JamesBond |
09-15-2016 03:12 PM |
Quote:
Originally Posted by notEnuf
(Post 2203742)
Sorry, you lost me. The population comment seems odd to me. If you mean 50s are no longer adequate and we need bigger planes I'm not buying that they must be 76s operated by DCI. We have the most diverse fleet and can target our seats in any market nicely. That was RA's answer to the analyst's question "why are you buying so many different types?"
China's population is growing but we are retiring 747s without a replacement that has nearly as many seats. London, Paris, and Amsterdam are growing too. We still have the smallest average gauge international fleet. So are Appleton, WI and Norfolk, VA and Columbus, OH. All former RJ cities now with more mainline. There are plenty more.
These are not needed in the fleet mix but they are needed to make DCI operators viable.
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I don't GAF about DCI. They are the nickels. But to address the point, if one were to start an airline from scratch today, the DC9 would be a regional airplane for precisely the reason you mentioned. The 76s are going to develop the markets that are tomorrow's Appleton, etc etc. They are big enough for 76s which are efficient, but probably not mainline. Frequency is still king.
Wrt the China comment, all I can say is this: yeah the whales are going away because they are inefficient. I hate to see them go too, but the fact is that 4 engine airplanes are dinosaurs. With them will die NRT hubbing and spoking. The future is point to point US to deep China. 350/330NEO and 787s. jmho.
Oh and CMH hasn't been a DCI city for 20 years or more.
So let's get our panties all wadded over a few 76 seat RJs. Great idea. They will probably pull 50s out of the desert as a result. just a guess.
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