No reason they shouldn't be flown at mainline along with the CRJ-700/900 which has the same mission, just less passenger comfort.